KATY, TX (Covering Katy News)—Comments by Katy ISD School Board Trustee Dawn Champagne at a recent campaign stop have shaken the already fractured relationship among members of the school board after critics say she minimized the ethnicity of Board President Victor Perez and misrepresented the board's racial diversity. Still, in interviews with Covering Katy, the board majority used the opportunity to tell their personal immigration stories, hoping it would inspire all students to believe that they too can succeed.
Champagne's comments came during a campaign appearance before the Katy Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta, a historically Black sorority. Incumbent Rebecca Fox was also there but challengers Donovan Campbell and David Olson did not attend.
At that event, she claimed that the board lacks diversity when its diversity has been increasing since the 2022 and 2023 elections, when three members from diverse backgrounds won seats on the board, and Perez became president.
At a candidate question-and-answer session, Champagne was asked which policies the board uses to address diversity, equity, and inclusion to retain teachers. She did not answer the question directly or refer to any policy the board utilizes. Instead, she said the problem was a lack of diversity in the board.
"If you just look at our board, yes, pathetic," said Champagne, a White woman seeking a third term.
Champagne said that Perez's background as a Cuban-American does not make the board look more diverse because his skin is too light.
"Well, Mr. Perez, he's Cuban, but he looks White," Champagne said.
Champagne's supporters say her comments are being taken out of context and that people must hear the entire exchange, so you can click here to see the unedited exchange. The question that spurred her controversial statement is at 1:16:16 of the video.
Stunned by Champagne's comments, Perez remained measured in his public response and used the opportunity to explain that his life experience is similar to that of first-generation immigrant Katy ISD students.
"I am surprised to hear this from a sitting board member," Perez posted on Instagram. "Yes, I am a Cuban immigrant. I am Hispanic and Latino, just like 37 percent of the Katy ISD student population. I didn't learn the English language until the age of 8. Hispanics come in all colors, just like our district."
Perez was born in Havana. He and his family survived Fidel Castro's 1959 coup. He remembers Castro's forces slapping stickers on the front door of his parents' apartment notifying them that the government had taken ownership of the building.
"Coming to the U.S. from a communist country has made me appreciate this country and the rights and opportunities we all have here," Perez told Covering Katy. "Seeing my father having to start from scratch and how hard he had to work to provide for our family, I think molded my strong work ethic, whether in my career or as a school board member. I can appreciate the struggles of new immigrants coming to our country who are now part of our school district—learning the language and trying to make a living."
This is not the first time Champagne has angered school board members. In 2022, she was censured for ethics violations by a board that did not have all the same members it has today.
The current seven-member board includes three minorities and a white member who is bilingual and married to an immigrant. Of that group, none were on the board when Champagne was censured, and the new board majority offered Champagne an opportunity to redeem herself by electing her secretary when they joined the board. Now they are telling their stories to help educate Champagne and others about their family's immigrant experience.
Amy Alsheikh Thieme
Board member Amy Alsheikh Thieme is a second-generation American of Iraqi descent elected in 2023. Her father, a Catholic, has a harrowing story of surviving religious persecution in his birth country of Iraq. He lived in poverty after his father died when he was only 4 years old. He made it to the U.S. only because he was an outstanding soccer player and established connections through membership in the Iraqi Olympic and national soccer teams.
"This is why it frustrates me to hear Dawn say what she said. I doubt she has that in her history," Thieme said. "She has no idea what my father went through."
Morgan Calhoun
School board member Morgan Calhoun is of Mexican descent. She says her family's last name was Collinas, but it changed to Collins when they settled in Texas. She says all the women in her family were strong leaders, whether running a home or raising children. One of her grandmothers managed a cantina in Laredo on the Texas border.
"Really, the only delineation that matters is that we are all Americans who come from a wide variety of life experiences and unique gifts from God, being elected by our community to oversee and care for the education of all children in KISD, regardless of ethnic background or skin color," Calhoun said.
Calhoun credits her hardworking immigrant grandparents, who "laid the foundation" for her to live the American dream.
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Morgan Calhoun
Morgan Calhoun at her engagement dinner with her aunt, cousin and grandmother.
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Morgan Calhoun
Morgan Calhoun as a child with aunt ad two grandmothers who she knew as Abuela and Nana.
Mary Ellen Cuzela
In 2023, voters also elected Mary Ellen Cuzela, a white board member who speaks Spanish fluently and is married to a first-generation American from Croatia.
"As a bilingual board member who speaks Spanish, I can communicate with the largest student group and their parents," Cuzela said. In high school, she was an exchange student who studied in Chile.
"Through my travels, I have developed a sensitivity and respect for many cultures of the world while at the same time growing a deep sense of love and loyalty to the great U.S., the world's beacon and bastion of democracy."
They all tell similar stories of assimilation and hard work. They see Champagne's comments as a positive opportunity to show immigrant students that they understand their struggles and that their life experiences show evidence that hard work pays off in America.
"When we got here from Cuba, I remember our family being given an allotment of powdered eggs and milk. I was enrolled immediately in a public school in Hialeah, Florida, and was the only Spanish speaker in the class,” Perez told Covering Katy.
He worked hard and studied hard and now Perez is living the American dream.
He graduated with an MBA in Finance from the University of Texas at Arlington and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Virginia Tech, which he attended on a football scholarship. Victor is retired from a career as a CFO in the energy industry. His career includes over 20 years of experience as chief financial officer for publicly listed oilfield service companies, two of which were initial public offerings.
Today, Perez is president of a school district with nearly 90,000 students.