As Denton ISD prepares for election season, angst over books and their content lingers.
School board incumbents Sheryl English representing Place 2 and Barbara Burns in Place 1 each face an opponent. All candidates want to take on a leadership role in one of the fastest-growing school districts in the state. Denton ISD serves about 32,000 students attending school in all or parts of 18 cities, communities or major developments.
Trustees make decisions that affect schools in a district where more than 50 languages are spoken, and the winners of the election will take their places at the dais as four large-scale campus construction projects wrap up.
The incumbents
English was elected to the Denton ISD school board in 2021. She’s the owner of Blackjack Realty Group and the mother of three Denton ISD graduates.
As a community volunteer, English has been devoted to housing. She led the board of commissioners for the Denton Housing Authority, where she focused on affordable housing for families. She was involved in a project that built a multi-unit property in Denton with a public-private partnership. The project provided 324 additional units for Denton residents seeking affordable housing.
Burns has served on the school board since 2012. She has 30 years in education and taught history and government in Denton ISD for 20 years, both in Denton and Ryan high schools. She attended Denton ISD board meetings for seven years before running for office. She earned her teaching degree at Texas Woman’s University.
The opponents
Terry Senne, a career educator and retired Texas Woman’s University administrator and professor, makes her second bid for the local school board in the race for Place 2. Senne, who describes herself as an independent, conservative Christian, lost her 2023 bid for the seat Jim Alexander left for retirement to opponent Lori Tays.
Senne’s campaign prioritizes a return to academic rigor and performance and criticizes what she said is indoctrination and sexualization of students. During her recent campaign, Senne criticized the district’s move to open a PediPlace satellite clinic in the district as part of the district’s shift to being more of a “one-stop shop” for students.
Debi Scaggs, a Denton resident who is retired, filed to oppose Burns for Place 1. Scaggs has played a key role in challenging more than 100 books in Denton ISD libraries, a move that has resulted in about 22 titles being removed from district libraries.
On Monday, the right-leaning Citizens Defending Freedom announced in a press release that Scaggs’ effort has caught the attention of Denton County Attorney Mitch Little, who was part of the legal team that successfully defended Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton during his 2023 impeachment.
Little plans to attend the Feb. 27 Denton ISD school board meeting with other concerned citizens to lobby the district to remove two books regarding gender from Denton ISD elementary schools, according to Citizens Defending Freedom. The books, Jacob’s New Dress and Jacob’s Room to Choose, were reviewed by a committee assembled by the district. The committee reportedly reviewed five, removed three and kept the two Jacob titles on shelves and in classroom collections.
Little is also running for office in Denton County. He hopes to unseat Republican Kronda Thimesch to represent Texas House District 65.
Election day is May 4. For voting information, visit the Denton County Elections Administration website.