Public Forum Responses

Damian Johnson, Wylie, TX (resident)

“Thank you for giving us time to stand before you and speak. Every day, you put strategic, intentional work into leaving this community a better place than you found it. That marks the true nature of a person. It doesn't go unnoticed. But as we all know, community platforms can also be weaponized for personal gratification and divisive messages. Previous when I was here, I'll share some details about my son. This week, he'll be graduating from Columbia, not just Columbia, but Columbia's engineering program. And my youngest son is going to UT. We raised our sons on one principle: teach them how to think, not what to think, how to formulate decisions and beliefs and not what to believe. My wife and I talk to our kids on a daily basis when they lived with us. We ask questions. Those questions start out surface and get deeper and more detailed as we go. This is a normal experience in our home. We want to know everything that's going on with them and we want to help them parse out how to think about what's going on. We don't want to teach them what to think. While not a Muslim, I have zero issues with my kids learning their doctrine.

I've taught them how to research and how to process information. While the recent campus incident may have bypassed ISD protocol, the real dilemma wasn't the protocol; it was the reaction of hate. If we applied that same level of playing field, this community would be equally outraged about Bibles being handed out on campus, yet one is deemed acceptable while the other is treated for the grounds of termination. While I want my kids to be Christians, I want them to understand why they are Christians. I truly appreciate the members of the Muslim community coming to the campus in peace and with good hearts. Their intent speaks volumes compared to the outside political agitators who show up with Bibles, not because it's right, but because Muslims passed out Qurans. One wants reaction and clickbait, while the other wants interaction and interpersonal connections. Oh, I've got time today to call out the hypocrisy of these outsiders hiding behind the Bible, coming into our community, stirring up trouble, and then leaving in the still of the night...[time expired].” -Damian Johnson, Wylie, TX (resident)

Kyle Sims, McKinney, TX (non-resident)

“Good evening, board. I heard two words when all those young students were standing up here accepting their awards and congrats to every one of them for their hard work. One was problem-solving, one was critical thinking. I wish problem-solving and critical thinking would have been on your mind when my wife and I stepped in the first board meeting last September and I was accused of chasing a principal and her child across the parking lot, a campus I'd never been to. And then this principal's husband decided he was going to give my wife the middle finger and smirk at her when she never stepped foot in this town. I simply come to this town to stand up for somebody that wanted to start a club.

There was no issue when somebody wanted to bring Qurans and hijabs and Sharia law pamphlets, which, by the way, Sharia law does not supersede our constitutions. So I hope over the summer y'all will think about doing more critical thinking and problem solving, especially when staff wants to come after me on my public Facebook page, which is fine. I don't really care. But if somebody thinks I'm going to be silenced for what happened to me and my bride of 35 years and we have seven grandchildren scattered out through Collin County, you're highly mistaken. These kids do need to be taught how to think and not what to think. I agree with that. But we cannot expect an ideology to be pushed down their throats like we heard from a parent with an eighth-grade student that was basically being transformed before her eyes because another student decided he wanted to do that.” -Kyle Sims, McKinney, TX (non-resident)

Larry Hook, Dallas, TX (non-resident)

“You started my time too early. Until such time as we, the people, revive the proper and full exercise of our 51 constitutions per our founders' meeting of the minds, all Wylie governments shall have court case rulings and historical fact be Wylie ISD's guidepost as in Lynch v. Donnelly, 1984. This consensus of accord, the meeting of the minds, carries forward today from the 18th-century meaning. It applies in contract law, and our 51 constitutions are binding contracts that protect we the people from humanity's historical trend toward government tyranny. We the people govern our American governments as is our civic duty and obligation. In American schools, the Islamic rules about women covering up their bodies is not permissible. Islamic conversion of folks in our American schools is not permissible. School is for reading, writing, and math skills, history, and critical thinking development. The principal in question here broke SB 12 law.

Our minimum requirement is the firing of principal and since you are violating my First Amendment right, it rhymes with Griffiny Poulin proselytizing of any kind in American schools shall not stand. We the people bind you by our contract law to our Constitution. These examples right here, these are porn book examples that you folks allow providing to our children...[time expired].” -Larry Hook, Dallas, TX (non-resident)

Karen Roettele, Allen, TX (non-resident)

“Good evening, Wylie board members, people. I want to say there is no hate here on my part. I'm standing here for Marco. As a former teacher as well as mother and grandmother, I want all the students that I have seen earlier, this bright, shining group to have the best possible in the education here in these last few years of high school. Please understand that every parent wants his or her child treated with equal respect and provided equal opportunities for success. I have asked previously that you create a transparent standard policy for handling political and religious issues in the school. As a former teacher, I know schools have managed to accomplish that for years. Please consider it a standard equitable process for all parents to read and feel assured their students will have a peaceful, enjoyable high school experience without bullying, threats, or harassment. Please endeavor to set the best example for these students we saw tonight.

You are some of the last people these kids are going to know while they go off into the world. We want them to walk away with a fantastic Wylie experience knowing that they can look back on you as wonderful models of American citizenship and adult behavior, common sense. Thank you very much. As a teacher, I thank you for what you're doing and I know what you're up against, but we can do it. Please consider this. Thank you for all the students.” -Karen Roettele, Allen, TX (non-resident)

Robert Brewer, Tyler, TX (non-resident)

“Thank you. I'm here to thank Marco for the best thing I've ever seen on TV. When he educated a senior legislator that had no clue about the foundation of American law. When we talk about Qurans versus Bibles, the first thing our founders ever did legislatively, and 17 of them went on to sign the Constitution, was put 10,000 Bibles in schools. The very first sentence of U.S. law is laws of nature and nature's God. That's in the Declaration. That's the laws of nature is creation, which is the first sentence of the Bible. It's nothing to do with the Quran and the laws of nature's God is the Bible and there's nothing to do with the Quran. I'm sorry, but we are a totally Christian country. You even got dinged and could be murdered if you were a Catholic. That's one of them. So if you want to learn and really teach kids what they need to know is teach them that book that I have over there, Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England. Abraham Lincoln had it memorized. That's how he ran our country, and Jefferson, Madison, and Jay, they all just consumed Blackstone's Commentaries. And those are the laws that are written, and they're not as what we are practicing, and we need to do it pronto. Thank you.” -Robert Brewer, Tyler, TX (non-resident)

Ashley Louden, McKinney, TX (non-resident)

“Good evening. My name is Ashley Louden, a proud Texas mother, and I refuse to stay silent while our schools betray our children. What happened at Wylie East High was not a harmless cultural event. It was the outright endorsement of oppression. Trying on a hijab is not some innocent costume. In Iran and Afghanistan, women and girls are beaten in prison or killed for removing one. Under Sharia law, women are second-class citizens, denied equal rights while men take multiple wives and child brides are permitted. How are our students supposed to understand Sharia when it strips women of basic rights and forces non-Muslims to pay a tax or face execution? Why are you celebrating only the tolerant-sounding parts while hiding the brutal truth? Let's not forget the Bible was once welcomed in our schools and then removed, yet now the Quran and Sharia are being spread among our children.

And if this continues five years from now, your kids may not be able to attend school in Collin County unless they're wearing a hijab or submitting to Sharia law. And that may sound extreme, but that is exactly where we're headed if we don't enforce one law for all. By allowing this, you sent every daughter in this district a dangerous message: submitting to oppression is something to celebrate. That is not inclusion, that is ignorance. You allowed the Quran to be passed out in our schools, yet you have no idea what it teaches, but what you will know is our children, our schools, and our nation was founded upon the Holy Bible, not Sharia. And if you have a problem with that, please remember this: there is one law for all in this country and every citizen must abide by it. We will not surrender our children or our schools to Sharia, not in Wylie and not in Texas. Enforce your policies equally, or Texas parents will remember…[time expired]” -Ashley Louden, McKinney, TX

Justin Bennett, Plano, TX (non-resident)

“Good evening, Board of Trustees. Thanks for hearing us. Thanks for hearing public comments. I'm from Plano, where public comments are no longer allowed. They followed in the footsteps of Frisco, where public comments were no longer allowed prior. I hope you guys will consider that and hope you continue to allow public comments. I'm also here to speak for Marco. You guys are giving him a platform, whether you know it or not. He could write a book, 'Marco Goes to Washington.' So I was here originally to speak for Marco when you guys were giving him a hard time about he wanted to have a Young Republicans club while his counterparts were allowed to have clubs. How long is this going to continue, guys? Because we're here for the long haul. We do not live in a spirit of fear, and neither does Marco. It's just getting stronger.

Voices are getting louder. You guys are on podcasts on almost a nightly basis now. Wylie ISD is becoming famous or is it infamous? I want you guys to think about that. Thank you.” -Justin Bennett, Plano, TX (non-resident)

Glenis Pittman, Plano, TX (non-resident)

"Hi, thank you for taking my comments and for all the work that you do. It is tough to get get a lot of people's opinions and different views. I'm a mother of two sons and when my sons were in public schools, I was reading and watching every book and every video that was being shown to them so that we could talk about it at home, such as the gentleman spoke about what he does with his family. There's no hate coming from my perspective either, but I would differ from what was said before in that I have taken the time to look into the Quran, to read the Quran. And my concern is that it's very important that you do so too, that you know what is being distributed and it's not just a religion. It's a political stance, and they're allowed to lie. They're encouraged to do that. There's something called abrogation. There's something called Islamic gradualization, and that's the quote unquote jihad of the word in spreading it out in its deception. And I just want to encourage you to know about it. There's a little booklet you can learn if you want a cheat sheet to learn a little bit more, or you could read it for yourself. But the later verses of the Quran override according to abrogation, understanding the way they approach it, the earlier verses and the earlier verses of the Quran are more peaceful, and other religions are fine. But the later verses, if you don't believe or you were a believer and you leave, your head's cut off. You're beaten. Women are whipped. I mean, it's really awful. It's something that we can't imagine in this country, but it's real, and people from Iran have told me that's what happened in Iran before their country became the way it is now." -Glenis Pittman, Plano, TX (non-resident)

Minor Student, Wylie, TX (resident)

"Good evening, board. Imagine an organization that is connected to dangerous and terrorist organizations would be one day on a public school campus. That's right. It's not theoretical. It happened. Another thing, I have a quick question. Why would we have a culture expo day if most students don't even know what American culture is? I had the privilege of being invited by Congressman Jim Jordan and Congressman Chip Roy to testify before the United States Congress, specifically the Judiciary Committee on the subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government. I testified about my experience as the president of the Republican Student Club and all that I had to go through and you guys know about it because the emails that I sent and because of the way I was communicating with you guys and I emailed you about over 50 days ago and I got no response and then I did get a response and then people were saying that someone else's response serves as their response. Makes no sense.

And the promotion of Islamic ideology at Wylie East High School. I was invited because elected representatives recognize that nothing meaningful has happened to address this. I want you all to understand that members of Congress are aware what happened and they're standing behind us. While I was there, I proclaimed victory in Christ on the congressional record and even had the opportunity to give a history lesson to Congressman Jamie Raskin about America's history. I would like to present those same facts and truths with you. 55 of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence were Bible believing church attending Christians. The declaration itself closes a prayer and references God four times. The original 13 colonies required declarations of faith in Christ and the book of Deuteronomy is the most quoted book for our Constitution. Across the world, people are waking up. Just this past Saturday, the Unite the Kingdom rally in Europe shows citizens standing up against the Islamification and governments that are complacent. And here at home yesterday, we celebrated Rededicate 250, a renewable or a commitment one nation under God. Now you can label me a Christian nationalist if you want.

First and foremost, I'm a follower of Christ, and I'm a proud American. So yeah, that's fine. You guys may be thinking, 'What does this kid know?' I know this. Do not let anyone look down at you because of your youth, but set an example for believers in speech, conduct love, and purity. 1 Timothy 4:12. Jesus is King and as America, as president …[time expired].” -Minor Student, Wylie, TX (resident)

Chris Krok, Richardson, TX (non-resident)

“Tomorrow at 8 a.m., we will be following the rules. In February, the Islamic professional adult proselytizers were not following the rules. We got a warning letter to parents that we were coming to pass out the Holy Bible to parents and students as they arrive to spread this gospel and this Bible, not the Quran, where people pray on the back of the card to receive Muhammad as their savior, but Jesus Christ. We're going to take what you guys allowed under your principal, who multiple students say, the principal of Wylie East was right there, looking on, right where I'm looking at you as the Muslim proselytizers passed out Qurans, hijabs, and Sharia pamphlets. Your principal has not been dealt with. You need to hold her accountable and you have not.

Tomorrow we will pass out Bibles lawfully and legally, and we're going to take the 10, 20, 50, 60 Qurans, and we're going to multiply it by hundreds. And this is all because of your principal and your fecklessness to hold her to account. We will not rest until you hold the principal to account who wore a hijab for two years in a row on the same day, World Hijab Day, and her follow-up on the third year was Qurans as she overlooked it and you have not held her to account. We demand you hold the principal of Wylie East High School to account. It is not a coincidence that we put this together, and somehow it is a coincidence, it's a godly coincidence. Marco was on Fox News, congressional testimony and Glenn Beck. You guys did this. Now fix it. We'll see you tomorrow at 8 a.m. to pass out Bibles in front of Wylie East.” -Chris Krok, Richardson, TX (non-resident)

Ken Pittman, Plano, TX (non-resident)

“Thank you, Mr. President, for the time here. And I appreciate the time and the effort that you put into the students tonight. I don't have a student here. I have a wife here. So what I might do is just say, 'Hey, I agree with her.' But I do have a couple of things to add. I want to compliment you on the job that you've done in raising up these children and encouraging them and bringing in innovative programs. I think that's wonderful, and I applaud you for that, and I think you need to be congratulated for that. What I stand here for is the men and women that I've known that have lived in Iran, that have lived under that oppression, that have lived under that pain and suffering. And the concern that I have is that in this country, we have Iranians that live here that cannot live a free life because of the organization that exists in Iran, the theocracy that exists in Iran, that holds people hostage, and those people that were once in that hostage situation are living in America and still hostage. They're my friends. I've befriended them, but they can't befriend their own family, their own neighbors, because they're fearful. So those are my comments about allowing a system like that to come anywhere near children, to allow a system like that that's proven across the planet to come near our children, whether it's down the street from where I live here in Wylie or it's anywhere else in this country. I think we have a big challenge, and I know you know that. I can see the look in your eyes that you know that's a big challenge, but let's all work on it together. Thanks for your time.” -Ken Pittman, Plano, TX (non-resident)

Christina Rodriguez, Forney, TX (non-resident)

“This is called a mantilla, which is what Catholics wear when they go and they worship. So I'm just kind of curious if certain somebody would actually wear one and say, 'Oh, it feels great.' Kind of curious about that. This is also a book that's called 'The Catholic Church has the Answer.' My question is, when do I get to do this? But actually, it's rhetorical. I don't want to do it. I don't think that any religion belongs in school. That is between the parents and their children, and interfering with the parents and their children is not your job. And Madalyn Murray O'Hair made sure that religion was taken out. She was objecting to the Lord's Prayer and she was objecting to Bible reading because she was an atheist. But basically, what she was doing, she was going against the Christianity that was actually what part of the fabric of America was.

They had no business having anybody from any kind of religious institution, no matter what it was when we're in the bottom third of education, and I'm watching these teachers saying, ‘Oh, well, you don't live here. You don't have any interest in here. Oh, I thought it took a village.’ The other thing is that my tax money comes here, so I have a vested interest in this, and I've met friends that I'm here to support because they were abused and they were intimidated, and you violated their rights basically. And as a matter of fact, last meeting you had a speaker who was screaming at the top of his lungs and insulted every American, every Christian, every parent, and every vet, and come to find out he's actually a high-ranking member of CAIR, which has been designated as a terrorist organization. And he has been quoted to say that he wants Muslim children to be trained into positions of power. Does that sound religious to you or does that [inaudible] sound... [time expired].” -Christina Rodriguez, Forney, TX (non-resident)

Stacie Gooch, Wylie, TX (resident) - 04/20/2026

“Good evening. I know you all are hearing a lot of noise these days. I need you to remember that many of these people don't live in our community. The people that do love Wylie ISD are proud to be Wylie ISD. I keep you in my prayers daily. Thank you for your service and God bless.” - Stacie Gooch, Wylie, TX (resident)

Minor Student, Wylie, TX (resident) - 04/20/2026

“My name is [minor student], and I am here to address serious concerns regarding the handling of student clubs at Wylie High School. In working to establish a Turning Point USA Club, I have had multiple conversations with teachers who expressed hesitation about sponsoring the organization. These concerns were centered around uncertainty about whether serving as a sponsor would negatively impact their professional standing or long-term job security. This kind of uncertainty creates a chilling effect where teachers feel pressure or hesitation instead of being able to freely support students. I also want to note that I have recorded some of these conversations for my own records to ensure accuracy and how these concerns are being represented. I made multiple attempts to contact Principal Brian Alexander directly regarding this matter and received no response. It was only after a representative from Turning Point USA reached out to him via email that I received any form of reply.

Ms. Emily Bryce, a representative from Turning Point USA, sent an email to Brian Alexander regarding the situation, referencing the concerns being raised and also noting state-level guidance that supports student-led organizations and their ability to form clubs with willing sponsors. Under the leadership of Greg Abbott, Texas made clear through the state guidance and policy direction that student organizations are entitled to equal access and fair treatment in public schools. These principles are not optional. Following that email, Principal Alexander responded; in my view, the tone and content of that response came across as unprofessional and unnecessarily aggressive in nature. Rather than providing clear steps forward or addressing the concerns raised, the response focused heavily on demanding the names of the teachers who are involved or hadn’t expressed interest. Later, I also received a direct email from Principal Alexander, again, requesting the information of those teachers.

I want to be very clear and firm on this point. I will not disclose the names of these teachers. I will not expose teachers to potential retaliation, pressure, or scrutiny simply because they are willing to consider supporting students. This is not my role and it should have never been asked of me in the first place. Students should not be placed in the middle of identifying staff members in a way that could discourage participation or create fear. That is not …[time expired].” - Minor Student, Wylie, TX (resident)

Jeana Baldwin, Wylie, TX (resident) - 04/20/2026

“Good evening, Board members. I am a parent with children in Wylie ISD, including Burnett Junior High and Wylie East. I am here to address a serious breach of protocol that occurred on February 2nd, where Islamic materials, including a Quran and the book, The Quran Made Simple, were distributed to my eighth-grade son during school hours at the junior high. These materials were part of a gift bag containing candy distributed by another student on behalf of their mother. I am deeply concerned that this, along with similar occurrences at Wylie East, happened without parental consent and during class time. Although that's disturbing, my primary concern is the radical shift in my son's ideology since befriending this student last October. We have witnessed extreme changes, increased disrespect, argumentativeness, and misogynistic comments directed at his mother and sister. We have seen persistent efforts to convert along with pressure to participate in Ramadan.

Due to this unsettling influence and the safety concerns with how impressionable he is, we have had to contact the principal to remove him from these classes. A couple of weeks after removing my son from this friend's classes, his interest in becoming a Muslim basically vanished. Because of this extremely tough year, my husband and I have made the difficult decision to remove our son from the Wylie District to a private school for his high school years. I'm urging this board to take action to stop the spread of such ideologies during school hours. Parents hold the fundamental right to direct the religious education of their children, and this occurred without our consent within two of our public schools on the same day. I ask that you protect all students from being indoctrinated by ideologies that many of us parents wholeheartedly disagree with, and that our children will be safe from manipulative religious conversion during school hours.” - Jeana Baldwin, Wylie, TX (resident)

Michael Conway, Crossroads, TX (non-resident) - 04/20/2026

“Hey, good evening, Board. It was pretty concerning when I saw the report that y'all gave back as far as feedback responding to our comments. Would everybody have all eyes up here, please? No disrespect to me. Please have your eyes, Mr. Day, Mr. Williams. I think y'all would expect the same for you, if someone's talking, you expect to have somebody with eye contact and looking at you, giving you the focus, giving the attention. The reality is this, it was really disappointing seeing those responses and y'all claiming you're supporting Marco. Really? When he's gone through three and four sponsors, all after mysteriously talking to the principal, that people are backing out from supporting him. You're claiming there's no resistance? Would you please stop lying? He deserves support. He wants a Turning Point chapter here. Why not? He finally is getting it for next year and Wylie High School is going through the same.

So they follow the same blueprint as Marco, but they're getting pushback. Why is the principal taking Marco behind closed doors to tell him rules changed on the fly? How's that make any sense? Whereas you have all these other faiths, including Islam, being pushed on these students. And I did say pushed because that is what's going on, and you know it.

The really sad reality, also is that my friend who showed up here last September got cussed out. His wife got the middle finger, unprovoked. Why? Because he was here to support Marco. The guy was trying, the principal's husband, doing all this behavior, making allegations of Kyle doing stuff that he never did. Y'all never once apologized. So what does that say about y'all? It's interesting when I was thinking about the shirt I was wearing today, and I'll make this short. Lion to Judah. It appears to me we got a bunch of sheep in front of me, potentially. Y'all volunteer to be here except for the superintendent. How about y'all start being lions instead of sheep and support Marco and protect these students? Thank you.” - Michael Conway, Crossroads, TX (non-resident)

Karen Roettele, Allen, TX (non-resident) - 04/20/2026

“I'm Karen Roettele from Allen, a taxpayer here. I hope everyone can hear me. As you can see, we're coming back. We keep coming back until we have some accountability, until action is taken, until people are held accountable. I have handed out a suggested policy. This is a standard policy I found for religion and prayer in schools. Please, I suggest you look at it, follow it, and hand it out or make some modifications. The last one, any Wylie ISD administration, administrator, faculty, or employee who violates this policy will be suspended for two weeks without pay, and any volunteer who violates the policy will be expelled from all campuses for two months. A second violation will result in faculty or staff suspension for six months without pay.

A second violation by a volunteer will result in expulsion from all campuses for six months. This policy is retroactive. No appeals will be permitted. This, again, I've got a few minutes. For school administrators, teachers, and other employees shall not take any action that establishes favors or encourages any religion or faith over another. No religious materials shall be passed out on school property, either by employees, students, or outside visitors. Schoolroom instruction should not be interrupted for prayer. Student teachers and other school officials have a right to pray in school if in private and not done during school instructional hours and is not on behalf of the school. School employees may not sponsor or lead a prayer or coerce any kind of religion or prayer in school. You may not discriminate on the basis of religion or political viewpoint in recognizing and supporting extracurricular activities on the school campus.

Please take a look at this and consider it carefully. Thank you.” - Karen Roettele, Allen, TX (non-resident)

Syed Faizan, Sachse, TX (resident) - 04/20/2026

“Ladies and gentlemen of the Board, thank you for allowing me to come and speak here today. As a proud father of three amazing kids that go to Wylie ISD schools, I'm so happy to have them in the school that welcomes them for being Muslim and practicing their faith. What I'm shocked by, though, is these so-called adults who are here who've been saying the most radical, racist, extreme, negative, God-awful, un-Christian, un-American nonsense for the last two school board meetings. Those people should be absolutely ashamed of themselves for the racism and open bigotry. When I was growing up, I learned that men were lynched in America. I learned that the Japanese were put in internment camps. I learned that people were targeted for their race and religion. And I grew up in a country that welcomed everybody. But now, thank God, after listening to those people here come again and again, I realized the type of logic, the type of brainwashing, the type of mental gymnastics that people have to go through in order to allow that type of racism and discrimination to happen.

I see that happening here in Wylie, and I see that type of extreme racist bigotry and hatred being pushed by these radical people in our communities. I have some advice for these so-called adults and parents. Why don't you, instead of coming here and complaining, why don't you debate me? Why don't you actually have a real, open public conversation and debate? And let's talk about Islam. Let's talk about Sha'ban. Let's talk about your radical hatred that you've been pushing in this school district and pushing in our community. I'm shocked. I'm absolutely shocked and horrified by these things that I've been hearing again and again. It is the worst type of racism that you can imagine. All you need to do is replace the word Islam and Muslim with Blacks, Hispanics, Jews, Christians, and anybody else, and the racism becomes absolutely obvious and obvious. This is the time that we're living in, and I'm honestly ashamed to hear that these people keep coming again and again.

I invite you to come on and debate me if you want in a public forum to the people who have these problems. And I'm grateful for the Wylie ISD schools. My kids feel welcome here. I'm so happy for that. And I hope that we can continue to welcome people all faiths and backgrounds. Thank you.” - Syed Faizan, Sachse, TX (resident)

Chris Krok, Richardson, TX (non-resident) - 04/20/2026

“There are more than six students that are eyewitnesses that saw the principal of Wylie East High School there. While these Qurans were passed out, there are over six eyewitnesses students that saw the vice principal, one of the six assistant principals was there. They saw it. They approved of it. Know what your school at Wylie East is passing out. This is it. Behold, the curriculum for Wylie East High. The Quran, including a Shahada card saying to become a Muslim. Pray this: 'I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of God.' And so this is your curriculum in Wylie East. Your principal saw this and the Islam booth. She approved by being there and saying, 'This is great.' [Board President interjects to ask Mr. Krok to address the Board] Behold.

Sorry, I got confused. Behold, this is the curriculum you are passing out, the Quran. Pray to receive Allah is what they do. One of them told, one of the professional proselytizers, you guys let in with the assistant principal, said, 'We don't need Jesus,' to Marco. 'You need the Quran.' We're flushing this out. Everything is going to come out. We are just getting started. Your principal saw this and when you see it in your school right there, and we have six eyewitnesses, you need to take action. And the assistant principal, they approved. That's why the principal, a year ago, put the hijab on and said on her official Raider's Twitter or Instagram feed, she loved wearing the Quran. Excuse me, the hijab. Being there, seeing it, approves. So the principal and the assistant principal that were there, resign or be fired. We are not going anywhere.

We are pit bulls. Your dismissiveness means nothing to us. A pit bull holds on until the job is done. We are just getting started. Just about. [time expired]” - Chris Krok, Richardson, TX (non-resident)

Jose Vela Dallas, TX (non-resident) - 04/20/2026

“Jose Vela is my name. Last name is Vela. Not Bela, not Villa, whatever it is. And second of all, I'm a taxpayer. I live here in the city. I live in a hood in the south side of Dallas. And I'm a taxpayer. My money goes to Austin, and from Austin, it goes to your pocket via paycheck. So I got to say so right here, right now. I pay your salary. That's how it works in the state of Texas. If I'm wrong, tell me I'm wrong. [Board President - 'We don't get paid, sir.']

This microphone right here, I paid for. [Board President - 'You paid for the microphone?'] That screen, I paid for that. [Board President - 'Okay'] And that Howard right there, I paid for that. And this concrete floor and carpet, and the shampooing. So anyways, is it okay-- I'm going to ask you a question? Is it okay if I bring my Book of Mormon? I'm Mormon. All my life. I served a mission with the church for two years in the late '90s. Is it okay if I go inside a school building and say, ‘My Book of Mormon, here it is.’ I was going to bring it. I forgot to bring it. Is it okay? I walk in there, bypass security, walk all the way in the lunchroom and say, ‘Here's the Book of Mormon. Everybody, come over here and let's come over and read right now.’ Put it on a white shirt and tie and a black name tag. And is that okay if I do that? Is it okay? Not okay, right? So why is it okay for anybody else to do that? I wasn't there to see that happen. I was told through the grapevine, you know what? I believe it. 100% I believe it. I don't believe this is false, that this is made up. And I don't believe somebody's going to make up something that's not true about somebody that's in high position, high power in a school district. I live in the hood. I live in the south side of Dallas. That's where I live. You import these people from third world hell holes to come over here and to corrupt our country right here with Sharia Law and with their man. The man's going to say, ‘You woman, you're going to bow down to me. And if you don't, I'm going to put a black eye on you,’ like I seen on you on the internet, what I've seen.

