Across Keller ISD, voters in the district’s school board election will likely decide between two voting factions: the ballot’s two incumbents, both supported by political action committees, or their challengers, three parents of Keller ISD students.
Incumbent Charles Randklev, challenged by Adrienne Sullivan, is running to keep his Place 6 seat while incumbent Heather Washington, who faces DaLana Barsanti and Dixie Davis, aims to keep her seat on Place 7.
Randklev and Washington did not respond to multiple Fort Worth Report requests for comment.
Early voting started April 22 and ends at 7 p.m. April 30. Election Day is May 4.
Race for Place 6
Randklev, who’s served on the district’s board since 2021 and currently serves as board president, will face Keller ISD mother of three Adrienne Sullivan in the race to keep his seat.
In 2021, Randklev, a research scientist at Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute, defeated two other candidates by securing 66% of the vote.
Since then, he’s proud of the work he’s done in Keller ISD, according to his profile on the district’s website. As board president, Randklev played a large role in the search for and eventual hire of Superintendent Tracy Johnson last year and the appointment of trustee Washington in January.
“Education is the greatest equalizer, and access to a quality public education is a key ingredient to ensuring our children realize and achieve their full potential,” Randklev said on the district’s website. Living in the Keller ISD area since 2001, Randklev has two kids who attend the district’s Florence Elementary School.
Since the start of his campaign, Randklev has raised nearly $28,000 in political contributions. In comparison, Sullivan has raised $1,645.
Randklev has also found support from nationally funded political action committees, like 1776 Project PAC and the Patriot Mobile Action PAC, which have endorsed him through social media posts and their websites. Patriot Mobile, a Grapevine-based cell phone company, has earned headlines for its financial support of conservative candidates in North Texas school districts, including Keller, Grapevine-Colleyville, Mansfield and Carroll.
Sullivan, a Keller ISD mother of three, is running to advocate for public schools, as she calls herself an “avid public education proponent,” and to help retain and recruit the best educators.
“We need to dramatically improve morale in the district among our educators if we want to recruit and then retain the best,” Sullivan said.
A common speaker at Keller ISD board meetings, attendees often hear Sullivan’s usual preface to the board: “I’m Adrienne Sullivan, mother of three. …”
And as a mom to a child enrolled in the district’s special education programs, she’s passionate about providing and making better those services, she said.
If elected, priorities would revolve around special education, fighting for public school funding and teacher recruitment.
“I do not support vouchers and will advocate for an increase in the per-student allotment and a change to enrollment-based funding instead of our current attendance-based model,” Sullivan said.
Race for Place 7
In the race for Place 7 on the district’s board, Washington faces Barsanti and Davis, two moms of Keller ISD students who were inspired by their children to campaign for the position.
Washington, the race’s incumbent, was appointed to her seat and has yet to serve a full term on the board. She was appointed Jan. 3, after a previous trustee stepped down Dec. 11, taking the seat over for the four-plus months leading up to Election Day.
Washington previously told the Fort Worth Report that her number one priority is in finding ways for Keller ISD to push through its budget obstacles.
“My priority? Budget,” Washington said. “Make sure our schools are running properly and keeping all of our great teachers and staff in a position to teach our children.”
Another focus for Washington, who has two children in the district’s dyslexia program, is in fighting for Keller ISD’s special education students, she said.
Like Randklev, Washington has raised tens of thousands of dollars in support from Keller ISD community members and residents of the area. She is also supported by 1776 Project PAC and Patriot Mobile Action PAC.
Since Washington was appointed in January, she’s raised more than $19,000 compared to Davis’ $8,524 and Barsanti’s $2,420.
“I’m very passionate about our school district,” Washington said. “We have great staff, great teachers that care a lot for our kids, and I want better for them.”
Barsanti, a mom of six, four of whom attend or graduated from Keller ISD schools, is running because she wants to give back to the district that gave a quality education to her kids.
“Keller ISD fought for my kids in the classroom and it’s time to return the favor,” Barsanti said.
If elected, Barsanti’s priorities would center on special education, as one of her sons has Down syndrome and autism, and in turning around the district’s financial burdens. Keller ISD recently announced staffing cuts and faces a $27 million deficit in its 2024-25 budget.
“Keller ISD did not trim the fat off its budget, we did not plan for a financial drought and here we are,” Barsanti said. “Our enrollment is stagnant and we didn’t change our spending habits … spending kept going up and up.”
As a former board member for M.E.N.D., a nonprofit organization that provides support to mothers enduring a neonatal death, Barsanti is confident in her ability to manage a budget, she said.
Also inspired by her children, Davis entered the race because her daughter is set to attend Bette Perot Elementary School for the 2024-25 school year.
Davis, a former board member for the League of Women Voters of Tarrant County, wants to make sure her daughter and all Keller ISD students get the most comprehensive education they can, she said.
The budget crisis facing the district doesn’t leave her too confident in the current board’s ability, she said.
“I’m really concerned that we are losing so many great teachers due to budget cuts and I don’t think it has to be this bad,” Davis said.
Like Barsanti, Davis will focus on the budget to ensure students’ educational opportunities aren’t diminished by the $27 million deficit. But, Davis wants to place a greater emphasis on teachers and in giving Keller ISD’s educators the support they need.
“Our priority right now should be keeping as many teachers as we can, keeping as many great programs as we can,” Davis said.
Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @MatthewSgroi1 on X. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
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