Across the nation, many Democrats performed well in their respective elections despite Joe Biden’s low approval ratings. What is lost in the headlines, however, is the right-wing takeover of the Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District (Cy-Fair ISD), which is the third-largest school district in Texas. Thanks to support from Ted Cruz and multiple right-wing PACs, such as Texas for Educational Freedom and Cy-Fair for Liberty, Todd LeCompte, Justin Ray, and Christine Kalmbach have won their respective elections for Cy-Fair ISD trustee positions 1, 3, and 4. As a result, conservatives dominate the Cy-Fair ISD’s board of trustees by 6 to 1.
This year’s election reflected a growing national trend of partisan political groups influencing nonpartisan board races, which have become the latest battleground for issues such as book banning and gender fluidity. However, some candidates argued the issues aren’t political, but a matter of values.
"Voters across Houston and Harris County are hungry for change from strong Republican candidates who they know will improve their communities through common sense, conservative policies,” Harris County GOP Chairman Cindy Siegel said in a statement regarding the election of GOP-endorsed candidates in Houston and Harris County races.
When sworn in, the winners are set to serve four-year terms on the school board.
Not surprisingly, many right-wing voters are giddy about stymieing Cy-Fair ISD’s middling moderate majority within the school board trustees.
“We’ve allowed the left in this country to run education probably for about six decades,” said Cy-Fair grandparent Clark Denson, who voted for the winning candidates. “Republicans and conservatives are not as voiceful, traditionally. … I think that’s changing.”
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Some, like Cy-Fair resident Dave Juda, were drawn to the polls to vote for the Republican-endorsed candidates, preferring the traditional approach they campaigned on.
“I don’t like the current board. They’re too radical,” Juda said. “I’m looking for conservative guys and girls. I’m primarily for education, not indoctrination.”
LeCompte, Ray and Kalmbach campaigned on returning to the “basics” of education and keeping liberal ideologies out of the classroom, a conservative critique used to argue that topics such as race and gender shouldn’t be discussed in schools.
This approach, which they’ve argued will improve student outcomes, attracted Denson, the grandparent. He said the new conservative trustees represent his Christian ideals and won’t entertain far-left education issues.
“Having kids that can read, write, spell, history, arithmetic, sciences,” Denson said. “These are important things, not social emotional learning, not counseling. Frankly, over my dead body, am I ever gonna sit by and idly allow a board of any kind to let such dastardly policies come into play, that don’t belong.”
Nevertheless, there are some that feel that Cy-Fair ISD will be in the news for all the wrong reasons; the sagas playing out in Southlake and Grapevine have received attention well outside of Texas.
Some Cy-Fair residents have expressed fear that a new conservative majority would lead the district to get tangled up in the culture war issues that have led its neighbors, like Katy Independent School District, to make constant controversial headlines.
“I’m concerned about policies that may pass that are harmful to marginalized students,” said Lesley Guilmart, president of grassroots group Cypress Families for Public Schools. “Policies that might require parental permission on pronouns and name changes and requiring teachers to out students. I’m really concerned about our students’ mental health.”
“Conservative values” are truly what the nation needs, especially in schools. /s