I don't want those people over here. Those people, what they do, they come over here and they vote left wing. They vote Democrat. What are the Democrats known for? They vote. Democrats are known for anti-Second Amendment. Oop. [time expired]” - Jose Vela, Dallas, TX (non-resident)

Minor Student, Wylie, TX (resident) - 04/20/2026

“Good evening, Board members. This is now the third consecutive school board meeting where I have addressed you, and still no meaningful action has been taken regarding the February 2nd Why Islam incident. I have a whole speech written here, but I just really think that it's really ironic that the man who came up here and asked us to act like adults approached me two meetings ago, coming screaming in my face and made me so uncomfortable. So I think that's very ironic. So I think you should take a look at yourself before you talk to us. You still have the remainder of this month and May to take a decisive action. I want to remind you that four of your seats are up for reelection this year. I want to illustrate the lack of accountability. I emailed six of you about inappropriate actions a few weeks ago, my principal did, and I follow it up, and yet I have not received a response.

This silence speaks volumes. Every time I raise up the struggles and censorship my club has faced, it's dismissed as miscommunication, despite my detailed timeline from August 16th, 2024, to this date, with at least 55 instances of censorship, hostility, and even broken laws towards me and my group. Most concerning is that you still have not addressed a group welcomed on campus, was connected to multiple to designated terrorist organizations by the governor of Texas. What is your response? What are the consequences you expect to punish the ones complicit in allowing this dangerously connected organization? One member on this board questioned why people drive so far, why people keep giving lessons in Islam. This is why, because nothing's been done. This has been so big that the U.S. House of Representatives knows what's going on.

This has been mentioned at a press conference. This has been mentioned at a committee meeting. This is how big it is. I've been fortunate enough to serve on the PTA board at Burnett Junior High School to be the ambassador of special needs students. I've been able to donate flags to my school, and I'm very proud of that, and I'm glad that you guys were proud of that. But then once it's actually taken a step further where I want to start a club, and I want to call out immorality, you guys just think it's a shameful on me. So I think it's just been pitiful. It's been pathetic. And I just really pray that you guys wake up to this spiritual battle and y'all have a blessed night. Thank you.” - Minor Student, Wylie, TX (resident)

Matt Atkins, Wylie, TX (resident) - 04/20/2026

“Good evening, Mr. President, Board members, Dr. Spicer. Thank you for having me. This podium, I've often wondered what it was like, and there's power in this podium. And on this side standing, I think there is. I think it must be that I have two uninterrupted minutes to talk to you and you can't say anything to rebuke or rebut that. Tonight, I think I'll use that power for good instead of to spew vile and evil and hatred towards you. And most people would say, well, yeah, of course you are, because you know, and I do know each and every one of you. I know you personally. I know what you stand for. I know you care deeply about this district. I know you care deeply about these kids, staff, students, and this community, and I thank you for that. I thank you for your sacrifice.

No one can truly know what that sacrifice looks like for each of you. I know what it looked like for me, and I know it can be significant. So thank you for your sacrifice and for giving to this district. Another thing I know about each of you is your love for Jesus and that you have a strong desire to protect that ability to share that faith with all those around us. And so what's interesting tonight is I walked in with a Bible right here, and I asked, 'Can I bring this in?' He said, 'Yep, absolutely. No problem.’ And I know this is not the only Bible in this building. I know it's not the only one across buildings, across this campus, across this district. And so I thank you for standing up for the right to bring this Bible in because when there are religious freedoms, we get to bring this Bible in.

And so when you're fighting for religious freedoms, you're fighting for this Bible. And I just hope and pray that we can spend some of the fervency of sharing the good word of this Bible to all those around us tonight, rather than trying to eliminate religious freedom and the ability to lose this Bible. Thank you.” - Matt Atkins, Wylie, TX (resident)

Susan Shuler, Lavon, TX - 04/20/2026

“Good evening. I come before you tonight with a heart full of gratitude and pride for Wylie ISD. My connection to this district runs deep and spans many roles over the years. I've had the honor of serving on the school board. I celebrated as my daughter graduated from Wylie High School. My son-in-law dedicated himself as a coach there, and today I am proud to serve as an employee within this incredible district. Through each of these experiences, I have seen firsthand the commitment, care, and excellence that define Wylie ISD. This is not just a workplace or a school system. It's a community that puts children first, supports families, and strives every day to do what is best for students. Over the past two months, I have watched board meetings online, and I will admit it has been difficult at times to hear negative and, at times, hurtful comments about the district and people that I know so well.

Especially when those voices come from individuals who do not live here or have children in our schools, it can be disheartening. But tonight, I'm not here to focus on that. I'm here to say thank you. Thank you to the board members who give their time and energy to make thoughtful decisions. Thank you to the administration for their leadership and vision. Thank you to the principals who guide their campuses with dedication. And most importantly, thank you to the teachers and staff who show up every single day for our students, encouraging them, supporting them, and shaping their futures. What you do matters more than words can express. You are making a difference in the lives of children and in the strength of this community. I have seen it from every angle as a board member, a parent, a family member, and now as a colleague, and I can say without hesitation, this district is something special.

So tonight, I simply want to stand in support of all of you and remind you that your work is valued, appreciated, and deeply respected. Thank you for all you do.” - Susan Shuler, Lavon, TX 

Mitch Herzog, Wylie, TX (resident) - 04/20/2026

“Good evening. I've lived here 32 years, and I'm here to tell you Wylie ISD has come a long way. Here's the deal. Wylie ISD is a big animal. There were issues yesterday. There are issues today. There's going to be issues tomorrow. It's impossible not to have issues. What matters is how you deal with these issues. And I have confidence and faith in this Board and administration that when these issues arise, they get handled individually and they get handled right. That's what Wylie ISD does. It's what you do. You put the kids first. It's the Wylie Way. I want to say thank you to the school board because this is truly a thankless job. It's real easy to sit where I'm at right now and play Monday morning quarterback. You board members get paid $0.00, NADA. Why do you do it? It's simple. You do it because you love this community and you want to give back.

Thank you because you're the reason we have an A rating. You're the reason we're a top 2% school district in the nation. But maybe most importantly, there's been a recent survey, and 96% of the students in Wylie ISD said that their teachers cared for them. I'm not sure 96% of these parents care for these kids.

Wylie ISD puts kids first. You set the tone. Don't let what's happening at these meetings the last few months sway you. Thank you for what you do. Thank you for your time. Thank you for your community. Thank you for loving the kids of Wylie ISD and keep up the great work.” - Mitch Herzog, Wylie, TX (resident)

Sam Satterwhite, Wylie, TX (resident) - 04/20/2026

“Hello. It's good to see all of you. I've been a resident here for 30 years. I worked in the community for 25 years. I love this community. I have three kids that went through the school district from kindergarten to high school, and they thrived here. They thrived here because of you, because of many of the teachers that I see here, because of their counselors. I trust each and every one of you. I appreciate you. There's a lot of distraction going on right now, not just in Wylie. And I would urge you to not give oxygen to that fire. Trust that you've doing the right thing. We had evidence of it in all the presentations. So whenever you get down and frustrated, I would remember to look at those kids that came up here and know that you're doing a really good job and that we appreciate you and we're here to support you.” - Sam Satterwhite, Wylie, TX (resident)

Jennifer Cleveland, Wylie, TX (resident) - 03/24/2026

“Hi. As they said, my name is Jennifer Cleveland. I've been a resident of Wylie, Texas, for nine years. I'm a Texas native, a Christian, a parent in the Wylie Independent School District, and I've served 21 years in the United States military before retiring two years ago. I wanted to start by saying this clearly. I have 100% confidence in the school board. I wanted to briefly address what happened at Wylie East High School last month. There was a breakdown in process, but it was recognized and addressed. In any large organization serving thousands of students, mistakes will happen. What matters is accountability, and you all have demonstrated that. I read the transcripts from last month's public forum, and I was truly saddened by the tone of some speakers, many of whom were not Wylie residents. We should expect more from ourselves as a community. I came here tonight to say thank you to all of you.

Thank you for continuing to lead under pressure. Thank you for continuing to choose professionalism, and thank you for keeping the focus on where it belongs, which is our students. Research shows that students and environments built on inclusion and respect perform better academically and develop stronger interpersonal skills. I don't just read that. I see that in my daughter, who attends Wylie ISD, along with many of her peers. Like I said, I see it in my daughter. I see it in her peers. They are thoughtful, curious, open-minded, and they care about others. Those are traits that they develop at home, but you guys have enhanced that. You guys and girls have enhanced that for our students. I'm also part of the CLAAS program through Wylie ISD. And from that experience, I can say this. There is intention behind what you do. There's care. There is real effort to get it right.

You truly reflect the values you expect from your students, especially in our Wylie Way, which you promote to our students as well. You're not just running a school district, you're shaping future citizens and future leaders, future parents. And from where I stand, you're doing a really fantastic job. So thank you for your time and for your service to this community and to our children.” - Jennifer Cleveland, Wylie, TX (resident)

Krista Schild, Royse City, TX (non-resident) - 03/24/2026

“Hi, school board. Thank you so much. It's Krista Schild from Royse City, Texas, and I'm the Texas Director for RAIR Foundation, rairfoundation.com. Please go look at our articles and videos. I hope you find this both informative and deeply concerning. Considering that Islam Sharia is a form of governance, a complete way of life by the proclamation of Islamic leaders of mosque your constituents are currently attending, Islam Sharia is antithetical to the U.S. Constitution and Western civilization and admittedly seeks to destroy both by creating infrastructure within our institutions, like public education.

The Muslim Student Association, whose clubs are allowed to operate within our ISDs, is a Muslim Brotherhood organization. ICNA, the Islamic Circle of North America, is a Muslim Brotherhood organization and represents Why Islam? This is a dawah outreach for Islam Sharia recruitment. Recruitment of our children into Islam and the Muslim Brotherhood organization. This is not about education on a religion or cultural appropriation, but rather building a base of operations within our infrastructure, and as citizens, we're determined that our public schools will not allow this to happen ever again.

CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood have been designated as foreign terrorists and transnational criminal organizations by our Governor and Attorney General, as well as Florida’s. Why the ISD allowed a terrorist organization to infiltrate their school through the MSA and ICNA to propagate indoctrination through pamphlets, distribution of Qurans, and Sharia-compliant hijabs for girls, not only without parental consent, but in opposition to the designations of the offices of Texas Governor and Attorney General. Our expectation is that accountability for what just happened, and also that this is never allowed to happen again. With any MSA or Muslim Brotherhood Islamic organization, mosque, or affiliation, we ask that it be disapproved from any further acts about reach or influence. [speaker went over time; board secretary banged gavel].” - Krista Schild, Royse, City, TX (non-resident)

Minor Child, Farmersville, TX (non-resident) - 03/24/2026

“Hello, members of the Wylie ISD School Board. My name is [minor child]. I just want to talk about the true evil of Islam and why it shouldn't be able to infiltrate Texas or the United States in general. Christianity became the most prevalent religion in the 15th to 17th century. This happened from law changes, gospel sharing, and a growth in popularity. Islam is trying to do the same thing today, but with lethal force. One of many examples is the 2015 Libyan executions. The Islamic State released a video showing 21 Christian migrants being beheaded, declaring them infidels. And Islam will do the exact same thing to infidels in this country, God's country, for that matter, not Allah’s.

Already in Dearborn, Michigan, loudspeakers can be heard transmitting the Muslim call to prayer. A call to prayer happens five times a day. Why do the people of Dearborn, a city in the United States of America, have to listen to an ideology loudly blasted five times a day that would have them killed if they weren't also praying to a fake God who hurts women like my mom and girls like my sister?

Wylie ISD schools are letting in these same ideas to be heard by kids like me. I've stood at this podium before and addressed the board on your heinous actions of allowing the Islamic organization, Why Islam?, in your cafeteria while they handed out hijabs, Qurans, and Sharia law pamphlets to students without you knowing. I asked the board about this and how it would be addressed and changed in the future. There has been hardly any action taken by you. Thank you for your time, and I just want to say Christ is King.” - Minor Child, Farmersville, TX (non-resident)

Karen Roettele, Allen, TX (non-resident) - 03/24/2026

“Good evening, school board members. Public. When I heard that they were handing out these flyers about understanding Islam and Sharia law, I was very surprised because I was under the impression that it was still school policy not to preach or have religion in the classrooms or in the halls or anywhere. But I was shocked. But at the same time, I'm really pleased. I'm happy because our local church, it's almost Easter and our local church would love to schedule some time for us to come in and have some candy. We have Easter cards. We want to share Jesus with the students. Now, I have heard that there are some parents at St. Anthony's that want to come in also before Easter. They're getting their package ready, but I hear they have some really nice rosaries they want to hand out and they're real cute.

But I want to be fair. There are some Mormons that want to come in too, but I told them please wait a few weeks till after Easter, so we can cover Easter. So I am looking forward to talking with you and the churches and we can get some nice programs going. I thank you very much for your time and understanding. We'll be talking. Thank you very much.” - Karen Roetlele, Allen, TX (non-resident)

Minor Student, Wylie, TX (resident) - 03/24/2026

“Good evening. My name is [student name], and I'm a student at Wylie High School. I'm here to address the denial of my proposal to host a voluntary student-led debate. My proposal was simple. A supervised voluntary space for students to engage in respectful discussion during non-instructional time. By design, it would not interfere with instructions or force participation. The main concern raised was the possibility of disruption. The concern does not align with the legal standard. In my original proposal, I addressed Tinker versus Des Moines, which makes it clear that student expression may only be limited when there is reasonable forecast of substantial disruption. That standard requires more than concern. It requires evidence. The cases referenced in my denial is Bell v. Itawamba School Board and McAllum v. Cash. These involved threats or circumstances likely to provoke hostility. My proposal involved none of those elements. It was structured, supervised, and focused on respectful discussion.

The district also acknowledged that Wylie High School already supports a debate program where students discuss complex and sometimes controversial issues. This matters because it shows the debate itself is not inherently disruptive. So the issue is not debate. It's whether the students can organize it themselves in a supervised setting. If debate is appropriate in a classroom, it is reasonable to ask why it should not be appropriate during lunch under similar supervision. The only meaningful difference is the possibility of controversial topics. But controversy alone is not a valid reason to restrict speech. If it were, the purpose of the First Amendment would be undermined. Avoiding these conversations does not prevent them. It simply moves them into less constructive environments. A supervised setting is where respectful disagreement can actually be taught and practiced. Students are already engaging with these issues every day, especially online.

What I proposed would be a better alternative, a space for critical thinking, accountability, and respectful dialogue.” - Minor Student, Wylie, TX (resident)

Kyle Sims, McKinney, TX (non-resident) - 03/24/2026

“Good evening, board. I spoke to this school board back in September of last year. Come in here, and I spoke very professionally. I wasn't disruptive. I wasn't disrespectful. But somebody in this district, a staff member’s husband, decided to call me out when I went to sit down and tried to start an argument to get me kicked out, so I couldn't speak. Then he proceeded to give my wife the middle finger when he doesn't even know either one of us. I never got an apology from any of you, anybody at this district. I had to go track that person down to figure out who that was, and I found him. This is disrespectful, and it shows a pattern of nobody being accountable for actions that are taken in this district. What y'all have done now is you've opened up a floodgate as one of the speakers just said.

So let's get ready for everybody to come into this district and do whatever the hell they want to do because y'all overlooked and was not accountable for what just happened last month. We have to think about what we're doing, and we have to think about education, the basic education to prep these students to be able to graduate and be successful in life. But what y'all have done is created a bunch of havoc, and you're going to cause a lot more division in the community about what y'all did without thinking. I will not be disrespectful when I come speak at a meeting any more than y'all want to be disrespected. But when somebody gives my wife the middle finger in this boardroom for no reason, except I wanted to come voice an opinion for our students is crap. I'm not going to put up with it.

I'm going to continue to come here and speak. And by the way, somebody talked about tax dollars. When you pay your school taxes, it's distributed all over Texas. I have a right to be here. Thank you.” - Kyle Sims, McKinney, TX (non-resident)

Bob Brewer, Tyler, TX (non-resident) - 03/24/2026

“Thank you. Creation and the Bible are the first sentence of U.S. law, our Declaration of Independence. When the course of human events, it becomes necessary to dissolve the political bans. The most quoted scholar of our founders are Sir William Blackstone. His most famous quote was, "No human laws should be suffered to contradict these." We go on to the Constitution. We the People have to do what we, the people, have to do. The fourth article of is the only written guarantee in the Constitution, and that is a protection against invasion of our rights. Our founders came over here for religious liberty, and they made it accommodating for anybody that wanted to participate in the melting pot. When we get things like we've had back when Beth Van Duyne was mayor, and I livestreamed that, at the time, we had snipers on the roof and nine sheriff cars in the parking lot. That's to protect our rights of liberty, our God-given unalienable rights to worship as we please. It's a guarantee. And when other than an individual comes as a group and tries to change our republican form of government, and you allow that, you become complicit in what is described by one of our most famous founders that nobody knows now, Tench Coxe, is high treason. Thank you.” - Bob Brewer, Tyler, TX (non-resident)

Jean Abdellatif, Garland, TX (non-resident) - 03/24/2026

“So God love you guys. You've gotten all the district's attention. Congratulations. True believers in the Lord Jesus Christ are not Islamophobic. We do not hate Muslims, nor any other people group. We want protection for all the Muslim women like we do any American woman living in the United States. If you ask a Muslim American woman why she wears a head covering, she will tell you that it represents modesty in their culture. You know what? I'm on board with that. We could use a whole lot more modesty in the United States. A whole lot less cleavage showing, a whole lot less trousers pulled down beneath the buttocks, so you can see whether the young men prefer briefs or boxers. A whole less soft porn in our music videos. We could take a play from their playbook on modesty.

The problem is that when it comes to Sharia law, and you have to understand, Jesus was also for modesty, but our book calls a woman's hair, her crown, and her glory. Under Sharia law, if a woman is caught out in public without her hair covered, the men assume that she's prostituting herself and that she is trying to seduce and entice men with her hair to commit sin. So there's quite a difference. Under Sharia law, that same woman, [inaudible], is entitled under their law to be subject to rape, group rape, arrest, beat down physically, or murdered by her own family for dishonoring the family. Under their law, the Sharia law, that you guys were promoting, allowing, and inviting on your campus to promote... [speaker went over time; board secretary banged gavel].” - Jean Abdellatif, Garland, TX (non-resident)

Dr. Pamela Sardo, Josephine, TX (non-resident) - 03/24/2026

“Thank you for all that you do. I am not here to attack, but to address fairness, constitutional integrity, and compliance with state law. One cultural group has distributed pamphlets, bags, clothing, and ideological texts, including copies of the Quran to students. Meanwhile, other groups have been denied equal access to provide materials. You've heard this before, but I'm asking you not to tune me out because I have new information for you.

According to Wylie ISD policy on your own website and state law, particularly code 31.023 and 31.0721B, State Board of Education is required to review all instructional materials used in schools. Why is this distributed material of concern considered instructional? Because the distributed Quran in 2:282 instructs to adhere to gender inequality and Quran 4:434 instructs women's punishment shall be to be admonished, then instructs to beat them. And Quran 4:3 instructs to marry two, three, or four women, and Quran 32 to 33 instructs cutting off hands and feet and stoning is punishment for waging war on Allah.

And don't forget, Quran 5:51 instructs do not take Jews and Christians for friends. This is important because the materials distributed were not neutral handouts. They were instructional, and they are regarding a moral and behavioral code. Under 66.104A of the Texas Administrative Code, such content must be selected and reviewed in an open meeting that did not happen.

Beyond state law, let's talk about the First Amendment that prohibits schools from endorsing or promoting one entity over another. The Supreme Court has consistently ruled that ideological neutrality is a fundamental duty of schools. An eight-year-old reportedly received such materials recently as well. Case law shows that distributing materials with candy to young children is perceived as coercion, a far more serious violation due to the young child's inability- [speaker ran out of time; board secretary banged gavel].” - Dr. Pamela Sardo, Josephine, TX (non-resident)

Deonna Osborn, Sachse, TX (resident) - 03/24/2026

“Good evening, Dr. Spicer, Secretary Montgomery, and fellow members of the board. My name is Deonna Osborn, and I have been and continue to be a proud member of the Wylie ISD community for 18 years and counting. You will never be part of the solution if you're not willing to get your hands a little dirty. And if there's one thing I've learned over my time here, it's that Wylie ISD is always willing to do a little dirt digging if it means helping a child succeed. If it means making the community better.

This one incident at Wylie East, this one misstep, does not define who we are. I have years upon years of stories I can share, how teachers, administrators, and board members, some of you right here, have impacted my life in ways well beyond the classroom, such as my passion for volunteerism, gaining a better understanding of the academic process, learning to let my own child fly, and understanding a greater appreciation of a culture other than my own. Just to name a few. This is our legacy. This is what defines Wylie ISD.

My child recently made a decision to change her profession to becoming a teacher. After working and learning under some of Wylie ISD's outstanding teachers and administrators. This part is important though, y'all. She doesn't just want to teach. If she had her choice of anywhere in the world, she wants to teach right here in Wylie ISD. She wants to continue this legacy because this one misstep does not define who we are. If everyone looked and thought exactly like me, it would be awfully boring. So let's all pledge to continue to build this Wylie ISD. I've known and loved one purposeful child at a time. Thank you.” - Deonna Osborn, Sachse, TX (resident)

Michael Conway, Crossroads, TX (non-resident) - 03/24/2026

“Good evening, board. It's interesting, looking at what took place here and y'all's response, which really was horrible. Huge safety issue. And, you know, growing up, kids get into fights, you get suspended for a few days, go home. And it seems like that's about what y'all equated it to, which doesn't make sense to me. It's a huge safety issue. You put kids at risk, and then you just think, ‘Okay, we're going to make it equate to similar to being in a fight school.’ No. Safety issue, you put kids at risk, someone gets fired.

Period. That's accountability, and y'all aren't being transparent about what's going on. You haven't been upfront, you've hidden. And I find it interesting that you're real good about banging on the drum at two minutes when last month ... No, this guy came out two and a half minutes later. Why is it that ... See, it gives the appearance of discriminating against people when you have ... I can't help but notice that the audience tends to lack of people of a certain faith. Why is that? And y'all are so quick to end us after the two-minute talk. You know, let me make a deal with you. How about y'all back off on Marco, or y'all can just resign? Because Marco has every right to do what's going on with having his club here, but with what y'all are doing, you're giving the appearance that you're pushing Islam on these students.

So either resign or let him do what needs to be done because he's still facing resistance and that doesn't make any sense to me. There should be no discrimination against any of faith, period. So do what's right. Help these students.” - Michael Conway, Crossroads, TX (non-resident)

Marcos Lopez, Wylie, TX (resident) - 03/24/2026

“On February 2, 2026, four adults walked into Wylie East High School into the front office and inside the cafeteria, exposing everyone, students, staff members, volunteers, and our principal is actually right here on the right side. We're not saying her name, but I’m here for accountability. We have a lot of processes that have changed, and I appreciate that from last time, but the accountability is what I'm here to speak about. We hold our students accountable, simple, the phone ban. We hold our bus drivers accountable, food service accountable. Our volunteers, our substitution, our teachers accountable, but we haven't held our principal accountable.

We discipline our kids, our students, and worst-case scenario, we'll send them to Achieve. Where are we going to send our principal who broke the law, Texas SB 12? But wait a minute. Texas Education Agency, the Attorney Smith, called me, and he said, ‘Marcos, you're wrong. They broke multiple laws.’ So if we hold everyone from our students, trustees, food service employees, anyone who is employed by Wylie ISD, there's only one position who has not been held accountable, which is our principal right here to our right side.

Thank you for your time, guys. The last thing I'm going... Thank you.” - Marcos Lopez, Wylie, TX (resident)

Mary Mahoney, Wylie, TX (resident) - 03/24/2026

“I have been a resident for 30 plus years. My parents were married in 1978 in Wylie, if that tells you anything. When people in power for so long, that's when reality of comfort sets in. In my daughter's senior year, she had to spend it with a student who sexually assaulted her. And just three years later, my son was falsely accused of something, and in the end, it was dropped. And it was just pushed under the rug, told what we wanted to hear, and it was pushed under rug and pushed out the door. In those situations, the common ground was the board that stands before me. And both of my children had to sign a cease and desist to shut their mouth. You know, even after my parents had died in the house fire back in January of last year, we pulled up five minutes later, that smell you never lose out of your nose. Imagine being in junior high. I filed a McKinney-Vento, and I was told I wasn't going to return him to school. That wasn't my goal nor my plan. My goal was to maybe get some assistance to where I pay my tax dollars and where I donate thousands upon thousands of dollars worth of food to the students of Wylie ISD, which brings me to my next subject.

Two days after the Wylie East thing, my driver was let into the school without showing identification, and I have video to show y'all if y'all would like to see it. Not only that school, but four other schools have let me or one of my drivers in without any identification, and my children did not go to any of those schools. So let's set religion aside, even, and let's just think about the safety of our children. We dropped them off in your hands, yet they're not safe. I guess that's pretty much it, but yeah.” - Mary Mahoney, Wylie, TX (resident)

Chris Krok, Richardson, TX (non-resident) - 03/24/2026

“Wylie ISD is catering to Islam. Wylie ISD is being Islamicized by choice, this is a choice. Four adult Muslim professional proselytizers came in and passed out hijabs, Qurans, and Understanding Sharia, meaning Sharia law. Sharia law does treat women like cattle, and our American women are not cattle. You are sending a message to them that they are, and they should understand Sharia and embrace it. We have forms that when guest speakers come in at Wylie ISD, the principal signs off. Her name is supposed to be on there. The Wylie East principal, we all believe she signed off on this, and she needs to be fired. Not one person [inaudible] slapped in a wrist and works at the front desk. The principal signs off on these forms. Every time somebody comes in, nobody has been fired. Fire the Wylie East principal. Now. Menus are announcing halal food being served in your district.

