Voters across Bexar County have ousted several incumbent school board members and approved bond issues that focus on renovating buildings, updating technology and improving school safety and security in three school districts, in unofficial final results.
Judson ISD
Voters in the Judson Independent School District ousted incumbents Renée Paschall in at-large Place 6 and Rafael Diaz in at-large Place 7.
Laura Stanford, a senior mortgage loan officer, received about 53% of the votes against Paschall, a retired educator.
Monica Ryan received 71% of the votes against Diaz.
Board members strategically planned a superintendent search to be completed prior to the election to prevent any disruption to the process. They selected a lone finalist just weeks ago.
The superintendent search was spurred by the sudden departure of the previous superintendent, Jeanette Ball, who left for the top job at the Southwest Independent School District.
Place 1 incumbent Suzanne Kenoyer ran unopposed.
San Antonio ISD
One new face is headed to the San Antonio Independent School District board of trustees.
In District 5, Stephanie Torres beat Geremy Landin and will replace longtime Trustee Patti Radle, who did not run for reelection.
Torres, who is a caregiver, said that she was overwhelmed and excited by the response she got from the voters.
“I give credit to parents, community members, students and … substitutes having my back,” she said.
Despite Radle saying she would vote for Landin, he only clinched about 43% of the vote.
With a financial crisis on the horizon due to the ending of federal COVID-19 relief dollars and rising inflation, Landin said Saturday night that Torres should be focused on fiscal accountability, including the possibility of closing schools.
“Nobody wants schools to close, but we do need people who are on the board who are going to be able to say … I’m looking at this from the perspective of a board member, whose job it is to make sure that our district stays standing,” he said after early voting numbers were reported. “I really hope that if Mrs. Torres is elected [she is] really mindful of the fact that these conversations are coming.”
Torres, who has a child in the district, told The Report he was left reeling after a decision years ago to close a campus, which was made after years of failing accountability scores. But Torres said Saturday night that she was ready to have those conversations.
“I understand that we need to consolidate our schools and I hate to close them,” she said. “But we can make sure that the parents and students know what the closure is or what the consolidation is.”
She said input from parents, students and employees will be essential to that process.
Torres, who told The Report that she has dyslexia, said she hopes to be a role model and advocate for students with disabilities.
In District 2, incumbent Alicia M. Sebastian, the board’s vice president who was elected in 2019, was reelected with 68% of the vote over challenger Mateen A. Diop.
Sebastian is currently the executive assistant to the CEO at Essence Preparatory Public School, according to her district biography. Diop is an Air Force veteran and former teacher, principal and school district executive.
During emotional remarks after she won, Sebastian said that she would continue advocating for the underserved community SAISD serves.
“Although I may have felt a little tired, I never felt defeated,” she said tearfully. “My God-given purpose is children, and I will not apologize and keep it a secret that our community has been underserved for way too long. I’m an advocate for children and will continue to create and provide resources for them.”
Incumbent board President Christina Martinez, who represents District 6 and is the executive director of the Dee Howard Foundation, won her race against Valerie Avila with 66% of the vote.
Southwest ISD
In an upset race for the Southwest ISD Board of Trustees, which runs its elections with the city of Lytle, voters chose James Gonzalez with 28% of the vote and José “Joe” Diaz with 26% of the vote for the two at-large spots, unseating incumbents Yolanda Garza-Lopez and Pete “Pedro” Bernal. Less than 2,000 people voted in the race.
Other candidates included Terri Solis and Raul Leonida Nuques.
Voters also approved two bond proposals for the district.
The proposals, which totaled $250 million, will be used to construct two new elementary schools, add classroom wings, fund school safety upgrades, and update and renovate Southwest High School stadium.
Ball, the superintendent of the district, said that the bond was necessary given the rapid growth in the region.
“Southwest ISD has changed a lot recently in regards to all the growth,” she said Saturday night. “Back when I started here in 1995, there weren’t these apartment complexes that went up.”
The growth, along with safety and security, are key priorities for the district right now, Ball said.
Work with architecture firms and designers will begin immediately, she said.
“It will take about 18 months once we break ground, so we will definitely need to start to do that,” she said. “And also start to address everything that we need in the area of safety and security for our faculty. … We’ll be able to start to make some of those changes right away.”
Alamo Heights ISD
In the Alamo Heights Independent School District, which canceled school board elections due to the incumbents running unopposed, voters approved three separate bond proposals totaling $371 million.
“I’m incredibly grateful for what we feel like at this point is the overwhelming support of our community to meet the students’ needs that were identified in this bond proposition,” Superintendent Dana Bashara said.
The propositions included:
- Proposition A, a $344 million bond issue that will fund projects including updates to all campuses, technology improvements, school safety and new school buses. Sixty-nine percent of voters approved the proposition.
- Proposition B, a $17.3 million bond issue that will fund athletic projects including the visitor bleachers, team spaces and the student sports media program equipment, was approved by 59% of voters.
- Proposition C, a $9.7 million bond that will go toward technology replacements for students and staff, received 68% of voter approval.
Bashara said that the district will be working with the community over the next year to “talk through the design process, around what these different propositions will entail, and what this will eventually look like in our community.”
Board President Brian Hamilton said that the voters can continue to be involved.
“Their involvement doesn’t end at the ballot box,” he said. “But really, over the next year and getting their input, having them be a part of this process, as they have since day one. So we’re excited.”
Comal ISD
Voters in the Comal Independent School District, which is partly in Bexar County, passed two of three bond propositions, with 56% approving a bond focused on technology and infrastructure and 59% for one focused on growth and reinvestment. Only 45% voted for a third proposal that would have been used for stadium projects, defeating the measure.
Northside ISD
Northside Independent School District voters stuck with the school board incumbents and selected two new trustees for those who didn’t seek reelection.
In District 1, David Salcido, a disabled veteran, got 53% of the votes over Amy Hoffman, a fitness instructor, to replace Trustee Joseph H. Medina, who did not run for reelection.
District 2 incumbent Gerald Lopez, a small business owner who has been elected multiple times, won his race against two challengers with 44% of the vote. His challengers were Manuel Garcia, an A/V production specialist, and Mary Olison, a retired educator.
In District 3, Karla Duran, who works in education, won 48% of the vote and will replace Trustee M’Lissa M. Chumbley, who did not seek reelection.
Others vying for the spot included Ty Chumbley, M’Lissa M. Chumbley’s son who is a college professor, and Vera T. Billingsley, a tutor.
In the most crowded race, incumbent Bobby Blount, an engineer who was first elected to the board in 1999, held onto a lead with 30% of the votes. The rest of the vote was split among his six challengers for his District 4 seat.
Other candidates included: George M. Ayala, an accountant; Raul Davila, who is self-employed; Kimberly S. Jones, who works in customer support; Gabriel Lara, a retired firefighter; Mathews Ninan, a consultant and retired officer; and Jordan Jo Wagner, who is self-employed and works as a substitute teacher.
Harlandale ISD
Harlandale ISD had three races on the ballot.
In District 5, voters chose incumbent Elaine Anaya-Ortiz with 74% of the votes over Guillermo Altamirano.
According to campaign filings, Altamirano is a real estate agent and Anaya-Ortiz works as an administrative assistant.
District 6 incumbent Elizabeth F. Limon, who retired from HISD, lost to Rebecca “Becky” Ruiz, who got 51% of the vote.
District 7 incumbent Ricardo Moreno, who is an assistant principal, handily defeated his challenger, Jesse Jay Alaniz, who is retired, with 75% of the vote.
