KATY, TX (Covering Katy News) – There are two open seats on the Katy School Board this year. Position 6 is one of them. It is currently held by Rebecca Fox, the longest-serving member of the Katy Independent School District Board of Trustees. She is being challenged by businessman Donovan Campbell. The winner will serve a three-year term as a Katy Independent School District Trustee.
In this survey, we asked the candidates three questions. Their answers are below.
Question 1: Why are you running?
Rebecca Fox, Incumbent
My role as a trustee is, and has always been, about serving the needs of students. In this very important time, with all the struggles that face public education, it is vital to have experience and institutional knowledge to guide the future of Katy ISD and its well-known exemplary reputation as a leading school district in Texas. Championing students, partnering with parents, valuing teachers, and caring for the community will continue to be the pillars of my service.
We need an experienced board to oversee the budget, manage rapid growth, and recruit and retain exceptional teachers. The importance of a strong, vetted policy has been a big issue this year. A rushed policy about gender without a plan for implementation, no input from stakeholders, and no legal brief caused negative media attention about Katy ISD. Trustees are spreading misinformation about three board members, including me. They wrongly state we voted “no” to Parents’ Rights, allow boys in girl’s bathrooms, and keep secrets from parents. Those claims are completely false; the reverse is true. The policy covered many items, which we all agreed on. One small portion of the policy needed a little work for all to support it, and when time was requested to work out the details, it was denied in a 4-3 vote. These false narratives have caused negativity and fear in our community. This policy had nothing to do with increasing student outcomes. The majority of the board is NEW, very new. New isn’t a bad thing, but just as a business would not retire all its experienced employees, nor should the fifth largest district in Texas be handed over to six of seven members with little-to-no experience. My experience provides a much-needed balance. If you want a list of my accomplishments, honors, and awards, please visit www.rebeccafox4katy.org.
After this article was published, School Board President Victory Perez wrote a letter to the editor disputing Fox's claims about her gender policy vote. His response can be found HERE.
My children proudly went to public schools. They graduated from Cinco Ranch and Seven Lakes high schools, and Texas A&M and now have successful careers and happy, fulfilled lives. The foundation they received from Katy ISD teachers, coaches, and leaders prepared them well for the future. My agreement with the belief, “To whom much is given, much is expected,” is the reason I choose to be an elected volunteer trustee.
Donovan Campbell, Challenger
Generally, I believe that the heart of our republic is ordinary citizens—not professional politicians—who are willing to step into public service for a time to help govern at the local level. I want to do my part serving my country and community in this way. Very specifically, I am running because two of my five children attend Taylor High School and because I believe that parents should be personally involved in the oversight of the district. After all, no one has more interest in the outcomes of school policies than do parents with children in the system, and parents have the grounds-eye view of the effectiveness—or lack thereof—of district policies in application.
I am also running to help ensure that teachers have the tools they need to ensure safety and order in their classrooms, that families are engaged by the schools as full partners in the education and development of their children, and that administrators are held accountable to deploy taxpayer funds in pursuit of their highest and best use.
Finally, I am running because I can think of nothing more important to our country than ensuring that we are educating the next generation of future leaders to be knowledgeable and virtuous citizens, prepared to seize the opportunities of the future and overcome the challenges unique to their times.
Question 2: What accomplishments do you have that demonstrate you deserve the votes of Katy ISD residents?
Rebecca Fox, Incumbent
Accomplishments aren’t the only measure of why someone deserves the vote of the wonderful people of Katy. It is far more important to know the goals and vision they have for the future success of students. In a state with changing demographics, we have big challenges, and education is the great equalizer. Not every child has to acquire massive college debt, but they do have to be prepared to provide for themselves. In order to continue to have America compete on the world stage, we must provide an excellent education and a variety of options for their lives after high school. During my time as a trustee, we have added the Shaw STEAM center, new Agriculture Science Center, expanded programs at the Miller Career Center, including technology, medical, culinary, manufacturing, and so much more. We redesigned Raines High School with flexible hours so students can graduate on their schedule. We have built partnerships with businesses to evaluate and adapt curriculum to fill the expertise that is in high demand. We have added workforce curriculum, including electrical, plumbing, HVAC, construction, and others. A new Commercial Driver’s Program enables students to be certified upon graduation.
These are just a few avenues that have been added and improved over time. With 69% of secondary students in career and technical education classes, 224 courses, and 13 pathways to graduation, we are producing highly qualified graduates. My pound-the-table enthusiasm and insistence for wanting more opportunities for the ever-changing needs of the future will never stop. The list of changes and success since I first joined the school board won’t fit on this page, and the list I still want to implement won’t either. It is not a small thing to reflect on the growth and success of Katy ISD during my service. Growing from 40,000 to 95,000 students, adding 40 new campuses, managing growth with fiscal responsibility and lowering the tax rate to $0.39, and putting people’s money back in their pockets takes proven leadership and sound decision-making. Success isn’t an accident. Experience matters.