Cooper Middle School, Muslims serving Muslim foods to teachers at Cooper Middle School not too long ago, passing out pamphlets and books on how to teach Islamic children. Eighth grader passing out a Quran and candy, a book for young people to understand Quran with Arabic letters in the middle of class, because you should be studying Islam in the middle of class, not the Wylie ISD educational materials. I look forward to passing out Bibles and tracts. I look forward to passing out Bibles and tracts in Wylie East High School with the blessings of the principal of Wylie East High School, who should be held accountable and fired. Wylie ISD is intentionally inviting and courting Islamists. We are a team, and we are just getting started. We are a team. [speaker went over time; board secretary banged gavel]” - Chris Krok, Richardson, TX (non-resident)

Angela Carraway, Allen, TX (non-resident) - 03/24/2026

“Good evening, board. First of all, I want to thank you. This is a thankless job, so thank you for what you do. My name is Angie Carraway. I'm a candidate to represent this district and Texas State House, but I'm also a public school teacher and a parent. I want to speak to something that should not be controversial. We should treat others the way we want to be treated. It's the principle in every classroom, and I worry about how far we've drifted from it in a broader public life. It's not political. It's not tied to any one religion. It's a basic expectation we model for young people as they learn to live alongside people who look different, believe differently, and live differently than they do. That's the reality of public school. It's one of the few places where students from all backgrounds come together, not just to learn math and history, but to learn how to be part of a shared community.

When a student is made to feel like they don't belong because of their religion, that lesson breaks down, not just for that child, but for everyone watching. We are always teaching children, whether we intend to or not. If we want students to carry respect and responsibility into the broader world, then our public behavior should reflect those values too. My faith, Christianity, teaches me to care for others, not fear them, not ostracize them, and certainly not to take away from them. At the end of the day, the duty of this body is to create schools where every student can focus on learning without intimidation. That's what all of parents expect, whether they wear a cross around their neck or a hijab on their head. It's also what students deserve. So I would encourage everyone here, and I mean everyone, to look to your neighbors. And these are your neighbors. And ask how you can help. Not hurt. Thank you.” - Angela Carraway, Allen, TX (non-resident)

James Houston, McKinney, TX (non-resident) - 03/24/2026

“Trustees, community. Good evening. I am not a student of Wylie ISD, but a friend of those who are and cannot be here tonight. My name is James Houston, and I am the president of the McKinney Area High School Democrats, and it's a joy to speak with you all here tonight. I want to begin with this. The information that a Republican club was blocked from organizing is disappointing. In our own district in McKinney and those in Allen, both Republican and Democratic organizations in high schools have been denied from organizing. Students do have the right to organize debates and to have those discussions on their level. And the fact that teachers and staff are in some way inhibiting that or trying to prevent it from happening won't actually do anything, but does move it away from an organized manner.

At the last board meeting, we did hear allegations of what happened on a school campus, and let me be clear, schools must remain secular, and that means secular from all faiths, my own as an Episcopalian, but that also means that we have to respect Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, and all faiths, and those that have none at all, and those people do have something that we can learn from them.

In McKinney, our own Muslim and Christian student unions are incredibly open and invite students to learn about their faiths in after-school hours in a way that does not include proselytization, that does not need adult intervention, but simply an exchange among our peers.

Finally, I call on the parents and community here tonight, those of us from McKinney and from Wylie ourselves, to recognize that students do look up to you and they look up to all of you, and that we have to be careful in how we speak and we speak in a way that is kind and loving of our neighbor in all cases. As a debate captain, if you have a grievance, be passionate about it, speak about it often, but do so in a way that is becoming. And it's something that you want your children and your future grandchildren to listen to.” - James Houston, McKinney, TX (non-resident)

Justin Bennett, Plano, TX (non-resident) - 03/24/2026

“Good evening. I'm here tonight because I believe our public schools must remain neutral, fair, and focused on education, not religious promotion of any kind. Recently, there have been reports of individuals, four ladies, not students, distributing Quran and pro-Islam materials on or around Wylie ISD campuses. Let me be clear, this is not about being against any one religion. This is about protecting the integrity of our public schools and ensuring that no religion, whether it's Islam, Christianity, Judaism, or any other, is promoted in a way that could be perceived as endorsed by the district. Our Constitution is very clear. The First Amendment protects both the free exercise of religion and prohibits government establishment of a religion. Public schools, as a government entity, must walk that line carefully. When religious materials are distributed in a school context, especially involving students, it raises serious concerns about whether that line is being crossed.

Parents send their children to school to learn reading, writing, math, science, not to be approached with religious messages. That's a deeply personal matter that belongs in the home and in the place of worship, not in hallways, parking lots, or school-sponsored spaces. If outside groups are being allowed to distribute religious materials, then we must ask, is this being allowed equally for all groups? Is it happening during instructional time or school events? And most importantly, does it create pressure, discomfort, or confusion for students? Because even the appearance of school endorsement can violate the Establishment Clause. I'm asking this board to take a clear and consistent stance. [time expired].” - Justin Bennett, Plano, TX (non-resident)

Minor Student, Wylie, TX (resident) - 03/24/2026

“Good evening, board. I just left my baseball game, so that's why I'm in my baseball gear, just to let you guys know. I'm here to express continued concern for not just myself, but many more and more community members who have spoken out and are waking up to what has occurred. The Wylie ISD website on the public forum page states, ‘We are always listening,’ as a subtitle, but is this true? From multiple meetings, we have record of some of you having expressions that seem insincere. We have a member from the last school board meeting on video, laughing at a community member explaining what my club had to go through to get approval. It took many emails, calls, discussions, and more to get something done. Now we want real and meaningful accountability for the incident that happened on February 2. I always start off by thanking you for serving us, but slowly and slowly the trust and respect is fading away.

We'll make sure that every community member is aware of what's happened and will speak up at the ballot box. Now, I still have a little bit of time. There was a student that came out up here from Wylie High that is having trouble establishing a club, and he's not alone. We had to go through so much, so much intimidation, so much cornering, pulled into offices and talked down to, denied emails, saying I can't have guest speakers while other clubs can. It's unacceptable. I've tried to be nice. I've tried to work with you guys. It hasn't worked. I've reached out to representatives, precinct chairs. Now we finally have a club where we can meet and then something like this happens. I have to fill out two weeks in advance. I have to skip my lunch to fill out forms sometimes. And then we just have four adults walk in. I just don't see how this is acceptable. I've had to go through so much and you know what? It's made me better. It's made me more motivated. It's a spiritual war. It's not a physical war. And I'm praying that something is done and y'all have a blessed night. Thank you.” - Minor Student, Wylie, TX (resident)

Jesse LeVasseur, Whitewright, TX (non-resident) - 03/24/2026

“If I was a Muslim, I'd say thank you. Thank you for promoting Islam for allowing the indoctrination of students and children. I would thank you for ignoring the many people here. They're just misinformed, right? But I'm not a Muslim. Here's why.

Let me quote some verses from the Quran. Slay the unbeliever wherever you find them. Maim and crucify the infidels if they criticize Islam. Terrorize and behead those who believe in scriptures other than the Quran. Muslims must muster all weapons to terrorize the infidels. The unbelievers are stupid. Urge the Muslims to fight them. Whenever opportunity arises, kill the infidels wherever you catch them. Make war on infidels living in your neighborhood. Do not hanker for peace with infidels. Behead them when you catch them.

Remind me what that kid just told you. I've just brought the receipts. Support for Islam is treason. Treason is defined in Article 3, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution as adhering to the enemies of the United States. Some of the people in this room have committed treason. Why? Have you all been bribed or blackmailed? If so, blink twice. Is your allegiance to America and the Constitution or to the terror of Islam?

It's a rhetorical question. You've shown your cards. Do the right thing. Maybe just pretend you're hosting The Apprentice and tell a certain someone, ‘You're fired.’ Thank you.” - Jesse LeVasseur, Whitewright, TX (non-resident)

Multiple Speakers (02/17/2026)

Jean Abdellatif, Garland, TX (non-resident)

“My understanding is that we don't really have anybody that wants to take accountability for setting up the table and having the Qurans passed out at school and the pamphlets on Sharia law and the hijab. I understand it was Hijab Day 'cause we've allowed that into our nation as a celebration. I understand [principal] was on Facebook with her hijab. Saying how wonderful she felt. And I just wanted her to know that Iran, those Persian women over there that are being persecuted and killed right now and their families. When the lady had one lock of hair out from her hijab, she was taken to jail and she was beat to death for that offense. This is Sharia law that you guys were promoting on the campus. They also have made a special gun that they can put it in your eye and put your eye out and make you blind. It doesn't blow your head out or your brains out. They made it special. So all it does is blind you if you are in non-compliance of wearing a hijab or not wearing a hijab and letting your hair show in Iran. So, thank you so much for promoting the Islamic radical murderers on your campus.” - Jean Abdellatif, Garland, TX (non-resident)

Minor Child, Farmersville, TX (non-resident)

“Good evening, members of the school board. My name is [minor child], and I'm a 12-year-old resident of Farmersville, Texas. I understand that the outside organization was approved to be on campus. However, I'm concerned about the religious materials that were handed out to students during the lunch period. The following materials were handed out: hijabs, Korans, and Sharia Law pamphlets. Public schools serve students from many different religious backgrounds and students who have no religious beliefs at all. Because of that, I believe our schools must remain neutral when it comes to religious promotion during the school day. Even if participation was voluntary, handing out religious texts and items during school hours raises questions about whether that crosses the line from education into religion. That is something many families, including mine, are uncomfortable with.

If one religious organization is allowed to distribute materials, would every religious or ideological group be given the same opportunity? If so, how will that be managed fairly? If not, how is that even equal treatment? This is not about criticizing any specific religion. This is about maintaining neutrality, fairness, and a religious boundary from education and religion. I respectfully asked the board to clarify the guidelines regarding outside groups and religious materials, and to ensure that policies are applied consistently moving forward. Thank you for your time.” - Minor Child, Farmersville, TX (non-resident)

Kyle Sims, McKinney, TX (non-resident)

“Well, first of all, I find it very hypocritical and ironic that we didn't have any pledges to our Texas flag and our United States flag, and neither did we have a prayer. I might add that there's a young man in this room that we fought for several months ago that had fought two years to get a Republican club, and the stuff that he had to go through to do that. Lo and behold, a bunch of us come speak, and a few days later, he’s got a Republican club. But the irresponsibility of y'all letting somebody come into this school without knowing what their intent was or what they were gonna do. But yet he's been dealing with this for two years. All of y'all know that our Texas and U.S. Constitution supersede any kind of Sharia Law in this state. That should have never happened.

Y'all failed as a board and as a school that these groups came in here and did what they did. What if had it been a man with a gun or a pedophile? We know last year that there were over 200 students in inappropriate relationships with students and staff in Texas. That's just ones we know about. We've had several this year. Y'all need to step your game up. And I want to not only protect the kids and the staff in this school, but we're gonna do everything in our damn power to protect the sovereignty of Texas with our Judeo-Christian values.” - Kyle Sims, McKinney, TX (non-resident)

Jesse LeVasseur, Whitewright, TX (non-resident)

“Unlike many people here today, I'm not here to share my opinion. First, I speak not to the board, but to the people. Islam came to Wylie East with Sharia Law on one hand and knocked on the door with the other, and they were welcomed in. Sharia is a totalizing sociopolitical legal system that seeks to govern public life, law, politics, economic society, education and war.

Treason is defined in Article 3, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution as adhering to the enemies of the United States. Treason was committed when Sharia-bearing Islam was welcomed into our school. Treason is the only crime listed in the Constitution that is punishable by death. Only one crime. The founding fathers thought so grave a sin. With everything else, they would allow forgiveness. Islam is not a religion that our founding fathers gave their lives, fortunes and sacred honor to protect. Islam is a non-competing political system, and to adhere to it is treason.

And to commit treason is to deserve death. To the board, the people will remember their free Christian country is not dying. It is being murdered by treasonous people with names and addresses. Act accordingly. Act according to the law and the Constitution. If the high courts would demand death for treason, then we demand this court, this school board, that those responsible for this, those who have committed treason against the United States are removed from their positions. If you cannot do your job, resign and someone else will.” - Jesse LeVasseur, Whitewright, TX (non-resident)

Jacenta Sims, McKinney, TX (non-resident)

“Thank you. I am retired from a district, a school district in the area. I worked in the principal's office, and regarding the Raptor system up front, where you check people in before they can come in the building. I had to go up front and do this whenever the receptionist was gone, it was part of my duties when she was at lunch, or she was out that day or on vacation. So I got very familiar with the Raptor system and know how it works. What I would do was vet people coming in. But I would never let anyone enter the part of the building past the reception area without notifying an administrator that being a principal or a counselor, let's say. I would let them know a visitor’s here, and they would escort them. They would decide if they go in the building. I would never have just allowed anyone, even though they passed the Raptor system, I would never have allowed them to go into the building without an escort. You just don't do that. So, I don't know who the person was that allowed that to happen, but perhaps she just needs to be trained in the safety of the students, is what I'm saying. It’s just common sense that they know who they're visiting. Thank you.” - Jacenta Sims, McKinney, TX (non-resident)

Jacquez Jones, Little Elm, TX (non-resident)

“Good evening. On February 6th, I filed a Freedom of Information request regarding the incident at Wylie East High School. I requested the names, times, dates, photography, and any additional extensive details regarding the incident that occurred. And what I received back was appalling. I received a photo from this district of the information and the materials that were handed out. Among these things were hijabs, information about Sharia law, candy, and bags about Why Islam. Let's be abundantly clear for a second. When you send your kid to a public school in the state of Texas, you expect your kid to be educated, not indoctrinated.

And first and foremost, I also want to state that this district experienced a dereliction of duty, not just a dereliction, but complete complicity, because we still don't have answers as to how four individuals walk through a school with boxes and bags of materials. Nobody questions them. Among that, inside of a cafeteria where administrators and teachers are present, there was nobody that put a stop to it. And so when we talk about complicity, allowing these four people to come through this school without asking any questions as to who they are, where they're from, or why they're coming through the school is a problem. If you want to talk about ESAs and declining enrollment and school choice, the reason why people in Texas are removing their children from public schools it's because of stuff like this. And at the end of the day, you'll be held accountable, whether that be through an election or a recall. We are going to make sure that you guys are held accountable.” - Jacquez Jones, Little Elm, TX (non-resident)

Aleksandra Rolfson, Wylie, TX (resident)

“Good evening. I'm going to say at least that I'm disappointed in Wylie ISD and its leadership. And I think it's way past time that the Board of Trustees start answering to parents and taxpayers and not the administration of the Wylie ISD. Why is Wylie ISD holding only one or two staff members accountable for what happened on February 9th? Why isn’t Wylie ISD holding accountable a student club or the Why Islam organization? What are you afraid of? Are you treating a problem? You are treating a problem and not the root cause that led to the problem. Why is Wylie ISD offering halal meals now? How much is the total cost per meal? Not per student what students have to pay. But for the ISD? For me. Whose decision was this, and when was it discussed?

Now I was counting on a one-minute speech because that's what you guys usually do. You go for three to one when there are too many speakers. So I'm gonna stay in here and filibuster this my 20 minutes or whatever. But I do ask you to look into this, because one staff member, low, probably somebody who didn't even know anything better, cannot be the only person held accountable for this. And I encourage all of you to look at your speakers when they're talking to you and don't look at your screens. There's nothing on your screen that we're talking about.” - Aleksandra Rolfson, Wylie, TX (resident)

Michael Schwerin, Wylie, TX (resident)

“Hello again, trustees and superintendent, I know that I'm not a new person to come here. And you've seen me and heard me speak many times. And as I say, every time I'm here, up here representing myself as a parent to students in this district, and as well as for all the parents and teachers that are afraid to come up here and speak, and staff members are afraid to come up here and speak. I'm not gonna talk about what happened, but why it happened and how it happened in Wylie ISD. After 11 years in this school district, I can tell you that it happened because the seven of you up here have abdicated your roles as the elected leaders in our community to the superintendent and the staff.

And at the same time that the role of that administrator as the superintendent, as the previous superintendent told me, was to stay off this five o'clock news. And that was his main goal was to do that as well as to make us look really, really good. And as you can see, that failed miserably, unfortunately. And what you have done though is created an atmosphere of intimidation, bullying, and fear within not only the parents, the students, but also the teachers and staff. Which is why I've had way more staff and teachers come and talk to me in the last two weeks since this has happened than I would, I would hope that, but it probably would bet more than many of you because they're afraid. Why are they afraid? Because they'll get fired or have their position eliminated. And when you have teachers and staff that are told to remove their Bibles or their crosses from their classrooms or offices, and then you allow something like this to happen, that isn't right. And that's why the fear in there. And that's why when you ask why parents went to the news or went to the internet and didn't come to you directly, it's because we know what happens when we come to you directly. It's what's happened. It's what's happened to me multiple times over the last six years. It is that I'm told that I'm lying, or we're told it didn't happen, or it's swept under the rug quickly and quickly so that it doesn't get anything happening.
And you should be ashamed of yourselves. Thank you.” - Michael Schwerin, Wylie, TX (resident)

Hamza Fraz, Wylie, TX (resident)

“My name is Hamza. Good evening. Thank you very much for letting me speak. Wylie ISD rankings speak for themselves to the success of the policies that you have adopted. So congratulations from the Muslim community on coming up with these policies, on enforcing those policies that are ensuring the success of not just the Muslim kids, but all the Wylie kids. In the past two years, your policies have also successfully weathered an extremely charred political climate caused in the aftermath of the genocide in Gaza. Yet you have [interrupted by audience members].

Thank you for providing a safe space to kids from all faiths and backgrounds, Muslim, Jewish, Christian, Hindus, everyone. There is this harmony in Wylie ISD that must not be compromised. Some people are causing just a storm in a teacup and making a big thing out of something that is nothing really. I urge you solemnly to stand firm. Do not let external hate breach our schools. Protect the diverse positive vibes that make Wylie ISD so unique and attractive to people like us. Thank you.” - Hamza Fraz, Wylie, TX (resident)

Cyndi Darland, Princeton, TX (non-resident)

“Good evening, trustees. I know what it means to sit in those seats [Princeton ISD board member], and I, too, am amazed that we didn't start with pledges and a prayer. Just wanted to say that [interrupted by audience clapping] You, as a board, have the exclusive power and duty to oversee the district. On Monday, February 2nd, there was a flyer posted for World Hijab Day on campus during lunch offering free hijabs, hena, snacks, Quorans, and Sharia law pamphlets. That is called grooming our children, with the backing of the school and the principal. Access to our children was given unequivocally. That group was there at lunch with hundreds of students. Just think if it had been worse and something had happened. Ultimately, we want safety, transparency and following the parental bill of rights, which prohibits proselytizing. Did you know that Sharia law goes against the United States Constitution? The fact that they gave out that to students in our school district, which Sharia law is a law that says some supersede our law in America, is most egregious.

I'm calling for the removal of this principal immediately. Anyone that has such a lack of judgment to allow this should not be allowed to access our students and should not be working in any school district. Also, you need to do a better job as a board and a superintendent. I pray that God gives you wisdom and a spine to do the right thing. God bless America.” - Cyndi Darland, Princeton, TX (non-resident)

Minor Child, Wylie, TX (resident)

“Good evening, board members. I want to thank each and every one of you for serving the people of Wylie. This evening, I would like to address an incident that occurred on my campus, Wylie East High School, on February 2nd during lunch. During this time, four adults representing an outside organization were able to gain access to our campus and distribute pamphlets and other materials directly to students. This event caused confusion and concern among students, staff, parents, and community members alike, as it raises serious concerns about how individuals unaffiliated with the district were permitted on campus during the school day without proper authorization or oversight.

As a president of a student club on campus, I hold a deep respect for community engagement. However, this process required for student-led organizations to host guest speakers or visitors is extensive and is designed to maintain safety, accountability, and fairness. For instance, when my club wishes to invite a speaker, we must complete the necessary paperwork well in advance, 15 days to be exact. 14 days. Speakers are required to undergo background checks seven days before their visit. And I personally have to coordinate the time, location, topic, number of presentations, give their information out, often giving up my own lunch period to ensure all guidelines are followed. The fact that outside adults were able to bypass these same procedures raises a troubling issue of double standards. It sends a message that some groups are held to strict regulations while others are granted exceptions. Not only were district policies disregarded, but multiple state laws were broken concerning school safety, access control, and violated in the process. This situation has left many of us, students, staff, and parents alike, questioning how such a lapse in protocol could occur on a campus that places such a strong emphasis on security. The students, community members of Wylie, and the entire district deserve transparency and assurance that something like this will not happen again. We acknowledge that public statements regarding the incidents have been released, but recent history at Wylie East has shown that assurances from certain administrators have not always been matched with consistent action. In some cases, promises to improve communication only for the opposite to take place when [inadudible] faded. This pattern must end. Now. Once again, I appreciate everyone's service to this district, and we deserve answers. Thank you.” - Minor Child, Wylie, TX (resident)

Mike Hook, Dallas, TX (non-resident)

“Islamic folks are proselytizing in American schools. The Islamic rules about women covering up their bodies is not permissible. Islamic conversion of folks in our American schools is not permissible. School is for reading, writing, and math skills, history, and critical thinking development. Islamic proselytizing or any proselytizing is anti-constitutional.

Justice William Douglas, who was not politically conservative, stated that we are a religious people whose institutions presuppose a supreme being. We can be a religious people, we can honor our supreme being as a shared history, nature, and nature's God. These are facts of our American founding. We recognize our rights come from God, but that does not mean that we are required in school to allow anyone who claims a religion to proselytize and recruit people into their religion. Many legal case rulings support this. That is not our school's purpose. We have a declaration that we are a religious people with a shared religious heritage. We have the Ten Commandments in our classrooms, but that does not mean we must convey the Islamic message as to Islamic rules that a woman must cover her hair. Even our Supreme Court, as deviant from our union's founding, rules as it has been, concurs that this is our American historical heritage. Wylie ISD is public domain, so government's cultural trend toward allowing court case rulings in historic fact, shall [time expired].” - Mike Hook, Dallas, TX (non-resident)

Melinda Preston, Frisco, TX (non-resident)

“Good evening. My name is Melinda Preston, and I'm the chair of the Denton County Republican Party. I would like to address an incident that happened on Monday, February 2nd, at the Wylie East High School. A friend who attends Wylie East approached me at a meeting and shared what had happened that day at school. I was shocked and I asked and when I heard what he had to say and I asked if I could do a video. As many of you know, that video quickly went viral.

What concerns me even more about all of this is that it wasn't the first time that the school had participated in National Jihad, I mean Hijab Day, that was a Freudian slip there. Photos from last year's surface showing the principal of Wylie East High School wearing a hijab during the school's observance of the event.

On Tuesday, February 3rd, the district released a statement claiming that it was unaware of how the outside Islamic organization, Why Islam, was able to enter the campus and set up a table. That explanation raises serious concerns about campus security. Parents trust that when they drop their children off at school, they are entering a secure and properly supervised environment. According to the district's own statement, an outside organization was able to distribute religious materials during lunch without proper authorization or oversight. How was this allowed to happen in such a visible area of the school near the cafeteria? The situation appears to be a clear failure to follow established procedures. Additionally, given the surfaced images of the principal on that day, I believe she needs to be removed. At the heart of this all is three concerns. Campus security, proper adherence to district policy, equal treatment under the law. Parents deserve transparency, accountability, and assurance that established policies will be consistently enforced moving forward. And I do have a picture of the February 5th, 2025. Guys, this is unreal. And I know this probably is a shock to you and y'all didn't know it. I hope that's my, that's my hope. But guys, we've gotta do something for our students. She needs to be held accountable. [speaker went over time - gavel bang at :07 after time ended - speaker concluded :01 later].” - Melinda Preston, Frisco, TX (non-resident)

Michael Conway, Aubrey, TX (non-resident)

“Hey, good evening, board. First, you're wrong. The Pledge of Allegiance goes first, always. I've been attending school board meetings for three years, it’s number one. That really irritated me that anybody would even defend that. Change how your agenda is, fix it, but it should never have been down the list. It should've been first, you know, hearing about the challenge with getting the Turning Point Club started, which is based in Christian values. And then you think about how easy it was to have an Islam push. Are you grooming children for Islam? If so, all of you resign.

Because this is just wrong, guys. It's wrong on every level. The fact that there was a battle to help the student who spoke out and was brave enough to say, I need help. That we're brought in a room full of adults to have to defend the kid. Y'all should have stepped up from the start and you didn't. And that's wrong. Stop the grooming, stop the indoctrination. Go back to basic teaching. Yes, we've got different faces in this country. All should be, and while I don't agree with Islam, it is what it is. At the end of the day, protect these children. Go back to teaching, not the indoctrination. Get away from the grooming. It's so bad. I've been going to these meetings for a while. Most of the time, it's about the inappropriate relationships with students and teachers, but now we're battling this. Seriously, guys, step up or step out.” - Michael Conway, Aubrey, TX (non-resident)

Daniel Phillips, Wylie, TX (resident)

“Good evening, members of the board. I wasn't planning on coming tonight until my dad suggested that I should. I'm only speaking because while I'm glad our neighbors from around our town are here, I wanted to speak as a member of the community, and as a parent of a young kid, that’ll soon be going to Wylie schools and in the feeder pattern of Wylie East. So I'm here tonight just to start learning about what happened. Ask this body for accountability, some transparency, and ask to understand what systems were there, what systems failed, what systems will be repaired, made better, made stronger. I'm not here to talk about any group or religion or anything like this. I simply wanted to reiterate, kind of the root of this is… something happened. Hopefully it was an honest mistake by a human being that's fallible. Hopefully. And simply, we can get to the bottom of this, hold those accountable that need to be held accountable and move forward as the community that I moved to, that I chose to move to, here in Wylie. Thank you.” - Daniel Phillips, Wylie, TX (resident)

Zafar Haq, Wylie, TX (resident)

“Thank you, Board of Trustees. I'm Zafar. I'm a proud parent of my three daughters that attend the highly rated Wylie ISD school system. They're proud Patriots and Tibbals Tigers. We moved here three years ago and settled in this beautiful city, and are proud to call Wylie our home. I'm here to thank each and every member of the Wylie ISD community for opening your hearts and welcoming us to be part of this dynamic and rich community. The spirit of tolerance and rejection of bias and hate is what makes us an envy for all. These are the values that unite us as Americans and Texans. Unfortunately, a few political opportunists want to introduce divisions and blow things out of proportion. I ask each and every elected and educator of the Wylie ISD system to stand against this hate and division. We are here to support you and build a thriving and open society, enjoying the rights enshrined by our founding fathers. Thank you.” - Zafar Haq, Wylie, TX (resident)

Sara Khan, Wylie, TX (resident)

“Good evening. My name is Sara Khan, and my kids go to Wylie High School. I just want to just tell you a bit about World Hijab Day, it is basically celebrated annually in over 150 countries. And the main purpose is basically to foster religious tolerance and to combat discrimination against Muslim women. It invites females of all backgrounds, faiths to experience the beauty of hijab, promoting understanding and tolerance. It seeks to create empathy. It supports freedom of choice, that every woman has a right to choose her attire. And you cannot discriminate [inaudible] a person just because of what they're wearing. Right? So this is what we were trying to, basically this event is about. So I really appreciate the Wylie ISD for giving us the opportunity to celebrate this event. And we've been doing it for past few years and never it has happened what happened this time. All the volunteers at the booth generally have background checks. And I do understand the parents' concern over the security issue. I'm a parent myself. I'm always scared of my kids' security. So I assure you that all the protocols are followed generally, and also the booth is not disrupting any school operations. So I don't know why so much hate is being created after this small event. We generally do this event to try to promote more to tolerance. So I encourage the board to ensure that the MSA, the Muslim Student Association at Wylie High School, is not discriminated in the future due to some political rhetoric and hate-driven narrative. Students of all faiths and backgrounds should feel more welcome and not looked down upon just because of their faith or the way they dress up. That is the main reason. Thank you, everyone.” - Sara Khan, Wylie, TX (resident)

Zulikha Hussain, Wylie, TX (resident)

“Good evening. Wylie, ISD board members, thank you for allowing me to speak. My name is Zulikha Hussein. I'm a graduate of Dallas Baptist University and a resident of Wylie. I want to acknowledge that you are operating in a highly polarized time. Decisions involving schools, religion, and student safety today are never simple. However, this was not just a difficult decision for all of you. It was an important decision because it directly affects how all students understand free speech, religious freedom, and belonging. High school students today have access to more complex and unfiltered information than any generation before them. Largely through their cell phones, they're exposed daily to global conflicts, political rhetoric, and misinformation. In just a few years, these students will be attending college. Many are already driving. They already have access to vast information and resources, whether we like it or not, parents here or not here, we need to acknowledge that this is not fully in control of the parents anymore.

