On your ballot: Incumbent faces career educator in Place 2 race for Denton school board

English is a longtime Denton resident and real estate agent who has broken barriers in the organizational bodies in Denton. English is the first Black woman to serve on the Denton Chamber of Commerce board, and is the first Black woman to serve on the school board in Denton.

She’s lent her skills to a number of local agencies. A feather in her cap came as the chair of the board of commissioners for the Denton Housing Authority, where she was involved in the construction of a multi-unit property in Denton with a public-private partnership that provided more than 300 additional units for residents. She’s worked on local and regional homelessness and housing and redevelopment initiatives. As a school board member, English is focusing on support for students, teachers and administrators.

Senne returns as a candidate for the school board after a failed bid to fill the Place 6 seat Jim Alexander left when he retired in 2023. The self-described conservative candidate has extensive experience in higher education, and Senne’s campaign prioritizes academic rigor as well as greater transparency from the school board. Senne also promotes much more access for parents and taxpayers to their school leaders.

The following candidate profiles, compiled by the Denton Record-Chronicle and completed by the candidates, have been edited lightly for clarity and length.

Early voting begins Monday, April 22, and ends April 30. Election day is 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on May 4. To find your polling place and sample ballots, visit the Denton County Elections Administration website.

Sheryl L. English

Age: 60

Birthplace: Fort Riley, Kansas

Years lived in Denton: 22 years

Family attending/attended Denton ISD: Three graduates of Denton ISD, graduated in 2012, 2014 and 2016.

Education: Associate of Arts degree, North Central Texas College; completed general studies and received degree in 2022 from NCTC; Bachelors of Science degree in political science, Texas Woman’s University, also in 2022.

Professional experience: Realtor, 33 years

Website: sherylforschoolboard.com

What do you believe should be the top priorities of the school district, and, if elected, how would you advance those priorities?

The top priorities are student funding, student safety and teacher retention. I’m going to continue to advocate at the state and federal level on behalf of our teachers and students in our district.

What influence should parents or guardians have in school operations and curriculum, and how will you navigate their requests or concerns?

The district follows the guidelines of the curriculum set by the State Board of Education and the Legislature. Parents who have any concerns can always reach out to the district administration regarding their concerns.

The district is always — and has always been — in relationship with parents who have concerns about their children’s learning. Additionally, the district is always welcoming in parental support. We have active parent groups, i.e. PTA and grandparent groups, who volunteer at our schools and are great partners in our district.

Given the challenges public schools face with funding, how would you allocate resources to strengthen teacher retention and classroom and student support?

The district has already allocated a 3% increase to teachers with the expectation of receiving funding from the state to give public schools the funding that they so urgently need, and they haven’t thus far.

The retired teachers need an increase as well. Teachers should be making the same as first responders, because they are, and if I could make that happen, I surely would.

As for now, we have to work within the parameters we have and make sure that the programs we need for our students stay intact in order for our teachers to have what they need to do their job. It is crucial for teacher retention, and that’s just a small part.

We respect and trust the professionals who work tirelessly for the kids in our district, and we will continue with the listening tours and pin ceremonies to hear their concerns and help in any way we can so they will be successful and supported. I appreciate every last person in our district.

Terry Senne

Age: 69

Birthplace: Elmhurst, Illinois

Years lived in Denton: 17

Family attending/attended Denton ISD: None

Education: Teaching certification in physical education, George Williams College, 1977; curriculum and instruction concentration, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1987; doctorate in educational research and policy analysis, North Carolina State University, 1997

Professional experience: 40-year professional career in education and administration; retired director of academic assessment and kinesiology professor emerita at Texas Woman’s University; public school teacher and coach for middle and high school levels, eight years; teacher educator, 22 years; higher education administrator, 10 years.

Website: terryfordentonisd.com

What do you believe should be the top priorities of the school district, and, if elected, how would you advance those priorities?

Establish a quality academic education with student learning performance outcomes that are measurable, meaningful and manageable:

• Strongly emphasize foundations in reading comprehension, writing and mathematics. Return to an academics-focused classical education curriculum.
• Provide a safe and productive learning environment with leadership support.
• Embed citizenship throughout the curriculum.

Fiscal accountability and transparency:

• Work to achieve a balanced budget regardless of state contribution. No new actions or projects until a balanced budget is achieved. Conduct a forensic audit with an independent outside auditor.
• Protect teachers and their development at all costs.
• Reduce administration positions and salaries. Funnel savings into teacher salaries and teacher development.
• Require departments to reduce budgets by 20% with rationale and measurable outcomes.
• Prioritize the most critical items first, given the board’s goals. Implement, assess, evaluate, repeat process.

Accountability and transparency in board actions:

• Build a comprehensive review of current, proposed board policies and projects to ensure accountability and transparency.
• Respect concerned parents and taxpayers by eliminating policy loopholes.
• Communicate with all Denton ISD regions in various ways to garner alternatives to proposed projects and policies in advance of deadlines for board action.
• Create a Denton ISD scorecard on all actions and policies approved by board.

What influence should parents or guardians have in school operations and curriculum, and how will you navigate their requests or concerns?

Constitutionally, all parents and guardians have the God-given right to educate their children in a manner they deem appropriate. While the State Board of Education — via the Texas Education Agency and Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills — currently provides the framework for instruction and curriculum, parents and guardians should be able to voice concerns, issues and provide input at any point in time. Total access to ISD curriculum and instructional materials must be provided and parental feedback needs to be respected and honored.

Likewise, the same is true to an extent with school operations. Parent/guardian input needs to be considered by the board and revisited for modification, particularly if it is in the best interest of the safety, security and protection of students. This may extend to teachers and staff as well. Policies impacting school operations must be clearly visible, not buried, on the Denton ISD website.

Given the challenges public schools face with funding, how would you allocate resources to strengthen teacher retention and classroom and student support?

Teachers are leaving Denton ISD for two reasons, primarily. First, teachers are leaving the ISD because of being required to implement instruction that goes against their beliefs and moral values, especially as it relates to the way the ISD interprets social-emotional learning, gender ideology and the sexualization of students embedded in the curriculum. Secondly, teachers are leaving the ISD due lack of support for student discipline management.

In my own research in teacher development, if a teacher cannot establish a fair, consistent behavior management plan, student learning cannot occur. The ISD leadership is responsible for establishing a strong framework for behavior management, whereby appropriate levels of consequences are provided, commensurate with inappropriate behavioral actions taken. These consequences must be enforced on a fair and consistent basis. All students need a structure in which to operate. Administrative leadership support in backing the teachers is key. If this is not the case, teachers often leave.

Teacher development is key. And teacher professional development should be conducted with master teachers in their specific discipline. A teaching and learning framework that includes development of teaching skills and provision of necessary support, given a teacher’s stage of development, can greatly enhance the retention of teachers.