Donovan Campbell, Challenger
1. I have deep experience in national and local community service, with five years of active-duty service (including three combat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan) as a captain in the U.S. Marines and seven years as a co-founder and volunteer board member of NextOp, a veteran’s hiring non-profit that has placed nearly 4,000 veterans into careers since its inception in 2014. My wife and I were also foster parents from 2021 to 2022, taking in two young boys (1 and 3 years old) into our family of four in order to provide them a safe and welcoming home. We also serve in our local church as community group leaders and young couple mentors, and our family regularly volunteers for service activities in our community.
2. I am an experienced business leader, technology entrepreneur, and New York Times best-selling author who has worked in national and global technology businesses for over a decade. I helped build and sell one of Houston’s largest healthcare technology businesses, employing nearly 600 people at its height and serving over 12 million members. I am currently CEO of another national health-tech company building cutting-edge software to provide AI-driven care for patients with musculoskeletal conditions; we serve over 15 million patients annually. My business experience demonstrates financial acumen, private-sector board leadership skills, and insight into technology-driven changes across our country that can help guide our district as we navigate the challenges and opportunities brought by technology, not least of which is the recent rise of generative AI.
3. I am the father of five children, with two of them in the district, and my family actively experiences the results of the KISD school policies every day. I get ground-level insight into the state of the district every night at the dinner table, and I personally have to live with the decisions that the board makes. Put another way, I have serious skin in the game. So, I am a fierce advocate for parents’ rights, and I believe passionately that the schools must engage and fully partner with parents in the joint enterprise of student development to form the citizens of the future. As a parent, I also believe that we have to focus increasingly on creating a safe environment in which that development can occur.
And having watched my two oldest throughout high school, I believe that, next to the family, the teacher in the classroom is of paramount importance. I am a fierce advocate for quality teachers, and I believe that we must attract and retain the best. To do so, we have to ensure a safe and ordered learning environment through disciplined classrooms, keep compensation competitive, and listen to teachers to find ways to decrease stress and continue to reinforce a culture in which teachers are respected. My professional experience in high-tech businesses, where people are your greatest asset, has equipped me well for the challenge of helping to create an environment in which our educators feel that they can truly do their life’s work.
For more information, visit: https://campbell4katyisd.org/.
Question 3: As a school board member, you will supervise only one employee, the superintendent. Dr. Ken Gregorski has written numerous open letters criticizing state lawmakers over public school funding. Do you believe his public approach is helpful to Katy ISD or antagonistic toward lawmakers who also vote on the school district’s legislative agenda?
Rebecca Fox, Incumbent
Let’s talk about how public education is funded. It isn’t what most people believe. All the new houses generating taxes don’t benefit Katy ISD; those funds go to the state. Texas funds public schools through a basic allotment per student. That amount has been $6,160 since 2019, without any increase in spite of soaring inflation. The Texas Legislature allocated $4 billion to public education in the last legislative session, but these funds were never released, even after four special sessions. School districts across the state now have large deficit budgets and are making difficult cuts directly impacting classrooms. Releasing these funds and increasing the basic allotment would allow districts to compensate our deserving teachers in a way that acknowledges them as the difference-makers they are.
Now, let’s address communication from the CEO of Katy ISD, Dr. Gregorski. As the leader of the most successful district in the entire Houston area, the expectation from the school board should be for the superintendent to communicate to stakeholders. He should advocate for student learning, teacher retention, and parents’ high expectations of success since that is why they moved to Katy. Legislators are elected by constituents and work for them. They want to hear from constituents about expectations for the legislator’s service. After seven years of no funding increase during a time of double-digit inflation costs, a letter about the challenges that places on the district is needed. When the expectations for Katy ISD success is so high, parents and community should be informed when changes are made to reduce classroom support, classroom sizes are increased, and salary increases are at risk for educators. Katy ISD’s legislative agenda included increased funding as one of the core values and was developed by the community and voted on by trustees. Dr. Gregorski and all trustees should be advocating for public education with Texas lawmakers if we care about the future of our students and our state.
Donovan Campbell, Challenger
Personally, I have generally found it prudent as a leader to adhere to the practice of praising in public and criticizing in private, and I counsel the teams I lead to do the same. That said, there are times when public criticism is appropriate and necessary—to ensure clarity on moral positions or to mobilize public support to take action on a time-sensitive critical issue, for example. Without any specific insight into Dr. Gregroski’s objectives and methods, I’m hesitant to opine on the effectiveness or lack thereof of his public approach. But I can assure our readers that, as a board member, I will work to ensure that we have the most productive possible relationships with state lawmakers.
To learn more about the Rebecca Fox and Donovan Campbell read our profile story here.
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