When school resumes on Wednesday, August 18, students and staff members at two Katy ISD elementary schools will start the school year with new principals. This week, KISD Superintendent Ken Gregorski appointed Kara Morgan principal of Bethke Elementary and Lisa Frison as principal for Winborn Elementary.

Both educators hold more than 20 years of experience in education and are familiar faces within Katy ISD.

Kara Morgan has had the unique opportunity of educating students of all levels and demographics ranging from 3rd through 12th grades. She began her career in education in 2001 at Sutton Elementary, just east of Katy ISD, at Houston Independent School District where she was a team leader for fifth-graders in addition to facilitating English as a Second Language (ESL) interventions for third through fifth-graders. She went on to teach sixth-graders in Fort Bend ISD in 2006. While there, in 2007, she moved into administration to serve as assistant principal at First Colony Middle School and then associate principal at Bowie Middle School and Sugar Land Middle School between 2011 and 2017.

Morgan joined KISD in 2017 as an assistant principal at Tompkins High School. Most recently, she was given the opportunity to establish a new KISD campus in 2020, when she opened Jordan High School as the sophomore assistant principal. Morgan holds a bachelor of arts in Psychology from the University of Houston and a master of science in Educational Management from the University of Houston in Clear Lake.

“I would like to express how much of an honor it is to become a part of the Bethke family of educators and community members,” Morgan said. “My passion has always been working with students in their young transition years and growing their knowledge base with life experiences and a solid foundation. It is already evident to me that Bethke is a very special place to be and I look forward to continuing our partnerships,” added Morgan.

Lisa Frison has 27 years of teaching and leading experience, 15 of which have been with KISD. Her teaching career began in 1994 when she joined Blue Valley Unified School District, found within the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, as a sixth-grade math teacher. Two years later she moved to Texas when she took on the role of a third-grade and a fifth-grade teacher at Hunters Creek Elementary in Spring Branch ISD. In 2006, Frison joined KISD at Griffin Elementary where she spearheaded multiple roles within the next 10 years of her career, including instructional coordinator, instructional coach, math liaison and fourth and fifth-grade math and science teacher. In 2016, she made a career move to Beck Junior High as the school’s new assistant principal. As KISD continued to see an influx of student growth, Frison moved to Adams Junior High as the campus's assistant principal where she assisted in the hiring process, the school's logo and branding initiative and ultimately the opening of the newest campus in KISD. Frison holds a bachelor of science in Education from the University of Kansas and a master of science in Educational Management with principal certification from the University of Houston in Clear Lake.

“Being named Principal of Winborn Elementary is the highlight of my career,” Frison said. “I am excited to collaborate with staff, students, and parents as we continue to support the legacy of excellence in the Winborn community,” added Frison.

Both educators are beginning their roles as principals this summer in preparation for the upcoming 2021-22 school year.