This is not a failure of parenting. It is the reality of modern life that makes school more important than ever as a place of clarity and education. This is high school, not elementary school. These students are closer to adulthood and learning how to engage with ideas they may not agree with. There's a widespread confusion about Islam, Muslims, and something often labeled as Sharia law. Muslims in Texas are governed by the United States Constitution. Nothing else. Muslims are doctors, dentists, nurses, teachers, police officers and local business owners contributing daily to the city of Wylie, to the student, to the economy, to the Texas economy.  [speaker went over time - gavel bang at :03 after time ended] There's no compulsion in conversion to Islam. [Board President interjects]. No one is being asked to [gavel bang] change their beliefs. Providing access to a religious text, [gavel bang] any religious text, [Board President interjects] is not a safety issue. [Board President interjects]
Muslim students should [mic is cut].” [speaker concludes at :20 over] - Zulikha Hussain, Wylie, TX (resident)

Lee Moore, Fairview, TX (non-resident)

“Thank you. I don't have children in Wylie ISD, but like many parents today who have stepped up to the microphone, I'm here because some things are bigger than district boundaries. I'm a parent and neighbor and also a taxpayer in this region. And I'm here tonight because what happened at Wylie East is not just a Wylie problem. It’s a warning sign for every school district in this region, state, and across the country. I'm a Christian, but my comments are not about targeting one religion. If somebody had walked into the school handing out Bibles without authorization, we would be just as upset in the lapse of policies. The principle is simple. Parents direct the moral and spiritual upbringing of their children. Not schools, not outside groups, but the parents.

What happened here was a breakdown at every level. An outside organization, walked through your front door, set up a table in the main hallway, and spent an entire lunch period handing religious materials, Qurans and hijabs to the students, and administration claims they didn't know with cameras, with their front office, with staff in those halls. And your explanation is not credible. Then you told parents a staff member was on leave. But the word is that no one missed a single day. Your story has shifted multiple times, and the parents and staff members who have tried to raise concerns, they've been met with silence at best. And it [inaudible], a culture where everyone knows that speaking up against this administration comes with consequences.

The culture of fear, intimidation, and bullying is part of why this happened in the first place. Because people who have, who should have stopped it, were afraid to. From the outside looking in, here's what I see. A district that failed its students gave incomplete and shifting answers to the parents and has yet to hold anyone meaningfully accountable. What this board needs to do is simple. Put in place an airtight visitor and outside group policies with real consequences when they're broken. Be transparent about what discipline occurred and make an ironclad commitment that no outside organization of any background. [time expired]” - Lee Moore, Fairview, TX (non-resident)

Chris Krok, Richardson, TX (non-resident)

“Hello, my name is Chris Krok. America is a Christian nation. The principal one year ago, the principal on the same day, World Hijab Day, wore that hijab and said she loved it--all caps. One year to the day later, on World Hijab Day, Sunday, Monday hits. They're putting out girls in Sharia, they're passing out Sharia pamphlets, hijabs, Qurans, Understanding Islam, Understanding Sharia, treating Sharia treats half of this room like cattle. And these women are not cattle. We were laughed at when we say Sharia when we bring it up. But what was passed out at Wylie East? Understanding Sharia. They're trying to put our daughters, wrap their beauty up, and hide it. This is not a Muslim nation. This is a Christian nation. That principal knew what she was doing, and I am not believing that it was one or two people at that front desk. Fire the principal. You tell these, you tell the parents don't go online to get information. But what did they get online? Marco told the truth. That's where they got the information. And you did online, telling us not to go there. This was Dawah, Muslim, proselytizing Dawah. It's like me as a Christian going into a school and witnessing to these kids. You want me to do that? Let's go.

CAIR is the only public defender of this abomination in that school. CAIR. CAIR is an unindicted co-conspirator in the largest ever terrorism financing case in US history, raising $5-7 million to kill Jews with the Holy Land Foundation. Several people from that Holy Land Foundation were sent to prison for decades by the FBI, and they were labeled by our government as non-indicted co-conspirator. CAIR sued to get the name removed. The judge says hell no. You're an unindicted co-conspirator. That's the only defender. Publicly. We are their defenders. And every student is gonna be on my podcast. And they all have as much time as they want to tell their story about you guys.” - Chris Krok, Richardson, TX (non-resident)

Zuhaib Mohammed, Wylie, TX (resident)

“Good evening, board. I've been a resident of Wylie for six years. I live here. I pay taxes. I care deeply about the schools that my children attend here and our community standards. What I've been seeing, what I've been following, the recent incident at Wylie East High School, has been somewhat troubling to me. Not because people have asked questions, but some of the facts were actually replaced with fear. I want to make it clear that no individual or group should distribute any material, religious, political, on school grounds without any kind of district permission. If these individuals involved did not have any kind of authorization, that is wrong. School policies exist for a reason. They must be enforced consistently. But enforcing that policy, it does not justify what followed. Instead of procedural discussions, we saw online hysteria. Fabricated narratives about Islam. It had nothing to do with much reality. Most of it's centered on Sharia law, a term people use without understanding.

I want to make it clear. Sharia--it's not a legal code in the American sense. It's not an enforceable law. A little elementary lesson for everyone. It's a personal religious framework. It's a way of living, just like Christians, how they follow their biblical teachings or Jewish families keep kosher. It does not replace any city ordinances, state law, or the Constitution. I believe the majority may agree with me that I also believe in the separation of church and state. I don't believe any religion, including my own, Islam, should be taught in public schools. That's why we have faith-based schools around the city. My children, I want them to go to school to learn science, math, history, and learn critical thinking, not theology.” - Zuhaib Mohammed, Wylie, TX (resident)

Minor Child, Murphy, TX (resident)

“Hello. Peace be upon you all. It is terrifying to stand up here today and face all the hate behind me. I am a proud Muslim senior expecting to graduate from Wylie High School in three months. I stand in front of you as a representative of every Muslim woman who comes to your ISD to learn, of the Muslim students on your campus, and as the vice president of the Muslim Student Association at Wylie High School, I'd like to start off by saying, this is my home. This is my home. This ISD houses my community regardless of religion. Muslim, Christian, Hindu, atheist, my people. I was born here. I grew up here, and this will be my home and my alma mater. Every morning from the moment we first walk at Wylie High School in your freshman year, we walk past a poster in front of the office with the words: “Hate has no home here.”

As of tonight, the Holy month of Ramadan starts for your students and your Muslim students in your schools. It's a spiritual time and the students will aim to spend more of their times in acts of worship. Your students are starting to fast from sunrise to sunset with no food or water to drink in between. Similar to Lent in Christianity. So soon after a public uproar regarding the hijab booth at Wylie East High on February 2nd, students are cautious about being able to express their religion and practice their First Amendment rights freely.

I do not ask you to indulge students nor anyone who does not follow protocols nor follow the rules of your school. Rather, I ask you to show your students that they'll be protected from the hate you say has no home here. Even if that means something as simple as smiling at them. I have all the confidence that the leaders of Wylie ISD will make a complete effort to eradicate such hatred, targeting the Muslim students at Wylie ISD. You have the power, and you have the responsibility. I thank you all for your time. God bless America.” - Minor Student, Murphy, TX (resident)

WYLIE EAST

Senate Bill 11

Robyn Carafiol, Dallas, TX

“Good evening, President Howard and members of the Wylie ISD Board of Trustees. Thank you for allowing me to speak. My name is Robyn. I'm here to ask you to vote no on SB 11. My daughter and her family live in Wylie, so they're at home right now because the baby's under the weather and they've gotta get her ready for bed, so I'm here representing them. I am a person of faith, a licensed real estate agent, a member of a synagogue in Dallas, and I'm in Wylie all the time. SB 11 would make my role and my daughter and son-in-law's role more difficult. I want my granddaughter to be able to go to school and be herself. I want her to not feel left out or bothered if she's not participating in a state-organized prayer time. Not all the children pray the same way. So an organized prayer time that parents opt into or opt out of can create division. I want every child to be included to feel included, regardless of their faith or lack thereof. So please vote no on SB 11, but preserve the freedom. Children already have to pray or not pray at school, as we teach them in our homes. And thank you so much.” - Robyn Carafiol, Dallas, TX

Daniel Ward, Wylie, TX

“I didn’t want to talk about any event or anything. I just wanted to speak specifically to the SB 11 that somebody else spoke about. I moved here a year ago from Garland, but been in Texas for 40 years. The SB 11, to me, is really important, because I'm a big believer in church and state separation, and from my understanding, when they passed that, they just gave it out to the communities to decide. And I just think it's important to have - I'm from old school, so I'm a person that, I don't think school is a place for prayer and reading the Bible. I'm a Christian, but regardless of what book you read or whatever, I think it's a place for math, arithmetic, reading, history, stuff like that. You know what I mean? And so SB 11 is a way that you guys, as the ISD folks, can say no. It just separates all of this, you know, because who knows where that goes when you have prayer time, or you have reading stuff. So that's what I wanted to say. Thank you.” - Daniel Ward, Wylie, TX

Multiple Speakers(09/16/25)

Speaker 1: Kyle Sims
“Thank you, board. During this time in America, we're going through some pretty bad changes and sad times and a lot of us are here tonight. It's our understanding that there's a particular student that wanted to start a Republican club. And if you say there's no political clubs allowed that's one thing. But from my understanding, there's been some people approved to run that club and sponsor that club and then they backed out. And I guess our question is, y’all have a lot of different clubs that mention diversity and inclusiveness and all kind of different clubs, which is great. But when it comes to this one, it's been a thorn for some reason. And we're really curious as to why that website, that website appeared for the first time today on the district website this morning, and then all of a sudden it disappeared. And we know this has been going on for a couple years. So, we would like to know, you know, I know y'all can't talk about it here, but these children want to branch out with their knowledge, with their friendships. There's nothing wrong with having any kind of club if a school district wants to have it, so let's do what's right, let's let these young men and women have their club just like everybody else has their club, and let it proceed. If there's something wrong, then let the kids know. If there's no reason to hold these kids back from their beliefs like anybody else and not let them have that opportunity. Thank y’all.”

Speaker 2: Matthew Thorsen
“Thank you. I just want to say start by saying that was a great tribute to Dr. Vinson. I want to say good evening members, board, parents, and students.  I'm a Collin County Republican Precinct Chair. I stand before you today, regardless of where this stands in the process, to support the right of students of Wylie East High School to form and maintain a Republican club. At its core, this is not about party politics. It's about the First Amendment, the freedom of speech, and association guaranteed to every American. Schools should be a place where young people can think critically, explore ideas, prepare to engage as responsible citizens. That means allowing a diversity of viewpoints, even when they challenge us, and even when not everyone agrees. If we deny students the right to organize around their political beliefs, we are not protecting them, we're silencing them. And that that silence teaches the wrong lesson that only certain voices are welcome, and others must be pushed aside. That is not a way a republic functions and it is not the example we should set for our children. Let us remember the tragic assassination of Charlie Kirk, a voice who worked tirelessly to inspire young people to stand for their values. Would everyone's politics, the fact that a man was murdered for what he believed, remind us all how precious and fragile our freedoms really are? The best way to honor his life and the lives of all who have paid the price for freedom is to ensure that every student in this school has the right to be heard without fear of suppression. Our students are the future leaders of our communities, whether they lean Republican, Democrat, Independent, they should encourage be encouraged to take part in civic life. By supporting this club, we show them that their voices matter and that they can participate respectfully constructively in the public square. I urge the board to recognize that the strength of our schools and our Republic comes from open dialogue not suppression. Let us set the example that all viewpoints have the right to be heard and that our students deserve the same freedoms we cherish as Americans and I challenge one or some of you to take personal action and seeing this through not only approving this club here at this high school but standing ready to do the same for any Republican student groups that May come before you in the future. Thank you.” 

Speaker 3: Michael Padilla
“Good evening, ladies, and gentlemen. I'm delighted to be here tonight. My name is Michael Padilla. I am a citizen of Murphy, Texas. I am also a County Collin Republican Precinct Chair, Precinct 166. My only interaction with Wylie ISD has been my annual Collin County property appraisal, and Wylie ISD is one of the taxing jurisdictions on there. We were built on no taxation without representation. Every single one of you, for the duration of your term, is my representative, therefore my voice, and my voice to the administration. And I come here to exercise that voice in support of approving the Republican Club of Wylie East. The president of that club has participated with me in our monthly executive committee meetings as part of the color guard. They will walk out with me with the American flag, the Texas flag, and one of the armed services flags. It's nice to have these young men be there with me in front of the rest of the AEC. I did reach out to [Administrator Name] [Board President Jacob Day - Please refrain from using names.] My apologies. I did reach out to an administrator of Wylie East, asking him to approve the club. And he did respond to me saying that as soon as the president finds a sponsor teacher, that he would approve the club right away. I understand that there is a sponsor in place, and I'm asking to exercise my voice today via my representatives to approve that club. I apologize for the names. Have a good night.” 

Speaker 4: Pamela Sardo
“Good evening, board members. I'm Dr. Pamela Sardo, and it's a pleasure to be here with you tonight. Thank you for your service to the children, the parents, and the staff. It's joyful to be here celebrating your successful, your successes. I am perplexed why the Republican Club in Wylie ISD has not been approved despite multiple communications with multiple leadership, no names, large volume of citizen requests, and multiple willing sponsors who have come forward in addition to the active Republican Clubs around Texas and other districts. You just celebrated Wylie Way. The Republican Club is aligned with Wylie Way Day's objectives and core Wylie ISD values in the website, stating to promote positive character and student success, stating we firmly believe in helping our students identify and grow in their strengths, stating to support citizenship. The Republican Club is consistently aligned with the Wylie handbook. On page 68 of the handbook PDF, participation in school-sponsored activities is stated as an excellent way to develop talents and build strong friendships. You are aware on page 68 of the handbook PDF, a grade below 70 will result in the inability to participate, which has what impact? The club encourages academic excellence to allow participation. The required curriculum in Wylie Handbook states that on page 72, three credits in social studies, including U.S. history and government, are required. The club teaches content that is taught in those mandated courses, while also teaching listening skills, negotiation, compromise, aspects of the U.S. Constitution, legislative processes, the three branches of government, real-world business processes, volunteerism, parliamentary procedure, which is utilized in meetings in 80% of the companies in the United States. Here's a helpful example. 

Are you aware that there are 17 constitutional amendments on the November ballot? These kids know about critical ballot issues. Do you agree that Wylie clubs promote critical and creative thinking and problem-solving? Do you agree that clubs enhance communication and collaboration? I'm sure you agree that clubs encourage students to develop strengths and negotiate through challenges. I'm sure you agree that clubs encourage treating one another with respect while appreciating diversity. Can the citizens and voters in the community count on you to approve the Republican Club? Thank you very much for correcting the dilemma.” 

Speaker 5: Marcos Lopez 
“Thank you for having me up here. My name is Marcos Lopez I am a parent, father, and I'm also here to voice my concern. I want to just start off by saying, Dr. Vinson, thank you for everything you've done. I know there's been a few boards without saying names that have been involved, so I appreciate. I'm here representing the Republican Student Club, and we meet the requirements, and if y'all could just look into it. Not sure what's going on, but this is the second year. My student, or my child, is a sophomore. We have three more years to go, but I've had nothing but good things throughout the years. My two older daughters have graduated in 2019, and the Wylie Way does represent everything that we've experienced. But the last two years, it hasn't gone that direction. And I ask everyone to just look into it, and for anyone who's already started looking into it, I want to say thank you. I want to say thank you. And I want to say thank you.”

Speaker 6: Marco Hunter-Lopez 
“Good evening. First, I want to thank Dr. Vinson for your service to this district. And I remember my first day at Harrison when I got my first dollar from you. I want to thank each and every one of you for serving the city and the schools in Wylie. The Republican Student Club has consistently gone through roadblocks. We appreciate all the parents,  students, elected officials and teachers for their support and the club school board for their efforts in helping us in this effort. The administrator and the school administration has not seemed to be on the same page as this school board, and I hope it is resolved very soon. Attempts to establish and maintain the club has faced repeated delays denials and complications from August 2024 through the start of this 2025-2026 school year, including disputes over policies, posters,  guest speakers and recognition. Despite periods of approval the club's legitimacy and activities were often obstructed and as of September 2025 the new school year has started without the republican student club being approved allegedly due to the lack of a sponsor even though we had an employee who has volunteered. We would just appreciate transparency and communication as well as support that the other clubs receive. We want the Wylie Way like everyone else.” 

Speaker 7: Ann Marie Mellon-Campbell
“Good evening, trustees. So to save time, we've already heard some very good cases for the Republican Club. What I would like to add to that is I could talk about the Texas Code that we should follow, that I know that you're aware of as far as giving equal opportunity and non-discriminatory based on political views, but I'm not going to go there. Instead, I just want to express my curiosity and disappointment in what is taking so long to get this club approved. I mean, what is going on here that we cannot get this Republican club approved? It's not like it is an obscure club that no one has ever heard of. Everyone knows what the basis of the Republican club is, so please push out the roadblocks and let's get this club approved for these students that are well deserving, this community that is well deserving to have the Republican Club in this school. Thank you.” 

 Speaker 8: Justin Bennett 
“Good evening, trustees. My name is Justin Bennett. I'm also a GOP precinct chair. I'm out of Precinct 138 in Collin County, and I'm from Plano, and I've been working along with Plano ISD on several recent issues, including anti-Semitism, public comments, and I also have three children currently in PISD. I'm here to remind you, well, and also maybe more specifically, Wylie East High School, that the Republican Student Club at Wylie ISD has still not been approved. This delay violates both state law and federal law. Under the Texas Education Code 11.151B, the board must govern in a way that protects student rights. The Texas Education Code 25.082 requires equal opportunities for student participation without discrimination based on political or religious viewpoints. The Equal Access Act 20 USC 4071 and the Supreme Court case Board of Education v. Mergens 1990 make it clear once a school allows a non-curricular club or clubs, it cannot deny others because of their political speech. By withholding approval Wylie ISD risks violating civil rights and exposing the district to TEA and U.S. Department of Education complaints. This is not about partisanship. It's about the law. I urge you to approve the Republican Student Club. Thank you for your time.” 

Aleksandra Rolfson (02/24/25)

“Good evening, long time no see. I’m going to be straight and to the point here, as always. Every year, the board is renewing the superintendent’s three-year contract. Why? Is this for performance review and pay raise and can this be done with the amendment of the existing contract or changing a three-year contract to one year? Also, with all the admins that report to the superintendent, what exactly are his day-to-day duties to warrant his salary? And I’m talking about a $43,000 pay raise in the last three years' salary. Number two, you say you are conservative with the budget, can you please explain why did about 10 of y’all, admins and board members fly to Austin last week, why couldn’t y’all just drive? It is 3.5 hours one way. Do we need taxpayers to form our own DOGE and go through the Wylie ISD books?  

Also, is there a third-party audit report on Wylie ISD expenditures, and if so, where can I find one?  Lastly, English is my second language and I can’t even believe that I’m saying this at a school board meeting. The difference between the words shall and should. Wylie ISD policy for public forum sign-ups states citizens should sign up personally. The word [should] does not mean mandatory so you cannot ask for my ID or my phone number. Change it to shall and you can have my ID, you can have my phone number, or whatever else. I just hope that the student code of conduct is not filled with should and expecting them to follow it, and we cannot even enforce it legally. Thank you.” -Aleksandra Rolfson

Caitlin Linduff (02/24/25)

"Hi everybody, my name is Caitlin Linduff. My husband and I, we moved here to Wylie about 4.5 years ago, specifically for the school district. It’s kind of ironic that you came up and spoke [referencing the special education update] -- we did not know at the time that our son was going to–sorry, I’m becoming emotional–need the special education department. It has been top-notch from the moment he went to Hartman when he was three years old to now, we’re at [school], and he’s in [grade level] and he’s in the [program name] class. And it’s been wonderful. Everyone from the speech therapist to the dyslexia therapist that was also talked about, to the paras and the aides. Everyone has been wonderful.

I am also part of a Wylie ISD Parent Special Education support group, and with all of this stuff that’s kind of going on, that’s very uncertain… we know that y’all don’t have an answer right now. You don’t know what’s going to happen with the vouchers. You don’t know what’s going to happen with the 504 lawsuit, but there are a lot of parents that I want you to know who are very concerned. They are very worried that their babies are going to lose services and that they’re going to lose support. So, I’m just here to ask you today that in the future when you are going through this process that maybe you could have some type of an open communication with us, so we don’t have so many uncertainties, so that we are more aware of what is potentially going to happen. Because you are great, and everything has been wonderful so far. We’re just very kind of on pins and needles right now, and so we really would appreciate any kind of open communication if possible. Thank you.” -Caitlyn Linduff

David Williams & Teniqua Williams (08/19/24)

“School Board, on May the 20th, 2024, I came before the school board on behalf of my daughter, [student’s name], who is being discriminated against by people Wylie ISD has in charge who are supposed to protect all students. I brought a matter to the attention advising that [Athletic Director] and [Wylie East Campus Athletic Coordinator] were denying her the right to a college signing day. Although she was a multi-sport athlete that played tennis, golf, basketball, participated in band, all while being in the top 10%. The board's response was that she didn't play golf for Wylie East her junior or senior year, and that's simply not true. In fact, I have pictures of her at the district golf tournaments in Wylie East uniforms her sophomore year and junior year. She is also featured in the 2024 yearbook playing golf with the team her senior year, quoted by the yearbook staff. So my question to this board is, what due diligence did you do to protect my daughters from yet another false allegation? 

I'm back again today to say that whatever effort that was put in was a failed attempt of as my daughter [student’s name] is now a victim of [Wylie ISD Athletic Director] and [Wylie East Campus Athletic Coordinator], [WEHS Tennis Coach] and [WEHS Tennis Coach]’s wrath. Their unrelentless pursuit of retaliation, bullying, and targeting of my daughters and family are created in an unsafe and hostile environment. On Friday, August 16th, 2024, two assistant principals came to [student’s name] tennis classroom, in Coach [name] and Coach [name’s] room, along with the rest of the class advised [student’s name] was there in the class, whether they proceeded to call her out of class and asked her to deliver a letter to her parents. When she came back to class, of course, students were curious and asking her questions on what it was about, why was she being called out, totally embarrassed and yet again, not protected. When I opened the letter from Mr. [Wylie East Campus Athletic Coordinator], it stated the following, ‘Mr. and Ms. Williams, [Wylie ISD Athletic Director] and I have tried multiple times to reach you beginning last spring to set up a meeting. I know you sent, I know he sent you another email last week, 8/05, followed by the phone call 8/08, where he left a message again, letting you know that we needed to meet. I have some concerns that I had needed to discuss with both of you regarding the Wylie East High School tennis program. After conversations with Dr. Spicer, the deputy superintendent and Amanda Lannan, assistant superintendent, we have decided that until such time that you set the meeting with me, [student’s name] will no longer be able to participate at Wylie East High School tennis team. The suspension will go in effect Monday, August 19th, 2024. It is my hope that you will contact, contact me using the information below.’ And how many of you will protect your children? How many of you will allow this to happen to your children? I can't do that... [time expired].” - Mr. David Williams 

“See, the last time we met with this group of folks that falsely accused my children of falsifying a doctor's note, then proceeded to call the doctor's office to verify the authenticity of the doctor's note. Crazy, right? These are adults, yet they're behaving as children. Pride and ego don't have any room to exist when children are involved. Seeking revenge on our children for us, being vocal advocates and protecting our children should never occur in the school district and simply is not the Wylie Way. The number one player on the tennis team being suspended because her parents didn't bow down to massa and come to a meeting. The same parents who attended the parent tennis meeting, along with all the other parents, the same parents who signed the required documents along with all the other parents, she's now being singled out. Although [Wylie ISD Athletic Director] did call and apologize for his action of accusing my kids of falsifying a doctor's note, he's yet to cease attacking my family. My question to the board and our elected representatives remain the same. What are you gonna do to ensure my daughters are protected from the wrath of these adults that are putting these places and abusing their power? 

I implore you to dig deeper, to figure out why my children are being abused. They are victims and they deserve equal treatment. That's what we thought was meant by the Wylie Way. When you go to sleep tonight, are you gonna worry about your kid going to school and being abused? Do you have to frantically stay awake at night and try to figure out what type of injustice your child will endure at the hands of egotistical adults? I do. And let me tell you, while you are peacefully sleeping, I'm up pondering and praying for God to keep my children safe. Yesterday, my daughter posted a note that said, if y'all know Jesus, why y'all act like that then? So I started thinking, yeah, that's a good question. It led me to Matthew 18:6, which reminds us if anyone causes one of these little ones, those who believe in me to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea. That's from the Bible. Woe, to the world that those things who will cause my children to stumble, such things must come with woe to the person who it comes from. So let me ask you, are you going to be a part of those who cause innocent children to stumble or are you going to do the right thing by God's chosen children? If I were you, I would choose the latter because have you seen those milestones? They're huge. You are the people that are elected by the representatives for a reason. I implore you to understand what that reason is as these kids say, you need to stand on business. You have an opportunity to protect these kids, and I pray that at least one of you has the courage to do so. Thank you.” -Mrs. Teniqua Williams

David Williams (05/20/24)

“Good evening, members of the board. My name is David Williams. I'm here to be the voice for my daughter, [student's name]. [Student's name] was ranked in the top 10% at Wylie East High School. She set a school record by placing first in district attendance twice in the last four years. She's a senior this year. In addition to that, she played varsity basketball this year. She also played golf for three years. I'm here today because tonight, [student's name] wasn't allowed the opportunity to sign on signing day as a student-athlete. She got a golf scholarship from Fisk University, where she will be attending starting in the fall. She should have been allowed to sign on signing day. We asked to see a policy, but it didn't exist, and was told it was a decision.

