Three candidates for Katy ISD’s board of trustees made another stop on the campaign trail Saturday at a candidate forum hosted the Katy Area Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. at Powerhouse Church, 1818 Katyland Drive in Katy.

Both candidates for Position 1 – incumbent and board president Victor Perez and challenger James Cross – attended, but write-in candidate Khristopher Fields was the lone contender for Position 2. Sorority officials said that the two other Position 2 candidates – incumbent Lance Redmon and challenger Tammy Reed – were traveling and unable to attend.

The program, moderated by the sorority’s social action committee member Rosemary Anthony, consisted of questions ranging from candidates’ backgrounds and reasons for running for office to pedestrian safety to running a bipartisan and “clean campaign.” Other topics included school vouchers, school safety and DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion).

Fields said that he is running as a “generational thinker” who wants to bring new ideas and to challenge the status quo in order to make Katy ISD a “showcase district.” Cross said that he wants to continue serving the students and teachers of Katy ISD, emphasizing his knowledge of campus operations and how they are impacted by board decisions as well as his collaborative leadership with staff and parents. Perez said that he is running for re-election to prevent “a liberal takeover of the board” and that he stands for ”conservative common sense Katy values.”

Perez said that one of his concerns was that 40 to 45 percent of KISD students do not read or do math at grade level and that he wanted to help groups that were struggling, including “certain ethnic groups.” He said that he also wants to ensure that special education and school safety programs are fully funded, along with career and technical education. Fields said that he would probably be the only board member in the history of Katy ISD to target that 40 to 45 percent and “make a measurable difference” and that he would bring “a fresh energy, a fresh voice that you’ve never seen before.” Cross said that his first priority was to help increase the state’s basic allotment – “we have to pour money into education,” he said, allowing the district to hire people and to fund special education. Teachers are doing more and more with less and less, he said. The number one predictor of student success, Cross said, is income level and as a school district “we have to recognize where we can jump in and help those kids be successful.”

Anthony asked, in the context of “bipartisanship,” how each candidate would ensure that all values and voices of the Katy community would be represented. Cross said as an administrator he listened to all in gathering information from the community and then processing it as a whole “to see what makes the most sense.” Fields questioned the authenticity of “listening to all,” asking “if we really hear them,” saying that “we need to look at our implicit bias …and look at injustices in our community.” Perez said that after becoming board president, he instituted two board meetings per month in order to create

more opportunities for public input. He defended board policies on gender fluidity and book removals, saying that he and the board did what they thought was best.

Regarding school safety, Anthony asked candidates to “commit” to continuing to improve pedestrian safety in Katy ISD if elected. Fields said that this item was not on his agenda because he had other priorities and would not commit on this issue but would make sure that the issue is solved. Perez said that it was the responsibility of the board to listen to the experts and that many pedestrian safety measures were handled by the counties and outside KISD control. Cross said that the district needed to be ready to spend more money for additional staff to help kids get to and from school.

On vouchers and specifically on the funding of Title 1 schools, Fields said that recently vouchers were voted out of the Texas House and he recognized the role of parents in their child’s success. Cross said that Title I schools need more support, especially for smaller class sizes. Regarding vouchers, he said, “It’s really private schools that get the choice when it comes to vouchers,” and those schools can deny admission to any student. He also cautioned the need for balance between input from parents and expertise from teachers and others in the school system in determining what is best for a student. Perez said that he is pro-public education but that as a trustee he had no role in the voucher issue. Instead, he considered it a “moral responsibility” to fund public schools. He said that Katy ISD provides more pathways to be successful. “Without vouchers, Katy ISD will be just fine – we may even be able to generate revenue from fees through providing services to private schools,” he said.

DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion), defined by the moderator as advocating for the deep diversity of the Katy community in regard to race, religion and gender identity, was the next question. Perez said that he had a deep respect for the diversity of the district but was not in favor of DEI generally because he was not in favor of judging people only by their race but instead wanted to judge people on their merits. He said that the district had policies in place regarding bullying of students because of their race or gender identity. Cross said that Houston and Katy are among the most diverse communities in America and that it was not a good thing if kids looked around the building and didn’t see anyone who looked like them. He also said that he wanted to hire the best people regardless of background. Fields questioned the reliance on existing policies and that having a policy did not guarantee action. He said he was not a champion of DEI initiatives but of multiculturalism.

Candidates were asked to address the needs for “social and emotional learning.” Cross said that this has also been referred to as “character education” and that it was difficult to find time for it in the school day, but that there were both “intentional and natural ways to do that.” He said that while at Cinco Ranch High, he used a program called “Character Strong” and that some kids loved it and some did not. Fields again urged thinking about implicit biases and how students are labeled and categorized. Perez said that he was skeptical about SEL because it “has morphed into something that was not originally intended.” He questioned the role of SEL in replacing parents and in treating kids as fragile. He said that he liked the virtue and character parts of the program but that it should not replace parents.

The last question asked of candidates was about running a clean campaign and collaborating with all board members and included the opportunity to make a closing statement. Perez read from his prepared remarks, listing teacher recruitment and retention as well as special education as top priorities,

but did not directly answer the question on conducting a clean campaign. Cross pointed to his experience as teacher leader and principal in bringing people together. and said that his role was to listen and consider and to “have reasonable conversations.” He said that he hoped he was running a clean campaign and that he did not want to disparage anyone running. Fields applauded the two other candidates and said at the end of the day, they all wanted the same thing, even if there were different ways to get there. He said that his opponent has had two terms to make a difference and “is not very convicted in his views,” and urged attendees to vote for him as a write-in candidate

Perez is a retired chief financial officer in the energy industry. Cross is a career educator with 30 years of experience as a teacher and school administrator, of which 20 years are in Katy, and since retirement, he has worked for a public policy advocacy group. Fields is the founder and principal officer of the Wise Up to Rise Up ™ Foundation, dedicated to fostering a love for learning among young people, particularly in underserved areas. During the forum, Fields said that he had been a behavioral specialist in a school district but did not give other details, and the experience is not listed on his LinkedIn profile.