Never should leaders in the school district make decisions based on personal bias in retaliation. Each decision should be in the best interest of the student. To take away a child's hard work and accomplishments is simply unfair to the child and should not be in the hands of unreasonable egos. It is a shame that this is the example that Wylie ISD is showing their students. You know, it's very important, the examples we set for kids because we don't even realize when they're paying attention to us and when they're not paying attention to us. There have been numerous students that come up to me and my wife because we're always around and they say, “Hey, you know, we don't think that this was fair.” And so, this is just, you know, one thing that we wanted to relay to you, the board, but not just the board, but the school district and everyone who may have heard about the situation. As elected officials, which one of you will step in and be a voice for the students? This is not just about our daughter. This is about other students as well that may face this. Because we don't think anybody has faced this before in Wylie ISD or at Wylie East. What can you do to ensure that this doesn't happen again to the next kid? Out of the eight district champions, [student’s name] was one of those. Like Mr. Craighead said it is rare to get as many district champions as we've had. And it's kind of a detriment to the district to not realize that parents play a significant role in the kids actually succeeding and getting to the level where they can win the district championship. Thank you.” -David Williams

Lindsey Buerger (04/15/24)

“Hi, my name is Lindsey Buerger. These are my children, Eli, who is 12 and in seventh grade, and Emmeri, who is 11 and in fifth grade. They’re both homeschooled but both attended Smith Elementary through fourth grade and had many wonderful educational experiences there. My husband and I chose to homeschool our children beyond elementary for a number of reasons and both are thriving, but we are still big fans of the school district and the amazing educators here. Eli currently plays basketball for both the rec and competitive league. Emmeri is a dancer who participates on a competitive dance team. She’s an artist, a writer and has a love for acting and music. Both have maintained great relationships with many of their public school peers since they began homeschooling, and they would love to be able to expand their opportunities for sports and arts within their own community of Wylie during the UIL school seasons.
 

So, as a taxpaying resident of this district, I’m here today to ask you to support and opt-in by Wylie ISD to allow homeschooled students access to UIL extracurricular, academic and athletic activities. Due to the passage of Texas Bill 547 in 2021, homeschooled students are now allowed to participate in UIL-sanctioned, extracurricular activities. Texas House Bill 3708, which passed in 2023, ensures that school districts that opt to allow homeschool participation in UIL will now receive funding of $1,500 per student, per activity in which they participate. Not only is this a matter of personal importance to my family, but homeschool access to UIL activities is also extremely valuable to our district and the Wylie community for the following reasons -- Allowing homeschooled students to participate will increase the talent pool for both academic and athletic extracurricular activities. Increasing the talent pool will only lead to the further success of the district’s programs and the success of student teams. Allowing homeschooled students to participate will foster a stronger sense of community among the students, parents, and families within Wylie ISD. Extracurricular activities are often where communities bond. Bringing more people into that community will only make it more diverse and enrich the community bonds, representing the Wylie Way. Currently, there are already 37 other states dating back 50 years which allow homeschoolers access to extracurricular activities within public schools and now finally, Texas schools have the opportunity to catch up, and allowing homeschooled students access to participate will mean giving students living within this district both academic and athletic opportunities that they might not ever otherwise have, altering the course of their future. I do understand that this will take work on both the part of the homeschool parents, students, and the Wylie ISD educators and administrators to ease the transition for the schools. There are a number of other Texas school districts who have made this work over the last couple of years… [time expired]” -Lindsey Buerger

Michael Schwerin (02/26/24)

“Thank you, Dr. Day, school board members and administration. I’m coming up here actually in reference to a conversation that you and I had with Dr. Day after our last school board election. (And) one of the things that you promised to me, and I promised to hold you accountable for was that you would be more transparent in the budgeting process each year, and I’m coming up here tonight because unfortunately, I’ve not seen that transparency transpire so far even this year during the budgeting process. I know even in past years there have been multiple conversations, multiple presentations that we can see what’s happening within the budget and how things are happening, and this year has not been anything.

In fact, last month when during the presentation, not a single one of you board members asked a question about the budget process about what was happening, didn’t provide any kind of direction, as you are school board members, you’re fiscally responsible for our taxpayer dollars. And you should be asking those questions, and you should be providing the guidance, the overall guidance for the school district and for the administration on how they should be spending our taxpayer dollars. Tonight was another perfect example of a presentation that was put up here by Dr. Vinson, it was probably a great, great idea that we should all be supporting and be doing, but there probably is a price tag associated with that and there wasn’t a single question about what that cost would look like for us, and what that would affect our budgeting. As someone who works on a daily basis with people that are struggling to meet their daily needs with food, rent and utilities, I find it important that you guys consider those hundreds of families here in Wylie that are struggling like that, probably thousands of families in Wylie that are struggling with that.  And for many of them, they’re being priced out of their homes, they can’t afford food to put on their table or rent or utilities and they’re being forced out. In fact, I’ve had friends that have been forced out of Wylie ISD because they can’t afford the rent on their homes anymore and that falls strictly on the seven of you as board members. You have the fiscal responsibility to make sure that you’re keeping your tax rate lower and keeping fiscally and sound responsibility of our funds. I don’t think you’ve looked at anywhere you can cut expenses and I’m not saying that we need to cut everything, they’re probably things we can all agree on that we should be focusing on, whether special education, funding safety security, SROs, several other things that are in there with the disciplinary stuff that was discussed tonight.

There’s lots of great things that can be done, but then there are probably things that we can be cutting. I don’t think any of us have an organization or business that we don’t cut some things year after year that just are no longer fiscally responsible or fiscally manageable for us to do. That’s all we’re asking to do is to be mindful of that and look at ways you can cut and keep our taxes in line and keep our taxes lower. Thank you.” -Michael Schwerin

Jay Combs (01/22/24)

"Well, good evening, and thank you for having me. I’ll start by telling you something that you already know very well. The teachers, leadership and staff at Smith Elementary School are amazing. They are incredible educators, and for four years, they worked hard to provide the best learning experience possible to my son, to my wife and I’s son, and that’s not an easy task. You see he’s visually impaired. He reads, writes, does math via braille, only braille. He gets around by use of a mobility cane and that presents difficulties, but the Smith Elementary School is top-notch in how they dealt with that. However, the school board needs to hear about challenges as well as congratulations. You see, two years ago, the special education executive department decided to remove our son’s braille teacher and replace her with an out-of-state contractor doing teleteaching. If that sounds incredible, insane to you to teach a blind student via television, that’s because it is. It’s like teaching a deaf student over the telephone. And, my wife and I, of course, objected to that and the school district went to the lengths of actually hiring a lawyer who spent an entire day at the meeting with my wife and I – thousands of these taxpayers' dollars were spent to defend this teleteacher.

Ultimately, the school relented, and they hired an emergency certified teacher who had not even completed her course studies in braille yet and never taught an academic braille student. Unfortunately, my wife and I had to make the heartbreaking decision that the needs of our son required us to resort to schooling for our son privately so we can have access to teachers who are experienced and could meet his needs. Last year, while he was still a student in this school district, he competed on behalf of this very school district in an event called the Braille Challenge. It’s kind of like the National Spelling Bee, but it’s all in braille. To the braille students, it’s every bit as important as the National Spelling Bee. He won that event at Region 10 and his score was high enough that he was called on to represent the state of Texas–the entire state of Texas–in an international competition at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. In fact, he was one of the top 10 students in the world last year. He wasn’t recognized by this board, but he was one of the top 10 students in the world, and he represented the state of Texas with pride. At the end of the regionals, he received three things…a backpack, a braille monopoly game, and he was so proud to receive those, but he also received a braille printer. It’s called an embosser, and after the conclusion of that event, his teacher told us that they’d keep the embosser at the school to use them, and we of course agreed, but when we made the heartbreaking decision to remove [student] from the school district… [time expired]" -Jay Combs

We appreciate Mr. Combs taking the time to address the school board. Board members and district leadership were concerned and saddened to hear about the family’s experience. Our deputy superintendent has been in contact with the family and has discussed each of the situations mentioned in Mr. Combs’ remarks to the Board. We are grateful for the conversations we’ve had with Mr. Combs, and we are committed to working with the family regarding their needs and what they believe is best for their child.

Aleksandra Rolfson (08/21/23)

“Good evening, y'all. I'm here to speak about the bond, but I do need to address a quick note. I was surprised to have Wylie ISD employee sign me up to speak tonight. I had to provide my ID. Board operating procedure says a person who is wishing to address the board shall sign up prior to the beginning of the meeting on the day of the meeting. The signup sheet for citizen comments will be available at the meeting location. Each citizen should sign up personally. It says nothing in there about providing ID or anything else. Just a quick note.

Now about the bond. It's a nearly $300 million bond that's being proposed. My question to ISD and to the board of trustees is, if this $298 million bond is passed and new schools are built, where would funding for new expenses come from? New expenses such as teacher salaries, utilities, maintenance, et cetera? From my understanding, this bond cannot be used for those things. It has to come from an operating budget. We all know where the operating budget comes from. And even though this bond may not raise taxes right now, it more than likely will raise this operating budget for all these new expenses.

I would appreciate it if you guys would answer that or at least consider answering it. Thank you.” -Aleksandra Rolfson

Michael Schwerin (08/21/23)

“Again, I would like to actually reiterate Aleksandra's comments as I start my speech as well too, is that if you are going to change the protocol, a notice would be great and helpful for that for people that are there. I mean, thankfully I had my ID on me, but some people may not carry their ID or may be in their car and may not have it with them here and leave it at their house. And so just a simple email or notification, like several other districts do when they change their protocol, would be helpful for transparency purposes, as well too.

The first thing I'd like to also talk about is the tax rate. It's interesting that for years we've been told that there's no way we can ever do the no new revenue rate here in Wylie ISD. It's just not possible. But then come to hear the news last week that I believe, if I was reading the numbers correctly, from Frisco ISD, is that they actually were able to pass a rate that was below the no new revenue rate for some reason. Didn't have any conversation about losing state funding or being penalized from the state, which is what we've been told is the issue here. And it's interesting that Frisco is the one district that we're chasing up there on our school accountability ratings, and they're yet able to do that.

So again, I'd reiterate the ability for us to be bold as our new logo and our new information is, and look at why we can't do that and why we can't look at keeping the rate under the no new revenue rate. If they're able to do it, then it's obviously something that can be done. So let's start looking at that.

Secondly, with the bond, I would also like to talk as a member of the Facilities Master Plan Committee that met over the last [inaudible 00:03:41], I think it's important that I speak up for the several committee members that were speaking last week at the meeting and brought up our concerns about the feasibility and just the look of having a $300 million bond with a single question during our current economic situation that we're in. I think several of us asked, do we really want that all in one question? Why can't it be broken out into several questions? I'm not saying that we don't need some of the items on there. I think several of the items are needed and are very important, but it's also a matter of in the current economic situation that we're in what's actually needed and required for us to do our business, and what is nice to have that could be pushed off and waited and not put more burden on our taxpayers.

And one example of that was the elementary school. We find out last week that they're still looking at three different options for the elementary school rather than looking at the one. So if we don't even know what we're going to go with for that elementary school, why are we putting that in the bond right away? And when we don't know, there's three or four different options that we're still looking at for how we might configure that elementary school.

Another interesting thing was breaking it out into several questions because that was what the county is doing. The county is doing a $600 million bond. They have it in several different propositions. Why can't we do that same thing?

So thank you for your time and I just hope that you'll consider looking at being empathetic to our community.” -Michael Schwerin

Dawn Shallow (08/21/23)

“First of all, I'd like to look at each one of you as I read this. I'm here tonight to express my grievance with Wylie ISD. You have violated my protected First Amendment right. I hereby put you on notice that you have violated my First Amendment right, which is free from retaliation. On June 19th, during your last school board meeting, I used my First Amendment right to speak to the school board meeting and to object to the high tax rate. And as it pains me right now and hurts me to repeat your words, but these are your retaliation words to me on your public government site.

‘Wylie ISD is appalled and disheartened that Mrs. Dawn Shallow compared Wylie ISD taxpayers to the atrocity of slavery’ ... it goes on. But you also go on to say, ‘Wylie ISD sincerely apologizes to any individual who may have been hurt or offended by the insensitive comments made.’ 

That's my right, my free speech that you're speaking of. What was my sin? What demanded such public shaming and retaliation? Using my First Amendment right to come on the night that you're discussing Wylie taxes, objecting to the tax rate and stating that myself and fellow taxpayers are financial slaves to this Wylie ISD budget.

Regardless of how you interpret my words, it is my protected First Amendment right. We speakers follow your rules. Don't name names, don't call out people, but your response on your public website is personal, emotional, and inappropriate.

Before I lose my time, I want to make sure I let you know that I have been harmed by your retaliatory response to my protected First Amendment rights and ask for a written apology, a written public apology on the same school board public forum comments website, and retraction of your unconstitutional retaliatory response. There was a court hearing. I see your lawyers are here today. It is case number 122-CV448DAE on June 26th of this year, that Judge David Allen Ezra stated in his order on a Round Rock ISD retaliation against a person's First Amendment right.

The Judge states page 20, section E., First Amendment Retaliation. As a general rule, the First Amendment prohibits government officials from subjecting an individual to retaliatory actions for engaging in protected speech. A First Amendment of Retaliation claim requires that a plaintiff show, one, he was engaged in constitutional protected speech. Two, the defendant's actions- [time expired]” -Dawn Shallow

Jeffrey Keech (08/21/23)

“Bonds. I looked through the Master Facilities Planning Committee meeting notes, and I am not convinced the school district needs any additional schools. I looked at the campus facilities' handout from the March MFP meeting, the 17 elementary, middle, and junior high schools were all listed, along with their projected percentage of capacity in the 2027/28 school year. There were two schools, Akin and Burnett, were listed as being over a 100% capacity. Watkins was listed at 100% and the other 14 schools were all listed at below a hundred percent capacity. Five of those 14 schools are listed at below 90% of capacity. I believe that the school capacity district-wide is projected to be 92% in 2028. And I think a little bit of rezoning can handle any capacity issue at one or two schools.

Also in the March meeting slides was a slide highlighting the 2019 to 2022 three-year enrollment change for ISDs in this area. Wylie ISD increased by 10% and some of the high-growth districts to the east, such as Princeton or Community, increased by about 40%. However, enrollment in the more developed districts declined. Plano declined by 7%. Garland declined by 4%. Richardson declined by 4%. McKinney declined by 5%, and Allen declined by about .5%.

So the 10-year Wylie ISD student population projection from the master facility planning notes is projected to grow by 16% compared to 41% growth in the prior 10 years. So all of this is a strong indication to me that soon the student population here will plateau and then it will be stable or slightly decline.

And so just to close, to put this proposed bond initiative into perspective, the current pre-K to 12th grade student population is approximately 18,866 students, is projected to grow by between 1,523 and 2,318 students in the next five years, with the average projection being a growth of 1,877 students. Again, that's from the Master Facilities Planning notes. So the bond proposal being discussed is for $298 million dollars. So using the average growth projection of 1,877 new students, that equates to a cost of $156,738 for each new student. And I just ask if any of my numbers are not correct, can you please use the public forum to correct those for me? But anyway, thank you very much for your time.” -Jeffrey Keech

Michael Schwerin (06/19/23) - Public Hearing

“First of all, I'd like to say that I do understand this is a tough budget year. I think everyone in the audience and every one of the taxpayers are dealing with the inflationary issues that we're struggling with. But I also think that I was hoping that you all would take a more conservative approach. You all have said many times that you are conservatives and oftentimes, I've been told you're much more conservative than I am. But when you don't look at actually asking the staff to make cuts in areas that they can, I understand that there's lots of instructional areas that should be off limits, and there's certain other areas that are, and I do applaud you for actually increasing the special education budget. Because I actually remember about 10 months ago, I came here and asked about that, and I was told very inconsiderately that you guys were spending way more than you needed to and everything was fine. All the while you were actually finding out that you were needing to spend more and have more in the special education budget, which is what I knew was happening after talking to teachers and to parents within the district.

But then at the same time, you can look at other areas to cut. I run an organization, I have to do that all the time. I have to look at ways when I'm adding in mandatory requirements, to make increases to my health insurance costs and to other additional costs due to inflation. I look at other areas so that I can balance that out and where I can look at making cuts. And when you look at the budget and you have an increase of over a million dollars and you look at the administrative and then just leadership salary positions, that becomes a little bit frightening in there that we're looking at those kinds of increases, when there, which probably are not necessarily all due to inflationary issues.

And then, at the same time when you're talking about the security issues and then you look at the budget and the budget in the safety and security is actually flat, is a little bit concerning as well to me, that we should be looking at that. And in this day and age, are we really wanting to keep leaving that flat? Again, these are no questions that I haven't heard from any of you all. I mean I was told a year ago, during last election that we were going to have a much more transparent budget cycle, but I think it's actually been a little less transparent because there's been less questions from you all seven, asking where the money is going, where can we cut, where can we look at making cuts? That's what a conservative elected official does, who's a good steward of our dollars, looks at making those cuts.

And yes, we might be doing a balanced budget, but maybe the conservative way is looking at doing a deficit budget where we spend down some of the 77 million dollars that we have in our cash reserve. And maybe this is the time, this is a rainy day. It's a really bad year economically for everybody, so maybe we need to look at making that kind of cut. But, there's not been any kind of that kind of discussion by the seven of you all and that's what makes me very disappointed. Thank you.” -Michael Schwerin

Dawn Shallow (06/19/23) - Public Hearing

“Hello and Happy Juneteenth Day. This date represents the end of slavery. That's a wonderful concept for everyone except for Wylie ISD taxpayers, because we are slaves to the Wylie ISD finance department, superintendent and school board. In economic downtimes such as this, parents, students, taxpayers are struggling to pay basic necessities. Yet our school district thinks it's a good idea to increase our taxes so that they can get a piece of the pie, of our overinflated property values.

So, I'd like to ask some questions. Why can't you vote for a no-new-revenue rate? The no-new-revenue rate is 1.27%. It's simply 0.09% less than what the finance guys have proposed. Why can't you make cuts to travel lunches, further education, in these economic hard times? Just because you can milk the taxpayers and increase our taxes doesn't mean you should.

Every year our school board gives the district an open checkbook, which shouldn't happen, especially in these times. I ask you to send the budget back and ask the finance department to use the no-new-revenue rate of 1.27, which is the no-new-revenue rate, it's just like what the City of Wylie can do, then our district should be able to do. If you can't do that, I ask you to send the budget back and ask them to cut 10%. If you can't do that, I ask you to send the budget back and ask them to cut another 5%. I'll have more to say about the budget during the public forum. Thank you.” -Dawn Shallow

Luca Pareti (06/19/23) - Public Hearing

I'm new to this city, and I see a unique opportunity in this city for the community and Wylie ISD to collaborate and start a new approach. I think that the idea that Wylie ISD feels undermined if they stop spending or if they do less, and vice versa, some citizens are mad, when they see their money misspent. We can change it because the property values doubled in the last five years. This gives a unique opportunity to this school district to have an enormous amount of money, without really increasing or maintaining the same rates. Technically we could cut the rates at 50%, with adjusted inflation, and have the same income.

Now of course, all the expenses are going up every year. This year particularly, we have high inflation. But I think if we open our minds and we start thinking about new ways to be efficient, there are going to be areas like special education, where I think we all agree, we want to put some more money.

But, I'm sure if we take the same effort that we put into what can we do more, where we can spend money? If we apply the same energy to where we can cut money, we are going to find ways where we are going to be happy. We are going to be able to keep the spend low and at the same time, Wylie ISD is going to be productive, efficient, and we're not going to lower in the quality of the education. I think it takes an effort from all of us to give you feedback and from all of you to give us a feedback, have an open discussion. And I think if we reduce the friction and do it more friendly, I think we can really find a solution for this and we're all going to benefit from it. I think transparency, like Michael said, I think it's the key. If there is going to be transparency, everyone can have honest feedback, and if we take the time to go back and forth and put it together, I think we're going to succeed in making progress.

This is going to be a tough year. We don't know what's going to happen over the next couple of years. A lot of people are looking at private school, homeschooling. At some point, the numbers may start going down, may start slowing down. And I think that needs to be put into consideration. I think if you start thinking about this now, we're going to be in a good position when maybe, there's going to be school vouchers, maybe there's going to be major changes in the scenery. And I just wanted to raise those points because I think it's the right time now to think about how we can cut so we can be efficient in the next short future. That's all.” -Luca Pareti

Dawn Shallow (06/19/23) - Public Forum

“OK, so I couldn't get this all in one speech, so I broke it into two. I'm speaking tonight, not so much for the school board, because you all don't listen to taxpayers. First of all, give me 10 things that you have voted no on in the last five years, 10 years. Have you ever voted no? You don't listen to us. So maybe in the board notes you can tell us 10 things that you voted no on.

I'm speaking tonight mostly for my fellow Wylie and Murphy Taxpayers. The school district gets a near-maximum school tax rate on our homes. The maximum they can charge is a rate of 1.3645. They threw us a bone this year and are proposing a rate of 1.3622. That's a 0.0023 difference. In other words, we taxpayers will see another increase to our tax rates of approximately $400 for each homeowner. They show us a lower rate because it's pleasing to your eyes. But what actually happens is that your overinflated property taxes are here, their rate comes down here, they're still getting multi-million dollar increases. Wylie ISD is taking advantage of the uninformed, those who are too intimidated to speak at these meetings to you because of the retribution that you give, and you're taking advantage of the taxpayer's overall good nature.

Taxpayers, Wylie ISD lies to you about the process. If you listened carefully tonight, they set the tax rate. And they said our property values could go up, could go down, and that's going to alter the tax rate. But did you hear them once say that their budget is going to alter or fluctuate? No. Their budget is set in stone, they're not willing to budge and they base it on our overinflated property taxes. Like I say to my kids, do you want it or do you need it? Even listening to Ms. Spicer just now, there are all these things that people want that we don't need, especially in a down economy, just as we have now.

To add salt to the tax wound, these taxes aren't enough for them. They’ve already had plans in the works to ask voters to approve a multimillion-dollar bond package. Stay tuned for that. They want a new football field, more tennis courts and new furniture in an economic downturn. Friends, these people are not our protectors. They protect the school, they protect the teachers, they protect the administration. They don't protect parents and taxpayers. I'd like to know who's guarding the hen house? Because I see the foxes are. Thank you.” -Dawn Shallow

Randi Jackson (06/19/23) - Public Forum

“Good evening. We have a crisis in this country. It is not new. It's been going on for generations now. And the evidence of this crisis can be seen from the federal government all the way down to our local school boards. We have gotten into the habit of not living within our means. My household would fall under the category of economically disadvantaged, that 28.1%, this is last year's statistics that I'm going off of, of students that make up that portion of the district. This is a letter from my landlord that we got last week notifying me that because of property taxes, my rent's going up $300 starting next month. $2,500 a month for under 1100 square feet.

I am not alone in this. Renters, those of us who make up the majority of the economically disadvantaged, are being priced out of this district. If we can't buckle down and find a way to live and work within our means, we're doing the children we are here for a massive disservice. If we as a country, not just here in Wylie, but this is where we have the most impact locally, if we don't decide to bite the bullet and suffer a little bit now, we are doing our children a massive disservice and dooming them to suffer even more later.

Last year, Trustee Leggett asked, Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations, Mr. Roderick, how much we would lose if we adopted a no-new-revenue tax rate because it was right prior to an election, and that was one of the things that was being harped on. The answer was approximately $12 million, and that does sound like a lot, but considering the total budget of $181 million for general funds, that would bring us to $169 million from last year's numbers. This year, I'm not sure how that would be adjusted based on the new revenue rates and all that stuff because you guys hire people who are a lot more knowledgeable and better at that stuff to know those things.

All those aspects of the district are important, where you're talking about athletics, where you're talking about CTE, all of those things. But I can tell you that I'm not the only one getting priced out of Wylie. And if it affected you personally, you might give more weight to these warnings that we've been giving you. We absolutely want the best for our students in Wylie, but not at the expense of the less fortunate in Wylie. Real quick, fun fact. Did you know there are 31 million people living in Texas and the governor makes $153,000? There are 70,000 people in Wylie, and the superintendent makes over $280,000. Thank you.” -Randi Jackson

Dubravko Vukmirovic (05/15/23)

“Greetings, thank you so much for this opportunity. I want to be professional here. I had a son who was in middle school and now is in high school. I have 20 years in cybersecurity, holding architectural and management roles. It's very short. Wylie ISD doesn't have web filtering solutions for YouTube, games, or games on other non-game websites, including pornography. The ISD doesn't have any solution to prevent kids from that kind of dopamine drug in schools. A teacher came to me and said, "Your son is on YouTube for four hours across five teachers while in class." But I'm really asking myself, who is allowing this at school? The teacher says that they don't have time for this and, basically, I'm coming here to say that you have the power to prevent allowing any dealing of these dopamine drugs to our students. And then teachers punishing students because they cannot focus. You need to seriously look at this as a drug and look at who is sharing these drugs, allowing the drugs, et cetera.

Here's the solution, Blue Coat Proxy enterprise web filtering in your schools that will filter words on websites, not just one website name. Block YouTube. Another solution is to block YouTube and instead use myvrspot.com. Your teachers already have that, but it's always easier just to send a YouTube link, which now you have to enable the whole YouTube. Please follow up on these action items. In the world, in PISA, China is leading in the number one place while the USA is in the 13th place. So there we still have.

The second subject I want to address is physical education. As they chose a few sports players over the majority, children's obesity level in developed countries are three to 10%, and in Texas it's 46%, 15 times higher. The children in middle and high school get a hundred percent score 'already' only showing up. PE teachers are not responding to complaints and emails. Nobody tests children in a middle and high school for six pull-ups, 50 sit-ups, eight shuttle runs, seven feet long jumps, 50-yard dash, 600-yard run, a rope climb, and a one-mile, run for eight minutes and 23 seconds. Solution – implement APFT mandatory requirements for PE teachers, including like that. China is again leading. The United States had this in 1970 and then it kind of died down. So three minutes. [time expired].” -Dubravko Vukmirovic

Michael Schwerin (04/17/23)

“Good evening. I come up here speaking as a concerned parent who's not afraid to speak up and get up and talk to speak to you tonight. And I would hope that you would consider and realize over the last year how the number of parents that are up here speaking is actually decreasing. And I think Jill alluded to a little bit of that concern. That I'm not afraid to get up here and speak, but I am speaking for those that are afraid. Many have reached out to me via phone, email, and text, that are afraid to speak because of the attacks by district personnel and the gaslighting that we're receiving. It's just inappropriate for you to be spending taxpayer dollars on that kind of activities and attacking parents in Wylie ISD. And again, the way you do that with the public forum, with the forum comments using district resources on a district website is inappropriate and borderline illegal.

So why are they coming to us? I think that's something that all seven of you should be asking. They're coming to us, those of us that lost an election, that they're actually willing and hearing an open ear and a comforting ear and someone that's willing to stand up and speak for them, rather than going to the seven people that are elected to represent them. That should be really concerning to all of you and to the administration.

The administration chooses to gaslight, deflect, or attack parents that just bring up simple questions, and then community members as well, too, who aren't even students. And referring because we don't have students in this specific school that we don't have any rights to bring up any questions or comments about that, which is just incorrect.

This is a simple example of what happened recently in April with a trans substitute teacher that was teaching at Akin and Draper and at least one other school that I've been told by parents. Without any kind of confirmation and discussion to parents ahead of time or to district personnel, principals onsite. And when parents did reach out and ask about information, they received nothing. 'We're working on it. We're looking into it.' No more comments for three weeks. Why? Why are we not talking to our parents and answering questions and providing information? When you have a teacher, a substitute teacher, a trans substitute teacher that shows up and reads a story, that gets really concerning to a lot of parents in Wylie ISD. As a Christian community, a conservative community that I know all seven of you have talked about that we are, that should be concerning to all seven of you as well.

We're here, we're listening, we're not going away. We are on your side. I've said this multiple times in the two years I've been coming up here and speaking, that we wanna be here, we wanna be working with you, but when you attack us personally and professionally, that is a problem. And that's why no one is coming to you and no one's calling you and asking you directly. And they're coming to us 'cause we're willing to listen and have those conversations and then stand up here and take the arrows that are coming to us. Thank you.” -Michael Schwerin

Jill Palmer (04/17/23)

“Good evening. I'd like to begin by addressing the extremely hyperaggressive and frankly very hostile tone of accusation from the March forum response of me spreading misinformation.

It seems the author and those of you collectively approving those notes for comment are wanting to play in the game of Petty Polly. Well, I play that game pretty well myself. I just sent you an email. That email, do as you wish with the information. I have provided just one sliver of the misinformation that I have proven facts for. I really do not appreciate the aggressive and hostile attack on my integrity, ‘Spreading false information,’ is in fact defamation of my character.

Furthermore, in the same email that you received, you will find a written, respectful request at the advice of my own white-collar suit counsel. Yes, I have access to my own, mine are just way better dressed. They have advised that not only a written but a verbal request here for all of you to hear, I request that my family, let alone my children, will not be used in your comments. This is why. Because the actions of the supporters of the last election are completely questionable and I do not trust their mental health. And down the road, what if a rogue teacher wants to retaliate on my child. So, let's tone down the aggression because that is the reason why parents are scared and not wanting to come up and speak here.

Third, I want to respect the comments from last October, so I've been waiting 'til now. We have one month to the end of school, so I would love a recap as well as the stakeholders of the DEI committee of everything that's been actioned. What went well, what didn't, and what are the plans for the next year? What's going on there?

Ooh, I have plenty of time. So I'm gonna leave us with this and this is actually a closing more for Virdie and Mike 'cause I know you're new in your roles. I encourage you to start asking more questions. Both of you in your announcements for running for your seats, you basically had the same tone. You were making a commitment to continue on the vision of this leadership. Start asking questions, because currently, the vision is taking the rights away from the parents based on the influx of emails and messages I received of the parental rights being taken away of when and where their parents are able to engage their child in political and social conversation. That is not okay. Start asking questions because that is your legacy in the seats you hold. Thanks.” -Jill Palmer

Jeffrey Keech (04/17/23)

“Hello. School choice legislation was mentioned at the last school board meeting and one of the statements I heard was something along the lines of school choice opportunities that were debated in the Texas legislature would cost each ISD about $7,000 for every student that takes advantage of any of these school choice programs. So, this district here, spends, in '22-'23 spent $12,500 per student, and the statewide average is around $14,000 per student. So Senate Bill 8, which is probably the best known of the school choice bills that were debated in the statehouse that would fund an $8,000 education saving account for every parent who opts their child out of the public schools.

So, I assume that a school district that spends $14,000 per student educating, actually spends the $14,000 on the education of that child and that if the child were to withdraw from that school district, the total expenses for education for that district would decrease by $14,000. And not on a one-by-one basis, but if you take out 10 kids, I imagine the cost goes down by approximately $140,000. What else would the money be spent on if it's not spent on educating the students there? So, now, very basic math tells me that 14,000 minus 8,000 is 6,000. And so the state is actually saving $6,000 in education expenses for every child that opts out of the school district.

Furthermore, I think we can all agree that no one knows the needs of a child better than the parents. No one cares more for that child than their parents. And that parents would not take on the additional expense and commitment of a private or a charter school if the education for their child was worse at that school. The overall education experience provided for the child is- is gonna be at least as good and possibly better for each child that opts out of a public school.

So, the board's summary notes that are emailed after every one of these meetings, you addressed select comments from public forum speakers. And I would just like to ask if my math is incorrect or my belief that parents know the needs of their children best, if that's wrong, please take advantage of your summary notes and explain why my math isn't correct or why I'm wrong about the parents knowing best for their children.

It seems to me that if a parent finds a better educational opportunity for their children and the taxpayers of the state save $6,000 in the process, we should all be happy with that outcome. And it was disappointing to hear criticism of school choice programs at the last meeting here. And I just want to say that school choice initiatives place parents at the center of their children's education, it returns decision-making to the families, and I do think we should all remember that it’s always about the kids. Thanks very much.” -Jeff Keech

Shannon Ayres (04/17/23)

“Good evening. My name is Shannon Ayres and I am the Collin County Education Division Lead for Citizens Defending Freedom or CDF. I'm here regarding the recent proposed rule change to Title IX, that broadens its language to include sexual orientation and gender identity. This undermines federal law and the legislative authority of the United States Congress. While some organizations have followed the misleading guidance of the Department of Education's 2021 Notice of Interpretation, following President Biden's Executive Order on the Supreme Court ruling in Bostock v. Clayton County. Both have been significantly misinterpreted as it was made clear by the court that the latter was a Title VII issue that did not apply to Title IX or any other law.

The Supreme Court in Bostock emphasized that sex-based employment discrimination consisted was consistent with Title VII, but it was not. It was unconstitutional but explicitly refrained from applying their ruling to Title IX. As such, this renders the Department of Educations's NOI and the Executive Order null because it expressly contradicts Supreme Court precedent. If this wasn't enough, there have been a handful of cases further demonstrating the inapplicability of the Bostock ruling to Title IX issues. This includes a recent ruling out of a federal district court issuing a preliminary injunction barring the execution of the Biden Administration's NOI and Executive Order from taking effect in 20 states, including Arkansas and Oklahoma. Separately, a federal district court in Texas affirmed that sexual orientation and gender identity are not protected categories because Title IX must be read in the original context in which it was drafted in 1972, where sex was understood to be biological and binary. A federal appellate court covering Florida, Georgia, and Alabama jurisdictions also found this to be true, ruling that a local school board's bathroom policy did not violate Title IX because Title IX conforms to an understanding of sex consistent with the societal understanding of sex at the time of its drafting. Beyond this, applying any directive that neither conforms to these recent rulings nor takes into consideration the necessity of receiving Congressional approval before making a change to federal law is itself an unconstitutional act.

In Bostock v. Clayton, the Supreme Court stated the people's representatives are the ones who must amend Title IX, thereby making it unlawful for non-congressional officials, including school board members, to assume changes to Title IX in the absence of approval to amend it, a power reserved exclusively by Congress. I would ask that you consider this information before acting on the coercive tactics by organizations intentionally misapplying Title IX to push a political agenda. A serious consequence of this misapplication includes the erosion of student privacy stemming from the rights of students to use sex-separated facilities and to participate in sex-separated sporting activities. One final note. This rule change is currently open for public comment in the federal register until May 15. Due to the federalism implications of this rule change, they are encouraging state and local elected officials like yourselves to review and provide comments. [time expired]” -Shannon Ayres

Jill Palmer (03/20/23)

“Good evening you guys. I know it's been a couple of months. Mom duties and Monday's activities, so I haven't been here. But for some of you, the voices in your head, no, you haven't gotten rid of me just yet. I want to start to reiterate in December when I said the work starts now to try and figure out how we can keep moving forward to engage the community. I want to just bring tonight some reminders. The first reminder I want to reference, Dr. Day, when you talked to the PTA forum last October, you confessed that the board needs to do a better job communicating to the district, to community, to parents, to staff, what it means, what's going into the budget… Actually, the NNR is on the consent agenda, well you took it off the consent, it’s on the agenda. And I love that you’re expanding on it but what more can we do?

We always like to reference other school districts and mimic whatever decision [inaudible] to make. Plano ISD actually had town halls at the high schools and they were able to bring subject matters one or two that were going to be discussed on those evenings. So I think that's something that we can kind of try and figure out in our district because we haven't had that avenue. And so in order to get more money and more capital from us, I think we also need to have more information and not just a presentation, which is really hard to follow and you know no one is going to go online and listen to it. So let's just be real.

Reminder number two, your campaigns touted for all children, all students, right? You even used our taxpayer money to remind us that it's not all about education. It's about the character. Support of our students, our community, and our staff. So I kind of want to know where is support for our students that don't make this district look great, who don't support the ratings, the ones who are battling anxiety and depression every single day, who are dealing with the escalated fights happening at the highs, dealing with the perverse sexual behavior happening in the bathrooms, the vaping.

And the most tragic I've actually just confirmed two weeks ago, the five children who have taken their lives, and that's all that I know of. And when a concerned parent came to this district to figure out how to bring awareness, the district responded, ‘We don't want any negative awareness to our destination district.’ The irony of that with that answer. So is it really for all kids or is it for only the kids that make us look good? If we're going to support all kids, then show up.

The last reminder, the groomer teacher that resigned, he's still active at the State Board of Education, so whoever is in charge of getting that alerted and red-flagged where he doesn't have any further access to children, that needs to happen. Thanks.” - Jill Palmer

Michael Schwerin (03/20/23)

“Thank you. I'm here to speak again as a parent of the district and as a former candidate who talks to thousands and thousands of parents and taxpayers throughout the district. And again, I heard over the last 12 months, a lot I've heard about is, ‘It's all about the kids. All about the kids. All we care about is the kids.’ But then I come to the school board meetings and I start hearing more focus on ratings and how ratings and what the ratings are rather than actually what's happening within the classroom. Last month was a perfect example where we're concerned more about the fact that we might lose our ‘A’ rating than actually what's being taught to our students, and focusing more on college readiness versus career readiness in other areas.

And as a parent of a student who actually a couple of years ago came home crying because she decided that she might not want to go to college. She might want to just look at going directly into her career who was by staff, teachers, and students made ostracized and made to feel belittled because she decided she might not want to go to college right away. This is a pretty much straight-A, GT student who made this decision, who we support in that position who was ostracized. So I'm concerned about that. And then when we come up tonight and we start talking about the school voucher system and how that's going to hurt us, again, it's because you're saying they don't have accountability, but it's because people that are leaving this district, because they leave because of the school of vouchers, because of what the kids are being taught in their other districts, in their other schools and not being taught here or being exposed to here in Wylie ISD that they're not being exposed to in those other districts.

Things like books that we've heard about a lot about. And I was actually really alarmed to actually have a parent who happened to go to the Boots and Barbecue gala who showed me a picture of several pages of a book that was actually removed from the libraries here in Wylie ISD, the Boy Next Door because it was obscene and vulgar and was sitting on their table. And I don't know how many others had that happen, but that is alarming and I still don't understand what happened. As someone that's a fundraiser and does fundraising for a living and does events, I know it's difficult and there's a lot of things, the moving parts in there, but that's something that I would not have missed and I would've been paying attention to because it's been something that we've been talking about for the last 12 months or more here in Wylie ISD.

And then we come today's meeting as well too and I'm alarmed the fact that... As you said, Dr. Day, we are going to focus on being more transparent and more open, but then we spent all tonight we talked about was hearing about millions and millions and millions of dollars that you're asking us to spend. Not a single discussion about cutting budget or where we can cut expenses to make up for those needed increases in special education and other areas that I agree with, we need to do, but they also need to be looked at other areas that we can cut. That's how a true leader works and how a true leader that listens to the taxpayers who are concerned about the budget and concerned about the growing tax burden. Not blaming the state for putting more erroneous unbudgeted things to it, but actually figure out how we can make that work.” - Michael Schwerin

Board Reports, CCMR Report, and Vouchers

Wylie ISD provides the Board of Trustees with information reports about matters that affect the district. This includes but is not limited to reports about the budget, accountability and more. It appears that Mr. Michael Schwerin did not understand the Feb. 27, 2023, information report about the Texas Education Agency’s proposed changes to accountability for College, Career and Military Readiness (CCMR). The proposed changes diminish the work school districts are doing to prepare students for life beyond high school. Instead, the TEA is placing a heavier emphasis on:

• student persistence in college (whether students continue past the first year of college), and 

• irrelevant industry-based certifications (TEA is ‘sunsetting’ important certifications such as OSHA for student achievement indicators - see 2019-22 list vs. 2022-24 list on the TEA's industry-based certification list webpage.

Our goal as a school district is to provide educational experiences that will allow our students to thrive no matter what path they take. Not every student will attend college, and that is perfectly OK. We need to graduate workforce-ready young people who will help our country flourish and are passionate about their work. Wylie ISD and other public school districts should not be punished for these efforts.

Vouchers or ‘Education Savings Accounts’ is a hot topic in the 88th Legislature and would have a significant impact on public schools, including Wylie ISD. It is vital that we have conversations and discussions about matters that affect our district. We stand by our stance in opposing a school voucher system/Education Savings Account.

Boots ‘N Barbecue Gala

It is disappointing that Mr. Schwerin did not reach out to the Wylie ISD Education Foundation to learn more about the decorations. In fact, WEF had signage at the event that stated, “Decor brought to you by nearby libraries and friends. Books used for decorations were provided at no cost by local and regional libraries and were slated to be destroyed or recycled. They are for decoration purposes only and not content for classrooms.” A photo of the sign can be found below. Half-Priced Books, the City of Wylie’s public library, McMillan Junior High, Wylie East High School, and private individuals were among the groups who helped donate more than 1,000 books for the event’s decor.

Additionally, with the exception of high school students who performed during a designated timeslot, the event was for adult attendees only. The book referenced has never been on a Wylie ISD shelf, and we are not sure what decorations at such an event have to do with Wylie ISD libraries or students.

Budget

Wylie ISD and the Board of Trustees are committed to being good stewards of tax dollars. The district will continue to make decisions that are in the best interest of students, staff and taxpayers while remaining transparent during the process. 

Dawn Shallow (01/23/23)

“Good evening. I am here tonight to want to be an informed taxpayer. I think I speak for all Wylie taxpayers. There’s 50,000 of us. I was reading the superintendent contract you approved nine weeks ago and I find it vague. So, in an effort for transparency, I would like some information posted on the website. When I’m reading the contract that you approved nine weeks ago, some of it’s straightforward… the base salary, $280,000, $6,000 for a car allowance, $12,000 for civic responsibilities, that brings us to $296,000 a year. But what I am confused about is vague and I would bet that not one single taxpayer knows the answer to this. Probably the eight of you do and maybe HR. The Texas retirement, this is kind of vague. It says the district shall supplement the superintendent’s salary by an amount equal to the superintendent’s portion of the monthly member contribution to the TRS for the term of the contract, including any extensions. This salary supplement shall include both the retirement and TRS-Care parts of the TRS member contribution. So my question to you is, and this is what I would like published, how much exactly is that? Because I go to the TRS and it says eight percent is the member contribution rate. So, is our superintendent getting paid the $296,000 in addition to the eight percent more, which would be another $22,000? I would bet not one single taxpayer knows the answer to this. Only you guys do. So I would like to know exactly how much we pay our superintendent. How much is the TRS retirement we pay for him and how much is the TRS health we pay for him? So I would like that for transparency because eight percent is another $22,000. So, I would just like to know the answer to that. I would like to say thank you, school board, for working for free. Thank you.”

Jeffrey Keech (10/24/22)

"Hi, I'd like to start by just thanking Mitch Herzog and Heather Leggett for your service as a trustee. My children and many others have benefited from all your service to this community. When I was about 11, I joined the Boy Scouts and I remember being asked one of the first things I was asked was, how do you eat an elephant? If anyone knows how to eat an elephant? Well, you eat it one bite at a time. So let's say that you know that we want to talk about this flattening the tax rate, what do you call it, no-new-revenue-rate or just keep the taxes next year what they are this year.

In order to do that, you have to start by looking for ways to save money. I'm sure there's at least some waste in a government entity with a $231 million budget. So I think a good place to start and maybe identify some line items in our budget that may not be necessary. Like I’ve seen expenses for $12,000 for T-shirts, $15,000 for a keynote speaker, $10,000 for a different keynote speaker. And I wonder if those are all necessary? Maybe they are. But I wonder if you've looked into those. Or maybe look at the travel budget between July of 21 and April of 22. The district spent about $86,000 on plane tickets, hotel expenses, travel agent fees and conference registrations. I'm sure if we add in the per diem, that total amount is well over $100,000. The district attended conferences in places like New Orleans, New York, Las Vegas and San Diego. In a post-COVID world, I wonder if those travels are really necessary. Then private sector companies all over the world are finding out that no, they're not necessary. In fact, you can probably learn as much or more by attending conferences virtually or taking online training classes. I do believe the district spent about 30 nights at the Kalahari Waterpark Resort in Round Rock. I wonder if that was necessary. I would imagine it’s very distracting there. And I think you could probably get the same amount of learning without having to travel there.

And while we're discussing some of the conferences, let's look at some of the material that was presented at one of these conferences. In the last two years, the ISD sent 13 counselors to the American School Counselors Association annual conference, the opening session for this conference talked about educational equity. There was a session about implementing culturally sustaining anti-racist practices in their work. There was a session about supporting transgender and gender-expansive students. I wonder first they had to define what a gender-expansive student is. And there was also a session that asked what does it mean to be white? One of the answers on the bullet point given was that because white folks don't necessarily see whiteness as a culture, this allows them to think about themselves as individuals and not white. And I don't think that kind of thinking has any place in this school district or any in the country." - Jeffrey Keech

Jessica Fourrier (10/24/22)

"For the past two years, I have been more involved coming to the board meetings, reading all the school emails and really trying to know what's going on with Wylie ISD. My family moved to Wylie because we were told and believed that Wylie was a good school and a conservative city. I believe that Wylie is a conservative city but I think that the Wylie ISD school board and Vinson have fallen short, in so many ways. They have bowed to the woke culture that is ruining schools across America. We should be teaching patriotism in school, how to be proud of our country, how it was founded and how far it's come. We should be teaching Americans to be united and not divided because of their differences. That is not happening, but I think it should and could with the right people making the decisions.

Since the people supporting your campaign the keyboard warriors are so interested in truth in fact, I thought I would share some facts.

Fact number one. You as a board with Vinson, hired Sara Wicht from the Southern Poverty Law Center, paid her $15,000 to come up with the program “Let's Talk” which was to facilitate conversations between teachers and students about white privilege, Black Lives Matter, mass incarceration and police brutality. You did this without consulting parents and ended up wasting taxpayer money.

Fact number two. At the Wylie High School graduation in 2020, Virdie Montgomery asked all students to kneel for solidarity for George Floyd and social injustice. And all of y'all knelt with him. Why on earth would you think that it's okay to teach children about a personal belief that you have my house would never kneel for a criminal that assaulted a pregnant woman, no matter how he died.

Fact number three. In January, I spoke at the board meeting about the books that are obscene in our schools and asked that they be reviewed. None of you emailed me. I asked Jacob Day to check into the book issue at the next meeting and he said he would. I never heard back from him. I've heard y'all say Wylie ISD doesn't have any bad books in their library. That's a lie. The bad books are not just about pornography, but also about CRT and books glorifying teen suicide. Wylie ISD has secretly removed at least six books on this list without communicating with me or posting it on the forum that y'all created to show your transparency.

Fact number four. Wylie ISD is not allowing parents to assist with the book review process, which by state law they're required to do. It does not matter if you yourself consider that you have an established library. That's not real.

Fact number five. I have emailed the entire board at least 15 times in the past two years and I've received either a generic thanks for your email or nothing at all. What does that say for your transparency?

Fact number six. You all claim to be conservative. Even though you say this is a nonpartisan race. Yet you all have voted on, done things that would not support your claim to being conservatives.

[Board President Stacie Smith interjects, “Mrs. Fourrier, please remember that there's no electioneering allowed, this will be your only warning.”]

Fact number seven. Please don't waste my time. I'm gonna keep going. You have been spreading misinformation to the public about the taxes. The tax rate y'all voted on was technically numerically lower than last year. But because of house prices going up so much, you will be getting 11% more from the citizens of Wylie, totaling $16.8 million more dollars than last year. And you knew what the mortgage rates were before you voted. So in essence, you did raise taxes. So in conclusion, you're not transparent. You don't work with parents unless they're patting you on the back and you're not conservative. I will not be voting for you." - Jessica Fourrier

Jill Palmer (10/24/22)

"Good evening. First, I want to begin by saying thank you to Heather Leggett and Mitch Herzog, because I know, I understand this is a thankless position. And I know it's hard to be under a microscope constantly, especially when your integrity and character are always in question. I think we all can say we're having issues understanding and, you know, navigating when your integrity and character is being questioned.

So let's talk about that real quick. There was a blanket statement that has been made that there are no bad books in this district. Why then do I have 226 books listed in this document of books are currently in Wylie High or East. Out of those 226, 35 of those were at Cooper, and out of those 226, six have actually been removed.

Which is kind of odd because I know there's a system in place. According to EF local that a parent should be able to submit a form, apparently, in order to get a book removed. Well I know none of the concerned parents have done that. But now, from March 22 to now, six books have been removed, which is great. It's a great step in the right direction. But the fact is, six books actually have been removed, yet my integrity and my character and being called a book burner. Why the secrecy of all this?

Let me just list out the books… “The Bluest Eye,” “Traffic,” “Tricks,” “Lawn Boy,” and the latest, “Me Earl and the Dying Girl” and “L8R, G8R.” These were in our schools, we have the receipts. We have the screenshots of them in our schools. And now as of today, at 5:15 when I checked, they are not there. So six have been removed by this administration. So you're basically proving our point. We came to you as a community with a valid concern. You did not acknowledge it, you actually pushed us aside, and you did it on your own. That's not standing with integrity or transparency or communicating with this district. The books were removed, we have the receipts, so just own it. That's all we want. Just say, ‘my bad, we were wrong and we did it.’ You're basically making our point valid. So in order for you to answer the question on the public forum site, did you or did you not remove the six books and I will list them again: “The Bluest Eye,” “Traffic,” “Tricks,” “Lawn Boy,” “Me Earl and the Dying Girl” and “L8R, G8R.”

And please be honest, don't manipulate your answer based on whatever training you were given by our taxpayers to pay for the Marguiles Group and answer in truth and honesty and with integrity." - Jill Palmer

Michael Schwerin (10/24/22)

"Thank you. I would also like to start by thanking Heather and Mitch and all the rest of you all for your support and for your tireless work. As others have said that is, it’s a thankless job. And as we continue to learn over the last several months, that it is truly challenging when your character and your integrity is constantly attacked. So I want to thank you all for your service, especially Heather and Mitch, since y'all are retiring this year. So thank you.

I do also want to talk a little bit about facts, though, since that sounds to be really something that's important in our community right now, which I think it is. It really is important. I think one of the things that's important to be a factual thing to talk about is that no one, I don't think there's a single teacher, a single person that's spoken at a board meeting last two years, objects to the greatness of Wylie ISD. We all moved here for that reason, most of us if we weren't born here and raised here, we'd moved here for that reason. It is a destination district. And no one denies that our teachers are some of the best teachers in the state, and administrators are the best administrators in the state. I think we've all agreed upon that. I think we can all also agree that when you are great, you should also be focusing on what you can do to become better. And you should always be focusing on what you can do to be better. You always have that grit to improve yourself and always look about the people coming up behind you, the districts coming up behind us that are trying to get better than we are. And so I think on that mindset, we need to look at the facts of what's happened over the last two years. And looking at what has happened whether it was two years ago with the start of the diversity and inclusion program.

It was started in a lot of hindsight or a lot of hidden areas that we didn't know when we hired a consultant, as was mentioned earlier, that we didn't know about, that was fairly radical. And even when we came out, and when parents came out and spoke in April of that year, it took six more months before you all decide to put it on an agenda to have that conversation. But there was no discussion about it. It was just a simple report, and no actual questions about what we should do and should we actually have this in our district. And now it's kind of slowly disappeared and gone by the wayside with no D&I director or not really much movement since the pillar meetings last year. So I think it's at least we're grateful that we've put that forward. And we as parents have helped improve our district in that way.

Another thing that’s been raised up is the books. And I do hope as Jill and others have said that I guess I pray for you all to be careful and be mindful because you're probably going to call book burners, book Nazis, as we have, as we bought up and discuss this because you all have removed six books from the library. There are almost 200 more that you need to remove. So let's keep on going. And I think the last thing, again, is taxes. You can reduce taxes. Yes, it's gonna be hard, yes it’s going to be complicated, but you can and you choose not to. Thank you." - Michael Schwerin

Dawn Shallow (09/19/22)

“Tonight I'd like to talk about numbers. The first number is the number four. That number four is the number of years that you've served on the school board. This is also the number of years since you held your hand and took your oath of office. I want to talk about budget numbers. When you took your office four years ago, the Wylie budget was $172,563,585. You increased the budget in 2019 $20 million. You increased the budget in 2020 $5.4 million. Reasonable. You increased the budget in 2021 $16.7 million, and you increased the budget in 2022 $16.7 million. That is an addition to the $190 million bond package.

Today, four years later, our budget is $231,480,148. In the last four years since you've been in office, the budget has increased $58,916,563. That's a budget increase over four years of 34.14%. Let's talk about student enrollment numbers. These are based on the number you provided to the TEA. Four years ago, when you took office, we had 16,459 students enrolled. In 2019, that increased 703. In 2020 that increased 258, and in 2021, that increase 735. And in 2022, increased 581. So today, after four years in office, we now have 18,736 students enrolled. In four years, that's an increase of 2277 students or an increase of 13.31%.

So let's review those numbers again, Wylie ISD budget increased 34.14% in four years, student enrollment increased 13.83% in four years. Here's another number point .0000001, as in one cent, think in terms of cents, that's exactly the number you kept the budget under so that you didn't have to call for a public election. You increase our budget $16.7 million. If you had raised it one more cent, we the public would have got to vote on that. But the final two numbers I have are 35 and 50. 35 represents the number of days until early election on October 24. And 50 represents the number of days until the election on November 8. Thank you.” -Dawn Shallow

Michael Schwerin (09/19/22)

“Thank you. I come tonight as I do on most nights speaking as a parent, as a parent of a special needs child. And in the mindset of asking you why you're not continuing to support the special ed department. Having talked with many parents, paraprofessionals, and teachers in the special ed department over the last several months, I've actually learned that there are deficiencies in this department. While at the board meeting last month, you decided to spend lots of time asking absurd questions about paper clips and markers and whether or not we have enough money to buy paper clips and markers. And not actually talking about things that matter like the special ed department and ensuring that our special needs students are cared for and honored.

I also come speaking as parents that are too afraid to come and talk and speak here tonight. Out of fear and intimidation by the school board and by this district. They don't want to be singled out online by a dubious page that's set up for people that are speaking here this evening. They're too worried about maybe misspeaking, as I did one night several months ago and accidentally said billions instead of millions, and then was called a liar. You know, you're too worried about that and making yourselves look good, rather than actually focusing on actually doing good things and want to actually try to be the best district in the state and be the first one to reach the no new revenue rate, instead of just saying, ‘no one else is doing it, so why should we?’ And I think it's really important to make sure that we're not being singled out. And not singling out and attacking parents, just because they may misspeak or they may disagree with you. I'm also speaking for all the teachers and paraprofessionals, and the staff in the community that I've run into over the coming cut last several months that feel they can't say what they want to say, for fear of losing their job or their position. That's a scary place to be in. As a nonprofit executive who has managed a team, I would never want any one of my team members to feel scared to say something because they might lose their job. And that should be a shame on all of you for allowing that kind of fear and intimidation to be out there and to be here. You shouldn't be maybe more focusing on making yourselves look good and actually focus on why that's happening, why so many teachers are leaving this district the last couple of years, the numbers have skyrocketed. I'm not going to give the exact number because I might misquote myself and then I'll probably be called a liar tomorrow. And I'm also speaking for all the children in the district. All those that come from families who are struggling to make ends meet, the families I meet on a daily basis who are struggling to decide whether they put food on their table or pay their tax bill or pay their rent or pay for utilities. Those are the people that are hit the hardest by your choices in spending and choosing to overspend. They're the ones that have to make those tough decisions and have to look at moving out of the district because they can't afford it as even some actual staff members of Wylie ISD have told us that they had to move out.” -Michael Schwerin

Kevin Brooks (09/19/22)

“Madam President, members of the board. My reason for being here tonight is simple. The system is broken. It is broken and it lies in a state of disrepair and has been for quite some time. The reason it is in disrepair is because you have abdicated your responsibility to be the watchman on the wall. Your responsibility to be the wall that protects our most precious commodity, our children. You have failed. You have failed our children. You have failed our schools. You have failed our educators and you have failed our community. You are not accessible to the electorate. You do not return phone calls. You do not return emails. Yet you raise taxes every year, even this year, to the point to where it would not have to trigger an election, just short to where we the people would have to vote on the increase. People are leaving Wylie ISD for cheaper and sometimes greener pastures and that should not be. You are the masters of misinformation when you continually and repeatedly state Wylie ISD is subject to recapture also known as Robin Hood when we are not. You treat the electorate with what can best be described as disdain and as a nuisance if we are not in agreement with your plans and policies. The electorate sets the vision for the district and votes in the board that supports the direction they want for the district. The board takes that vision to the superintendent for implementation within predetermined parameters and budgeting. The relationship between the electorate, faculty, staff and administration, and the board should be one of an alliance and not an adversarial one, one where the faculty and staff and electorate are silenced and held hostage by the administration and the board. One where they're having to teach political correctness of what we see in societal decline on display 24/7 on television, and the web with no say in the matter. Both current and former educators have zero confidence in the board. We the people assure them that that will change. Being labeled as fascist, book burners, book banners and red shirts we proudly wear we the people. Whereas on your shirt, you state only your names, playing to see your primary focus looks back at you from the mirror, but it's all about the kids. In closing, you're all a disappointment, but that can be fixed, that needs to change, and that will change, if you vote. Thank you.” -Kevin Brooks

According to our records, Mr. Kevin Brooks has never reached out to the Wylie ISD Board of Trustees President Mrs. Stacie Smith or Dr. David Vinson. The only current trustee Mr. Brooks has reached out to about a concern is Mr. Bill Howard. Mr. Howard pointed him to the campus principal and Assistant Superintendent for Student Services, Mr. Scott Winn. On a public website, Mr. Brooks stated, “After talking with Coach Howard I wrote a letter and sent it to Coach, Scott Winn and Beth Craighead. They were all awesome!”

The board and district administrators respond to emails, return phone calls and meet with stakeholders. We typically try to respond to emails or return calls within 24-48 hours. If a parent or community member has reached out to the district and not received a response, we request that they send a follow-up email. Additionally, while board members welcome emails from all stakeholders, oftentimes, questions or concerns are ones that can only be addressed by district staff. To ensure questions or concerns that are outside the board’s purview are addressed, board members will acknowledge the communication and then direct the superintendent to respond.

In rare occasions, the district has decided to cease communication with individuals due to repeated emails about the same topic or requests for answers to the same questions. Our first priority is ensuring that our students are safe, learning and thriving, and that our teachers and staff have the support they need to take care of our students. While responding to and communicating with stakeholders is very important, the district cannot continuously divert resources to respond to repetitive questions from a sole person.

Mr. Brooks is correct, our school district is not subject to recapture.

Randi Jackson (09/19/22)

“Good evening, I want to start off once again by saying a continued and genuine thank you for maintaining the parent's right to choose when it comes to medical freedom. And I want to just how we got here. There's a lot going on right now. And to those just now getting involved, it may come as a shock that there are those in our community that are unsatisfied with representation as parents, teachers, or taxpaying citizens. Now, we ended up hearing from a lot of different causes that piqued our interest over the years. For me personally, it was the struggle my special needs child went through and the regression both academically and socially from the mask mandates, which I know initially was not a district mandate, but others have similar stories, but with different issues that are close to their hearts. And notably, what has been very interesting and frustrating is that the more and more parents and citizens have been getting involved, seemed like the first knee-jerk reaction was to circle the wagons and limit our speaking time from five minutes to three minutes. Because either there wasn't a lot that you were hearing that you were liking, or simply following the lead of similar districts that were hearing from their constituency and weren't liking it. So, you know, that tendency to follow what others are doing is not from what I understand, leading as in the Wylie Way. Now, when we did start getting involved, we had gotten, you know, the idea and the impression that haven't gotten so not used to such a diverse community of involvement, the Board of Trustees and administration got used to doing their own thing and didn't seem too keen on being questioned. Being under tougher scrutiny seemingly led to what appears on the outside to be defensive behavior and dismissive attitudes towards those of us who refuse to stop pushing for transparency in our district. So that commonly perceived attitude is what has brought us to where we are today. It won't be easy going forward because the way things have been is no longer acceptable. It means that Wylie ISD needs to step up and it's going to take change. It's going to take determination, and it's really going to take courageous leadership. Thank you for your time.” - Randi Jackson

Jill Palmer (09/19/22)

“Good evening. I want to begin by saying thank you, President Smith, from the last board meeting, I think it was really great to pull a consent agenda item forward after you saw or you heard public comments. I think it's really great to have real-time engagement, which is very important. It kind of builds on the transparency. With that being said, I'm going to piggyback on what I spoke about last month, I kind of explained about two items that the community that was involved and was part of the solution came together with the D&I pillars to figure out some action points that we want to see for 22-23. I did reach out asking for those TNA to figure out what's going on. Still don't have them. And we're like, what month two and that started the school year? We have no TNA on those initiatives. But I'm starting to connect the dots because it seems from multiple insiders in this district have basically confirmed that the D&I program no longer exists. Whether that's true or not, I do not know. But that's the communication that's coming from inside your district. So if that's the case, what were we doing last year? What was the point of those pillar meetings? If you want to shy from controversy and not speak out, and actually implement the communication of what that program means going forward? Like, what are we doing? So I'm gonna leave you with a question and two follow-ups. One, does the D&I program exist? Yes or no? Follow-up two. If it doesn't, where did that funding go? Where did it get reallocated? And three, if it got rebranded, got put under a different umbrella… is it Title IX? Because according to state legislature, once a designator of the Title IX coordinator title is designated, the district must notify applicants for admission and employment, students, parents and legal guardians, employees, and professional organizations holding professional agreements with this district of the name of the said coordinator. We haven't received any confirmation of what that means for Wylie ISD. So for those of you watching online who see just a red shirter, who are not listening to the question I'm asking that brought on a culture war in this community, does the D&I program actually exist? I'll leave it to you to answer.” - Jill Palmer

Jarrett Erwin (08/15/22)

“According to the Texas Comptroller's Office, the combined school tax rate for those residing in Wylie ISD is in the top 5% of tax rates out of over the 1550 public schools in Texas. I was unable to attend the recent budget workshop meeting on May 16 but watched the recorded posting online and was very disappointed. I want to encourage every Wylie ISD taxpayer to watch this recording to form your own opinion. It was disappointing that several elected trustees seemingly showed how little they actually know about the budget and the tax rate. The school board themselves is not actually saving the taxpayers 6 cents, just 2 months ago the school board committed to an 18% increase which was later adjusted to an 11% increase only because property values were about half a billion less than anticipated. Please stop portraying that you cut the tax rate to save us money.”

“Additionally, Wylie ISD is not one of the 150+ schools in Texas that are subject to recapture which means we do not send our local tax dollars to the state to fund other schools. As stated in the budget workshop by the presenter, Wylie ISD is headed in that direction but would require a vote by the taxpayers to be implemented.”

“There are millions of dollars of our tax money that our elected trustees are responsible for and it seems some of our trustees don’t know the basics of our taxes and where our money is even spent. I recognize that this is a complex issue but how is that possible? I believe it's possible because our trustees aren’t involved in the process of setting the budget and tax rates which is a primary purpose of the job they were elected to do. I’m disappointed in the deception of the administration with a perceived goal of confusing the trustees and the public. Again, I encourage everyone to watch the May 16 board workshop recording. This is our local government. Where is the accountability for this wasteful spending? There doesn’t seem to be any. Wylie ISD taxpayers and voters want more and we deserve more, we want fiscal sanity restored within Wylie ISD and make no mistake this can be done without cutting teacher pay.” - Jarrett Erwin

Wylie ISD is heading into 2022-23 with a lower tax rate for the fourth consecutive year and a balanced budget, while still providing employees a raise and accommodating for the expected student population growth. It’s also important to note that 84 percent of the district’s budget is for payroll expenses, with 60 percent going directly toward those in the classroom.

Wylie ISD school board members are very involved in the budget process and understand the complexities of school finance. Trustees are also longtime homeowners in the district and are committed to being fiscally responsible with taxpayer dollars. Wylie ISD and several other Collin County school districts have higher tax rates than other districts across the state due largely to rapid student population growth. Collin County districts such as Prosper, Community, Princeton, Anna, and Royse City set higher tax rates than Wylie ISD in 2021. For the full list from the Texas Comptroller’s Officer of the 1,015 school districts, please visit the comptroller's website. Note: 1,550 are listed due to school districts spanning multiple counties.

Wylie ISD and other Collin County school districts are growing at a rapid pace while other districts are maturing and losing enrollment.

Trustees and the district are proud to offer an exemplary educational experience to students while remaining good stewards of taxpayer dollars. In fact, in the 2022 Texas Education Agency accountability ratings, Wylie ISD and each of its 20 campuses received an ‘A’ rating – Wylie ISD is the only school district in Texas with more than 10,000 students to have the district and all campuses earn an ‘A.’

Additionally, preliminary reports show that Wylie ISD will receive an ‘A’ in TEA’s 2021-22 School Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas (FIRST) ratings. What are FIRST ratings? From TEA: “The state's school financial accountability rating system ensures that Texas public schools are held accountable for the quality of their financial management practices and that they improve these practices. The system is designed to encourage Texas public schools to better manage their financial resources to provide the maximum allocation possible for direct instructional purposes.”

Recapture

Regarding recapture, Wylie ISD is not yet subject to recapture or what the public may know better as “Robin Hood.” What is recapture?

“Chapter 41, Education Code, was repealed. House Bill 3 amended the Education Code to transfer certain sections from Chapter 41 to Chapter 49, and revised formulas used to determine excess local revenue under the FSP by adding Subchapter F, Chapter 48, Education Code, Section 48.257, Local Revenue in Excess of Entitlement. This section of the Texas Education Code (TEC) makes provisions for certain school districts to share their local tax revenue with other school districts. These provisions are sometimes referred to as ‘share the wealth’ or ‘Robin Hood’ plan because recaptured funds are redistributed by the school finance system to assist with the financing of public education for all school districts.”

Wylie ISD anticipates being named a recapture district in the years to come. Mr. Jarrett Erwin is correct. A vote by taxpayers is required to decide how recapture fees are paid. However, should the vote not pass, the State of Texas would detach properties from the school district, reducing property values to ensure the district would not be subject to recapture. The detached properties would be reassigned to another school district and those property owners would be taxed at that district’s rate. Additionally, students living in those areas would go to school in the new district. Under current law, these properties would be permanently detached. The biggest concern of losing such properties would be a possible increase on the interest and sinking tax rate.

Kevin Brooks (08/15/22)

“Like many parents, I absolutely fell in love with Wylie ISD. My wife and son came from Brazil and I knew Dallas ISD was not for me and I moved immediately to Richardson ISD, followed quickly by a move to Wylie ISD. Also, like many parents, I left the politics and the admin stuff to the professionals. We entrusted people like you to do the right thing and what is best for our kids. That has turned out to be one of the worst decisions I have ever made. My 12-year-old daughter has been harassed about the colors she wears and being told that she must be LGBTQ. She was so upset about it, she came to me and I asked what she should do and asked me what she should do. I told her not to worry and daddy would take care of it. And I proceeded to make another mistake by trusting a school counselor to handle it by speaking to my daughter. He called me and tried to explain to me that we need to be accepting of all kids’ choices and I cut him off and I stated, ‘what you need to do is be the adult. You need to tell that young lady that’s giving my daughter a hard time that those meetings start at 3:31 because my daughter leaves at 3:30. And that the LGBTQ stuff is for after school, not during school.’ Well, nothing has changed. In fact, I began to look into it as I discovered even more discrepancies and feelings and the goings on in and around Wylie ISD. I do not have time to address them all here, but I will address a few. There is a principal that said it takes a village to raise a child. No sir. Stay out of my kids’ lives and focus on educating children. Please leave your social commentary and your social media accounts and me and my 12-year-old alone. I did not ask you to indoctrinate my kids to become social justice warriors. You were hired to teach. So teach. Reading, writing, arithmetic, science and civics.

There are sexual activities in the bathrooms, according to people that I’ve spoken to. Drug use, girls sitting ‘cooch to cooch’ in the hallways. Teachers I have spoken to that state they do not have the support of the administration and know these things, but say nothing because of fear of their jobs.” - Kevin Brooks

Mitch Fourrier (08/15/22)

“I sent all of you, plus several on my left and my right an email on January 28. Twelve of you total about Granbury ISD removing 125 books for review. I sent you a color-coded book list explaining GISD’s reason for review of the removal of the books. I received, out of the 12 that I emailed, I received one reply that was from Ms. Spicer that said you guys were looking into it. After several months with no response about the book list, after one of these meetings I spoke to Mr. Day, and kind of made him aware of it. He said he’d look into it. Again, I got no response. This issue has been brought up numerous times in these meetings to you just like I’m standing now by concerned parents, again no response.

About a week ago I searched the online library for both high schools and found that almost 100 inappropriate books were still there. One book from the GISD list was removed, but the rest weren't. Some books not on the GISD list were found in the LGBTQ section of the online library. On top of that, new books are still being added. Two of which I saw “She Gets the Girl” by Alyson Derrick and Rachael Lippincott and “All My Rage” by Sabaa Tahir. So some questions, what did you find while you were looking into it? Why haven’t you been transparent with what you have or haven’t found? Why is there an LGBTQ section of the library?

You should be neutral, not pushing an agenda. I asked you in the initial email and I'll ask you again. I asked you what the Wylie Way meant to you. Because that’s a phrase that you all put out there. Is this the Wylie Way? I expect more from all of you.” - Mitch Fourrier

Jeffrey Keech (08/15/22)

“School enrollment was 13,360 kids in 2012 that increased to 18,650 in 2022, that’s an increase enrollment increase of 5,200 students or 39 percent. The Wylie ISD budget increased from $117 million in 2012 to $231 million in 2022. That’s an increase of $113 million or 96 percent. So in summary, in the past 10 years, student enrollment has increased by 39 percent and the school budget has increased by 96 percent, more than double. Of course, when discussing budgets over multiple years you have to consider inflation rates, so according to the inflation rate, taken directly from the Bureau of Labor Statistics website, for those years I mentioned, it [inflation] ranged from .8 percent in 2014 to 7 percent in 2021. So the cumulative inflation rate for those years was 23 percent plus the 2022 rate. So I don’t because we don’t have the finished rates for 2022 I’m just gonna focus on the years from 2012-2021. Student enrollment in those years increased by 35 percent. The budget increased by 82 percent. So if this school district was limiting the budget increases to the rate of inflation plus student population growth which is a very fair way to do budgeting. The cumulative budget increase from 2012-2021 would have been 35 percent growth plus 23 percent inflation rate or 58 percent. That equates to a budget of $186 million for the 2021-22 school year. In actuality, the budget went up 82 percent to $214 million. So the difference between a 58 percent increase and an 82 percent increase is $28 million. According to the US Census Bureau, there were 15,730 households in Wylie in 2020 an increase of 530 from the year before, so if you extrapolate that to 2021 that’s roughly an estimated 16,260 households in Wylie in 2021. What that means is that from 2012-2021, the school budget grew to be above the enrollment plus inflation rate by $1,755 per household. Meaning every household in Wylie that pays taxes is paying an additional $1,755 because the budget has been out of control for that entire period of time.” - Jeffrey Keech

Michael Schwerin (08/15/22)

“Now I understand the proper roles of a board of directors, which is similar to a board of trustees and staff or administration. In these instances, the board, you all seven elected officials are the ones that set policy. And the staff is there to implement that policy. You all also give the budget guidance and the staff implements the budget and creates the budget based on that guidance. Of course, this is all involving staff in staff involvement in those processes but you seven are the ones that make those decisions and I still can’t understand why the seven of you have decided to abdicate that decision and give it all to the staff administration.

In fact, when I asked at the beginning of the year, calendar year, I reached out to each of you about setting the no new revenue rate, effective tax rate. I received things like, ‘money is given to the state and it’s not, it’s not all returned.’ Which wasn’t true. It’s really confusing. We need to rely on our staff. If, and then there was also the implication that it was because staff, because property values were rising, was why our taxes were going up, which again was not true. After being told multiple times that it was really confusing and really difficult, I went to work studying. I learned. I listened. I talked to others. Things that I wish that you all would of done. Cause I noticed there were no questions from you all about reducing spending from you, since January when the budget process started. No discussion about are these costs accurate and should they be done when we’re looking at the economic situation that we’re in when people are seeing their rents doubled because of inflation, because of the property taxes that you all are presenting to them. Why not? Why are you, instead of doing that, you’re complaining and calling us, calling those who are asking questions terrorists or red shirts instead of actually doing your job and doing your hard work?” - Michael Schwerin

Aleksandra Rolfson (08/15/22)

“One of the items on the agenda is interlocal cooperation agreement for governmental services for the I guess overtime pay for our SROs, I have no problem with that, that Wylie ISD is going to be sharing overtime pay with the city of Wylie. However I do have a problem that if you look at the whole document which is supposed to be filed with the county, I assuming is supposed to be filed with the county, and the bottom is for a person to sign it, and it has the city manager and the city manager is listed as Chris Holstead. He hasn’t been our city manager for a while. So don’t tell me you gonna be voting a-p with the city manager that’s now no longer there because this document isn’t getting amended.  Another thing on the agenda is item H request to change regular school board meeting dates. Your subject line has October, November, December, January and February due to the student holidays. If you go and look through the agenda packet, November is left out, so you have conflicting information. You have in the subject line October, November, December, January and February and more detail, but November is not there. So is this how our administration is writing this, I mean come on.. if nothing else you’re educators all of you. You can at least get the months straight and in one paragraph or four lines. I would appreciate it if you look through this consent agenda and make sure we don’t file wrong documents with the county and open ourselves to a lawsuit.” - Aleksandra Rolfson

Jill Palmer (08/15/22)

“This proud, red shirter’s question for you to add to the website so you can answer. What is your plan for executing the two most important action points from our DE&I meeting [creating training for district administrators on being consistent on how we address and execute and follow up on discipline issues so that we have consistency across the district. Creating a plan for how we can communicate our discipline reporting policies and procedures and what the process looks like from reporting to investigations to the follow-up with affected students, staff and families], that should of already been put into place, and it’s day three of the new school year and nothing has been done. That is the only answer I'm going to accept on its website.” - Jill Palmer

Randi Jackson (08/15/22)

"According to the Wylie ISD organizational structure, the top of the chart says students, parents and community members of Wylie, then the board of trustees, and then the superintendent of schools. In reality, it seems to operate in the exact opposite fashion. From what I personally have witnessed the superintendent provides the vision and the board rubberstamps the agenda with only cursory questions that are superficial and refuse to openly discuss options in a manner that includes and informs the public. Over one hundred unanimous votes in a row. On everything from tax rates and budgets to controversial programs and supplies. While the majority of consent items are standard like employee contracts and reports, that doesn’t mean that there shouldn’t be open and transparent discussion of the necessity for each item. From the perspective of parents and the community of Wylie, our concerns and inquiries are little more than an irritating inconvenience to the real top of the chart. And the board of trustees seems to feel stuck in the middle. What we need is courageous leadership, what we need is a board of trustees that understands that they're elected by the community of Wylie to set the vision for the district. And that it is the duty of the superintendent and their administration to bring that vision to fruition. When I started attending these board meetings, I had the highest hopes of the leadership of the board would shine through. And instead, I have felt like an unwanted intruder of the status quo. The way things are, the way things have been, we go by the policy with a refusal and actually an ardent disinterest in changing that policy, that you have the power to change, isn’t good enough as an answer anymore. Following policy isn’t good enough, following what other districts do isn’t good enough, following the primrose path toward the corruption of our education system isn’t good enough." - Randi Jackson

MICHAEL SCHWERIN (6/20/22)

“I’d like to start by correcting a few comments I heard tonight. This budget isn’t frugal nor is it saving six cents on the tax dollar. It actually still is 21 cents more than the no-new-revenue rate, which means every single one of us as taxpayers are still paying more money to Wylie ISD in the new budget than we were this year currently.”

Mr. Schwerin's comments continued, "“It would have been nice if you would have considered all of us and considered the benefit to all of us taxpayers within Wylie ISD, which includes renters because they do pay property taxes through their form of rent. Save us money by allowing us to have a no-new-revenue rate which would have set us on a much better fiscally responsible place for us as an organization.”

The Texas Comptroller website explains the “No-New-Revenue Tax Rate as follows:

The no-new-revenue tax rate enables the public to evaluate the relationship between taxes for the prior year and for the current year, based on a tax rate that would produce the same amount of taxes if applied to the same properties taxed in both years. Although the actual calculation is more complicated, a taxing unit's no-new-revenue tax rate generally equal to the last year's taxes divided by the current taxable value of properties that were also on the tax roll last year.The resulting tax rate, used for comparison only, shows the relation between the last year's revenue and the current year's values.

Texas school districts are required to submit their certified values to the Texas Education Agency for them to calculate and approve their Maximum Compressed Rate (MCR). Wylie ISD adopts the tax rate allowed by law to fund district operations.

The district spent the spring developing the 2022-23 budget and evaluated all areas of the budget. Eighty-four percent of the district’s budget goes toward payroll expenses, and the vast majority of the increase to this upcoming year’s budget covers the 3 percent raise for staff, additional pay increases for auxiliary staff, and market adjustments for other hard-to-fill professional positions.

The Wylie ISD Board of Trustees is committed to being good stewards of taxpayer dollars and ensuring the district remains in a healthy financial position for years to come.

“When we ask to meet with you and you’re not able to speak to us or refuse to speak to us, then it makes it very difficult for us to express our concerns. You shouldn’t be afraid of us, we are here to be willing and helpful, and I really just wish you would look at that and look at considering lowering that rate down to the no-new-revenue rate to help us all out here in Wylie ISD.”

Board members and district administration have responded to emails sent by Mr. Schwerin, and Mr. Schwerin has communicated with a board member via phone call. District leadership also met with Mr. Schwerin for an in-person meeting last summer. Board members welcome emails from all stakeholders and respond accordingly. For matters outside the board’s purview, trustees will direct the superintendent to respond.

Information regarding the no-new-revenue rate can be found in the question above.

“You’ve said that you’ve asked specific questions and concerns about things, and I will ask for a PIR on that because I’ve been told that before because there are certain things when people aren’t asking questions, board members aren’t asking questions, it’s because they’re talking to administrators and assistant superintendents individually. Of course, when I ask for public information requests on those emails, there were none for the months that I asked for.”

During several board meetings and workshops this spring, board members have asked questions about the budget. Board members also receive a weekly informational newsletter from the superintendent and short memos when the need arises. These keep board members informed about district matters. Additionally, the superintendent meets weekly with the board president. Board members ask questions and provide feedback via email or phone call with the superintendent or, when necessary, the appropriate administrator.

“I do think it’s telling that we need to have more consideration, more conversations about that and making sure that is the first step [about campuses involving law enforcement]. Because even though that’s said, even having talked to other parents in the district, I’ve been told that multiple times from other parents that had the same exact situation where principals or assistant principals are unwilling to call the police or not willing to call the police and do their own investigations rather than involving the police department or SRO, which is concerning because it doesn’t take care of the threat.”

Campus administrators are required to notify the police of any incident that has the possibility of being a criminal offense. School investigations are never to impede police investigations, and law enforcement determines how criminal investigations will proceed.

So that there is no cross-over in duties, it should be noted that pursuant to state law, an SRO may not be involved in routine student discipline or school administrative tasks. Thus, in the event criminal behavior is not indicated, law enforcement should not be involved.

During a recent summer training, district and law enforcement reminded campus administrators of this requirement. We value our relationship with our local police departments and rely on their expertise when possible. If a parent is concerned about a specific incident, they are encouraged to notify their local police department or Wylie ISD’s Director of Safety & Security.

DAWN SHALLOW (6/20/22)

“How do you justify Wylie ISD having 2300 employees plus, and yet only 50 percent of those employees are teachers? It’s all about the education right? But the other 50 percent is administrative and support staff.”

Every employee in Wylie ISD plays a crucial and essential role in our district and the education we provide our students. Many roles support teachers so they can focus on what’s most important – the students in their classrooms. The district objects to any insinuation that administrators and support staff do not contribute to the educational experiences students receive in Wylie ISD.

For transparency purposes, the employee breakdown (as of 6/23/22) is as follows:

• 1196 teachers
• 56 campus administrators
• 39 district administrators
• 77 professional campus support (counselors, nurses, librarians)
• 305 instructional paraprofessionals
• 132.5 clerical paraprofessionals
• 34 other paraprofessionals (campus technicians)
• 133 district professionals (83 are special education specialists; 28 are learning specialists who spend the majority of time on campuses)
• 527 auxiliary staff (maintenance, student nutrition, transportation)

“What specific cuts have you asked the various departments to make? Did you ask them to cut 10 percent off each department or did you even ask at all?”

Wylie ISD is identified as a fast-growth district. A budget goal is to ensure we staff for that growth. It is standard for districts with increasing enrollment to add personnel and other costs to meet the needs of students. Each budget cycle, we evaluate the entire budget to make sure we are meeting the needs of our students and staff.

“How do you justify spending $25,000 to send all 7 of us, Dr. Vinson. Dr. Spicer to San Diego for five days, staying in a $300-a-night hotel rooms with all expenses paid. Did you cut that from the budget for next year?”

The district budgets for school board training. It is determined at a later date what training board members will attend. The board attended this training from Friday, April 1 through Monday, April 4, and the board stayed in a district-paid hotel for three nights.

“How do you justify paying our superintendent of only 20 schools the same salary as the Chicago superintendent who has 600 plus schools?”

The Chicago Public Schools Chief Executive Officer (Superintendent) has a $340,000 base salary. Wylie ISD’s superintendent has a $272,850 base salary comparable to other superintendents in Region 10 and North Texas.

“How do you justify cutting the budget when it comes to our children’s safety and security?”

The district did not cut the safety and security budget.

“How do you justify an operating budget that spends thousands a month on staff breakfast, lunch, and eating out locally in Wylie?”

Maintaining staff morale is an objective for leaders in our district. Careful consideration is given to each purchase and expenditure made in Wylie ISD.

ALEKSANDRA ROLFSON (6/20/22)

“Speaking of the bank statements, I don’t think it’s right to send redacted copies when unredacted copy was asked for. Secondly, the ISD charged the person $18 for unredacting something they redacted the first time with a bunch of sticky notes.”

Ms. Rolfson was not the requestor of the referenced public information request. The district redacted the statements because the requestor did not request that information – the district fulfilled the request as it was written. For transparency purposes, below is the original request from Ms. Dawn Shallow. Additionally, Texas Government Code Sec. 552.261 allows government entities to charge requestors.

Please send me information on the following:

• All names of WISD employees who attended the NSBA conference.
• All hotel information of each person who attended the NSBA conference. I.e. the invoices, reimbursement statements and/or credit card statements. I want to see individual and totals spent on each person’s 5 day stay in San Diego.
• Expense statements/reimbursements for the last 6 months for:
  • David Vinson
  • Kim Spicer
  • Casey Whittle
  • Scott Winn
  • John Roderick
  • April Cunningham
  • Jessica Branch
  • Reggie Bibbs

Thank you,
Dawn Shallow

“Student transportation proposed budget is .73% less than last year. How is that going to work if the fuel is rising and fleet is rising? Did you ask that question?”

As discussed in previous board meetings and workshops, the capital expenditure for new buses was removed from this upcoming year’s budget. Yes, fuel costs are rising but not purchasing new buses offsets those costs.

“Where is the 3 percent cut in security coming from?”

The district did not cut the safety and security budget.

“Dr. Vinson said there’s not going to be any new programs proposed. I listened to all the workshops today. I had 10 hours at work to listen to all that. There’s not going to be any new programs coming up as adopted under the new budget. One of the things you can cut is the D&I program. I don’t even know why it’s there. That’s $168K a year there. Last year out of $168K, I got the expense report, over $2,000 spent on T-shirts and $200 in sunglasses. I am asking the board for the second time to reevaluate the D&I program because it was misrepresented in numbers when it was said that 10 percent of students feel like they don’t belong, only three of them don’t belong.”

At this time, there are not any new programs under consideration. However, Dr. Vinson did not state that there would be no new programs proposed. Additionally, the majority of the D&I budget is for personnel. The individual in charge of D&I serves in the Human Resources department and fulfills numerous human resources-related duties such as employee relations, investigations, and more. The T-shirt and sunglasses were purchased for a unity event.

The district has corresponded with Ms. Rolfson several times since September 2021 regarding the D&I program and the student connectedness survey results. Wylie ISD does not have plans to eliminate the D&I program.

JEFFREY KEECH (6/20/22)

“The board voted to spend a million or so dollars on Chromebooks for first through third graders. The vote was 7-0 in favor, and I don’t recall anyone questioning the current or future costs or the validity or need for first graders to have their own Chromebooks in school.”

The district did not purchase Chromebooks for first through third graders. The district purchased Chromebooks for third- and fourth-grade classrooms to ensure students are prepared for online state testing. This information was covered during the presentation to the board, and board members received information regarding the Chromebooks in their weekly informational newsletter.

“From July 2021 to April 2022, the school district spent $6,300 on room charges for what I think was 28 nights at the Kalahari Resort in Round Rock. Now I know that’s only $6,300 out of an ISD budget of $200-something million, but still, it’s a waterpark. After all the remote learning for the past years that have gone on in schools across America, was it necessary to go there? Could stuff have been learned remotely?”

The Kalahari Resort & Conference Center in Round Rock hosted several education-based conferences this past year, including the Texas Assessment Conference and the Texas School Public Relations Association Conference. Employees attended these conferences for professional development. While in the past conferences have been offered remotely, many reputable professional development conferences are now in-person events only.

JEFFREY KEECH (5/16/2022)

“...So in summary, there were 25 teachers in the school and nine full-time staff members that were not dedicated classroom teachers, so 74% of the school was a dedicated classroom teacher [regarding Mr. Keech’s former middle school, grades 3-8]. I went online and I looked up Groves staffing for comparison. There are six kindergarten teachers, six first-grade teachers, six second [grade teachers], six third [grade teachers], and seven fourth-grade teachers. There’s also four front office staff–the principal, the assistant principal, the secretary, and a registrar – there’s two staff members listed as therapists, there’s 11 staff members on the special ed team, there are two staff members listed as ELL aides, four staff members listed as Dual Language teachers, two staff members listed as music/PE teachers, one library specialist, one nurse, one counselor, one Title 1 facilities teacher. Also, there are eight staff members listed as some other type of aide. So in summary, at Groves, there are 31 dedicated classroom teachers and 37 support staff. So that means 45% of the school staff is a dedicated classroom teacher... Schools exist to educate students. That’s all. This drop I mentioned from 74% of the school staff when I went to school to 45% of the school staff now comprising dedicated classroom teachers as opposed to some other form of administrator… it is a sign of growing school bureaucracies and honestly, out-of-control budgets.”

Every member of the Groves Elementary staff plays a valuable role in the education of children, as does every member of the Wylie ISD family. The district takes exception to any suggestion that aides, therapists and other positions do not contribute to a student’s education. Many support staff are in the classroom, right alongside our teachers, each and every day.

The dynamics of school operations today have changed. We recognize staffing numbers have changed as years have progressed, as have the needs of students and families, as well as the laws associated with school districts. Wylie ISD exists to educate and serve every student who resides in our district and wants to attend our schools.

The percentages provided by Mr. Keech are not accurate. From the Texas Education Agency’s 2020-21 Texas Academic Performance Report for Groves Elementary:

• 66.1% teachers
• 23.5% educational aides
• 5.6% professional support
• 4.7% school leadership

We are proud that a majority of our dollars are directed toward the classroom and the support of learning and teaching.

MICHAEL SCHWERIN (5/16/2022)

“For the last year plus, we haven’t been considered as partners. In fact, we have been considered as enemies. And that shouldn’t be what it is. We are all here together, and we have one thing, like the gentleman said at the presentation, that we are here to ensure the future of our children and the future of our community and entrusting our taxpayer dollars. We want to work with you and we want to work together, but when you call us enemies and terrorists and support groups that call us terrorists, then it’s not a productive relationship and we can’t work together.”

Wylie ISD has not referred to nor considered any of our stakeholders “enemies” or “terrorists.” The district welcomes input from stakeholders and communicates daily with parents and community members. Administration and trustees have also corresponded with Mr. Schwerin several times over the past year via email, phone, and an in-person meeting.

Our parents are our partners. Parents entrust us with their most precious gift—their children—and we greatly value and appreciate their support and assistance as we strive to provide our students with the best educational experience possible. Strong schools and strong communities go hand-in-hand, and our success is due to the partnership and shared values with our stakeholders.

“There was one thing that became glaring that I noticed at the meeting. That we are not subject to recapture, so we do not have funds that are going to the state, so we actually could look at doing the no-new-revenue rate. I appreciate that you did lower the rate, you’re looking at lowering the rate but not going down to a no-new-revenue rate is a concern, and it can be done. That’s what we do as administrators, as people who run budgets, is looking at what we can do to lower the rate, lower the expenses that we do. Especially when you look at the previous meeting and propose $10 million in new expenditures but refuse to look at where we can offset that with cuts.”

District administration has spent the spring developing a budget for 2022-23, finding ways to reduce expenditures while still accommodating for expected growth and without negatively impacting students or programs. We are proud to offer exceptional academics and robust programs and experiences that secure Wylie ISD’s place as a premier school district. Through conservative budgeting, the district strives to propose a budget and a tax rate that meets the needs of our students and community. Due to the projected growth of property values, early estimates for the 2022-23 tax rate indicate a possible reduction of $0.0619.

“We brought several issues forward this year, and nothing has been done. Have you looked at the books that were read during the February board meeting? No.”

The book read at the January 2022 board meeting, The Bluest Eyes, was removed from Wylie ISD shelves in Fall 2021. The district will always look into issues brought to its attention.

DAWN SHALLOW (05/16/2022)

“We’ve heard a lot tonight about community revenue, talking about how much you can bring into the school. Well, let’s talk about how much you can cut from the school. How much can you cut from expenditures? How much can you cut from going to a conference and spending $18,000? Well, let me tell you, the corporate world doesn’t send seven people to a conference. They send one or two and they have that person go and bring the information back. That’s economical. But no, we send all seven. We send the whole department."

The district’s number one goal is to be good stewards of taxpayer dollars. The Wylie ISD Board of Trustees is forward-thinking, looking ahead to the future and ensuring the decisions made today are sustainable and benefit the students of Wylie ISD. It’s also important to note that 84% of the district’s operating budget goes toward payroll expenses with nearly 60% spent directly on teachers in the classroom.

Long-term financial stability is among the board’s top priorities, and every budget cycle, the district looks at where it can save tax dollars, such as renegotiating insurance rates or energy contracts.

Regarding the NSBA conference: Trustees attended the NSBA conference to receive continuing education credits. The State of Texas requires school board members to receive annual training hours from authorized providers, and continuing education requirements are established through various statutes:

• Texas Education Code,
• §11.159;
• 19 Texas Administrative Code 61.1;
• Texas Government Code,
• §§ 551.005,
• 552.012, and
• 2054.5191

Each trustee obtained continuing education hours at the conference and fulfilled their annual requirement.

MICHAEL SCHWERIN (03/21/2022)

“We continue to increase the taxes and increase our tax rate bills. Not lowering it to match the inflationary rate of our property values. In fact, while we were sitting here, I did a quick calculation. Our 2018-2019 school year budget was $171M and this year, the current budget is $214M. That’s an increase of $43M, about a 25 percent growth. Our attendance rate during that same time went from 16,527 to 18,336 this year. That’s an increase of 1800 students, which is about a 10.9 percent growth. So we’re increasing students by 10 percent, but yet we’re increasing our budget by 25 percent. That isn’t what I call frugal."

Unfortunately, taxpayers are paying more in taxes due to increasing property values. However, Wylie ISD has lowered the M&O and overall tax rate each year since 2018-19.

• In 2018-19, the M&O rate was $1.17; for 2021-22, it is $0.9898.
• In 2018-19, the overall tax rate was $1.64; for 2021-22, it is $1.4598.

Yes, the district’s budget has increased, mostly accounting for the rapid growth in student enrollment and ensuring adequate staffing. It is important to note that increasing enrollment also means growth in other areas, such as special education and English language learners. Growth in these populations often requires additional staff and resources to ensure student needs are met. Staff salaries have also increased since 2018-19, as has the cost of benefits. In recent years, the Texas Legislature has passed numerous bills that have directly impacted public school district operations, such as expanded safety and security requirements. The school board and district are committed to ensuring students receive the best educational experience possible while also taking a conservative approach to spending.

“I appreciate your questions and your concerns during the budget presentation and budget workshop, but I thought it was quite interesting to see that one focus was left out during the budget workshop questions. Not a one time was there ever a consideration for the taxpayers, for myself as a taxpayer, for every other taxpayer in this organization.”

As homeowners and taxpayers themselves, the Wylie ISD Board of Trustees absolutely considers taxpayers when adopting the district’s budget and tax rate. Trustees remain committed to being good stewards of taxpayer dollars. They take their fiduciary responsibility very seriously. This includes asking questions and staying informed throughout the budget process, as they recognize the long-term impact their decisions may have on the school district and its future.

The district will host another budget workshop on Monday, May 16, presented by Dr. Mike Moses and David Thompson. The workshop will focus on funding and taxes, including House Bill 3, tax rates and compression, new legislation, and more.

JESSICA FOURRIER (03/21/2022)

“I’ve reached out to all of you on multiple occasions, I helped vote for some of you to get y’all into the seats that you are in, and yet, I can’t even get responses from you. You blame it on, ‘well everybody can’t talk to each other at the same time because there are all these rules.’ Even if I email one of you, you don’t email me back, or it’s some generic, ‘thanks for your email, we’ll get back to you soon,’ But you don’t.”

Trustees welcome emails from the public; however, some questions or concerns are best suited for the district to answer. Trustees will share these questions or concerns with the superintendent, who will either respond or direct the appropriate staff member to respond. The school board and district strive to provide community members with factual information from those who know how best to answer the questions or address concerns.

District administration has responded to several emails from Mrs. Jessica Fourrier, addressing questions and concerns.

“If you think that’s not happening, look back at the emails I’ve sent or my husband has sent, or the other parents that are concerned have sent, and it’s very easy to see that there are no responses. If I’m getting a response from the lawyer, don’t even bother because he doesn’t know what’s going on and his responses are stupid.”

District administration has responded to several emails from Mrs. Jessica Fourrier and her husband, addressing questions and concerns. Questions in her two most recent emails were addressed by legal counsel, as district administration had already several times answered those questions to the best of their ability.

“I’ve gone to a pillar [D&I] meeting. I missed the last one, I wanted to go to that too. I don’t really see what the Diversity & Inclusion program… I still don’t get what we’re trying to do with that. It seems like a waste of money. And if we’re trying to cut money, then that should be cut out. Just forget about it because it’s not doing anything.”

Wylie ISD restructured the D&I program at the end of the 2020-21 school year. This school year, the district began holding monthly meetings with the D&I Stakeholder Group members and other interested community members. Through these small group collaborations, the district receives feedback on many topics, including how Wylie ISD can continue to improve organizational practices. The program's overall goals are to ensure students feel a sense of belonging in our schools and equip staff with how to best serve and meet the needs of the growing school community. Hearing the voices and perspectives from parents and the community this school year is the first step.

“Then why can’t you be more like the [local] superintendent who has gone against the liberal parents, the ones that want lesbian and crazy books in the library, sexual books? They cut it out, got rid of them.”

If an individual chooses to challenge an instructional resource, they are encouraged to follow Board Policy EF (LOCAL), which outlines the process for the reconsideration of instructional resources. It’s important to note, the district cannot remove and deny students access to books simply because an individual disagrees with the ideas the materials may contain. However, Wylie ISD will continue to review books brought to its attention and determine their educational suitability.

JILL PALMER (02/28/2022)

“...In reading through the policy, it seems that the superintendent actually reports to the Board of Trustees. Yet the current behaviors and authoritative attitude from the said superintendent, it seems the Board of Trustees reports into you [the superintendent].”

Texas public school superintendents report directly to the Board of Trustees. The Wylie ISD Board of Trustees oversees the management of the district, and Dr. Vinson ensures the board’s goals, vision, and policies are carried out.

MICHAEL SCHWERIN (02/28/2022)

“As you’re going through the budgeting cycle this year, looking at the effective tax rate, the M&O rate, and looking at how we can do that [adopt an effective tax rate]...the City of Wylie did it with their funds [without affecting their services]. They’ve actually had an effective tax rate for many years, and it’s been successful. And I would encourage you to do that. And maybe then we can look at tackling the over $446 billion this school district has in debt, and that was as of 2019."

This comment stated that the district has $446 billion in bond debt. Following the voter-approved bond passed in 2019 to deal with the district’s fast growth, the total debt to date is actually $435 million.

Please know that the Wylie ISD Board of Trustees is committed to paying down our debt as quickly as possible through conservative financial management.

The district will hold budget workshops from now until the budget is adopted in June 2022. Additionally, once certified values are received from the Collin County Appraisal District, the district will move forward with adopting a tax rate in August 2022. More information can be found on wylieisd.net/schoolboard.

Community members may also find an overview of school finance here and here, and more information here.

Important information from the Texas Comptroller’s office regarding the no-new-revenue tax rate (formerly known as the effective tax rate): The no-new-revenue tax rate enables the public to evaluate the relationship between taxes for the prior year and for the current year, based on a tax rate that would produce the same amount of taxes applied to the same properties taxed in both years. Although the actual calculation is more complicated, a taxing unit's no-new-revenue tax rate generally equal to the last year's taxes divided by the current taxable value of properties that were also on the tax roll last year. The resulting tax rate, used for comparison only, shows the relation between the last year's revenue and the current year's values.

RANDI JACKSON (02/28/2022)

“Only local sources were used for the payment on the debt this year of just over $37 million. I don’t know any particular laws or regulations regarding what sources of funding are available or can be used to pay down debt but very interested to learn if anybody wants to reach out to me about that.”

Local Source/Funding:One portion of a school district’s tax rate is its Interest & Sinking (I&S) rate, which is dedicated to debt service. A vast majority of debt payments will be made using I&S funds.

State Source/Funding: The facilities funding component of the state’s Foundation School Program (FSP) provides two opportunities for state assistance for a district’s debt service – the Instructional Facilities Allotment (IFA) and the Existing Debt Allotment (EDA). The facilities funding component calculation is tied to a district’s I&S rate. Districts must apply for the IFA. The TEA determines any EDA funding provided to districts.

Learn More: Wylie ISD is proud to offer CLAAS (Creating Leaders and Advocates for Schools). This year-long program has been offered each school year since 2011-12. The program’s primary focus is to teach parents and community members about the structure and operations of Wylie ISD, including school finance. Applications open the summer before each school year. More information can be found here.

“I did notice we paid over $5 million down on the debt this year than last year but was there any increase in the total debt from last year? If so, how much? I know it’s highly unlikely, growing at the rate that we are, that we can be debt-free. But I think I can speak for all of us that we want our district to be financially responsible and less debt is better. So, is there a way to manage the growth without perpetually increasing the debt?”

Yes, the district used additional funds generated from property taxes in 2021-22 to execute a cash defeasance of outstanding debt. No, there was no increase in the total debt from last year. School districts can only accrue debt through voter-approved bonds. Wylie ISD has not issued new debt since the last bond referendum passed in 2019. Fast-growth school districts, such as Wylie ISD, often take on additional debt through voter-approved bond referendums to have the funds available to renovate facilities or build new schools. The district and school board are committed to fiscal responsibility and prudently managing outstanding debt. The school board also remains committed to paying down this debt as quickly as possible through conservative and intentional approaches as to not pass the debt burden along to future generations.

“Of the $170 million in the general fund, the local sources of revenue accounted for only 47.3 percent of the funding, which means the combined state and federal sources of revenue account for 52.7 percent of the funding. Only 1 percent of that is from federal sources, most is from the state. I’m not here to say that there is anything wrong with this breakdown, I am however wanting to shed some light for those in attendance or listening on live-stream that this might be a reason it feels like we are sometimes shouting into a void. It makes a bit more sense why being in compliance with the TEKS is more important than addressing our concerns in a prompt and meaningful manner. It begins to make sense why meeting state testing benchmarks is proclaimed from the highest rooftops, and yet when it comes to subversive CRT, bullying, drugs and sex on campus, employees not following IEPs, and inappropriate books on library shelves, these things are swept under the rug, kept quiet or not addressed publicly for everybody to know.”

All Texas public school districts follow the same state funding formulas. Funding is based on various factors within each individual district, such as enrollment, student characteristics, property values, etc. All Texas school districts are required to follow the curriculum standards adopted by the State Board of Education. The SBOE is comprised of 15 members who are elected by voters.

Any violations of the law or district policy are taken very seriously and are addressed accordingly. In accordance with privacy laws, personnel and student matters will not be discussed publicly. Additionally, if parents and students have concerns or are aware of specific incidents on campus, they are encouraged to notify their campus administrator.

“When a $1M for third-grade Chromebooks, after a brief presentation and a few half-hearted questions, gets pushed through, the state testing does seem to be more important. What about 504 or other special-needs children that test better on paper? Infrastructure development so that we can handle more bandwidth and increase the devices for students is all well and good but what effect on the internet service provider bill will there be, if any, for the additional bandwidth requirement for all these new devices? What about the long-term viability of the devices themselves? What is the expected lifespan of these devices? What about repairs or will there be cases to prevent damage? Will we need to hire additional IT personnel to manage and set up the maintenance of these devices? Or will this be something that the teachers and campus faculty will be expected to take on? If new hires are needed, how many and what are the resources that will be for that?”

The Chromebooks were purchased due to the state moving toward online testing for STAAR. These devices will assist students in preparing for that type of testing method and will be the device they test on. It is also important to note that the state requires students to test simultaneously, so an option such as rotating students through computer labs would not be possible.

Students who need accommodations due to disabilities or other extenuating circumstances will receive the necessary accommodations.

The school district has a contract with an internet service provider and the infrastructure in place to adequately support bandwidth needs. The district addressed future infrastructure needs in its 2013-2016 technology plan.

As shared in the January board presentation, these new devices will be absorbed into the four-year continuous refresh cycle.

Chromebook FAQs, including repair information, can be found here.

Additional IT personnel are not needed for these Chromebooks, and teachers and non-technology staff will not maintain these devices.

JARRETT ERWIN (01/24/2022)

“Why does this continue to happen [have meetings ‘behind closed doors and away from public meetings’]?”

The board does not hold private meetings behind closed doors, except for closed sessions, where legally-allowed topics such as personnel matters, real estate, consultation with legal counsel take place and no action or vote is taken. The district takes any accusation that it is violating Texas law very seriously and unequivocally denies this allegation.

“Why does the school board refuse to put important items that affect all of us on the agenda and discuss them in an open, honest, and transparent manner?”

Every month, numerous items are placed on the agenda. The board and district make concerted efforts to ensure important matters are discussed at regularly scheduled meetings.

“Why are all concerns directed to individual, one-on-one meetings? Is it so the answers can be tailored to the person asking the questions?”

One-on-one meetings allow each individual’s questions and perspectives to be heard.

“Why will the answers to our questions not be discussed openly?”

This Q&A page was created following the November 2021 board meeting to address questions raised during public forum. All stakeholders have access to this webpage.

JENNIFER BRADLEY (01/24/2022)

“Here we are nine months later and still asking 'what has been accomplished with D&I?' You are fixated on D&I working while you are closing a blind eye to everything else around you that is happening. What has D&I accomplished? Well, let me tell you what it has accomplished. Students are vaping illegal substances in the bathrooms. Students are having sex in the bathroom stalls. Students are getting into more fights. Students are reading books about oral sex and molestation. Students are doing whatever TikTok tells them to do without repercussions or remorse. You can continue to choose to ignore facts, but it doesn’t mean they won’t still exist! Let’s redirect the $200K being wasted on D&I and put that back into teaching our kids to respect one another, quit the bullying, and quit the fighting. Let's teach our kids about peer pressure and how to say “NO”. Let’s remove the sexually explicit books from the high school libraries – the ones that have been on the American Library Association’s top ten lists for most challenged books, such as Kite Runner and Me, Earl, and the Dying Girl. Let’s teach our kids the long-term effects of vaping and what it will do to their lungs, overall health, and how it affects those they use it around. Let’s get home economics back into the school and teach our kids how to survive in the real world. Let’s teach our kids how to manage their finances, how to get help for grants to further their education instead of getting into student debt. Let’s focus on core subjects and not programs focused on feelings. Our children should not be focused on safety when using the school bathroom. It is sad when innocent students are being punished by the reckless behavior of others. Maybe we can take some of the unused (or perhaps, misused) D&I money that is not being used and hire monitors for the bathrooms?”

There is zero evidence the district’s D&I program has led to vaping, sex, reading books about sex, fights, and/or poor digital citizenship. The program does not involve students.

VAPING: Unfortunately, vaping is a reality schools and districts face today. Our district does its best to combat it, and there are serious consequences for students caught vaping. Junior high and high school families received vaping information and resources via their campus newsletter earlier this school year. The information provided shared the adverse effects of vaping and encouraged parents to have conversations with their children about the dangers of vaping.

SEXUAL ACTIVITY: District administrators looked into Ms. Jennifer Bradley’s claims about sexual activity taking place in school bathrooms. The Student Services department visited with principals, and there have been zero submitted reports of sex on campus. If families know about a specific incident, we ask them to notify their campus principal so the claim may be investigated.

BOOKS: The district is reviewing books brought to its attention. Parents are encouraged to follow Board Policy EF(LOCAL), which outlines the process for the reconsideration of instructional resources. They may also request that their child not check out certain books. A unique feature our district offers that many parents utilize and appreciate – parents have the ability to see any book their child checks out from the library via the Wylie ISD mobile app. Library Media Services FAQ.

COURSES & CURRICULUM: Wylie ISD is proud to offer a robust course offering for high school students. Courses related to personal finance and home economics include, but are not limited to, Personal Financial Literacy, Money Matters, Accounting, Human Development, and Culinary Arts. The full course guide may be found here.

“Why have 17 teachers left the district? Is it because administration doesn’t hold teachers accountable (for example the teachers that push their personal political agendas onto our children while the district looks the other way? Remember the national controversy when one of our very own teachers at Cooper compared the police to the KKK – the administration condoned it by doing nothing…remember when a McMillan junior high teacher signed a pledge to sneak CRT into her classroom? Is it because there is no leadership from administration to ensure problem students are removed? We have a school system that pushes to accept everything, provides safe spaces and makes excuses and condones bad behavior. Is it because these teachers wanted to protect the students that wanted to learn?”

The district cannot share specific information about resignations. Every year employees resign for a multitude of reasons. Some reasons given this school year include moving, a new opportunity, family matters, and health issues. The district has not received any resignations due to the reasons listed by Ms. Jennifer Bradley.

“When will the school board start attending the D&I pillar meetings and holding the administration accountable about putting these meetings online?”

A board member attended the most recent pillar meeting in December. Meeting dates, agendas, and notes have been posted on the D&I webpage for several months.

MICHELLE GILLIAM (01/24/2022)

“Will you please post the answers to these on the school board page?”

This Q&A page was created following the November 2021 board meeting to address questions raised during public forum. All stakeholders have access to this webpage.

“When are you going to put monitors in the bathrooms at schools so children can once again not feel awkward walking in on someone vaping marijuana or having sex in the stalls?”

Campus staff routinely monitor bathrooms. If your child is experiencing issues, please report these incidents to the campus principal as soon as possible.

“How will April Cunningham, Director of Communications, improve communication to the parents and taxpayers?”

The district regularly communicates via campus and community newsletters, social media, the website, and family email updates. If you have suggestions for improving communication to families, please let us know.

“When will the school board vote to update policies that allow pornographic material? Where has the decency gone? Are you even aware of the sexually explicit books in our high school libraries?”

The district does not have nor is aware of any policy that allows pornographic material. The district continues to review books that have been brought to its attention.

“When will an anti-bullying campaign become high priority again?”

The district does not tolerate bullying and takes it very seriously. Anti-bullying is a priority. The district has a webpage dedicated to anti-bullying and secondary campuses show students anti-bullying videos. It is also part of our Unity Day curriculum.

“When will the superintendent start meeting with groups of parents instead of individuals?”

Dr. Vinson will continue to meet individually with parents and community members to hear any concerns they may have and to ensure their perspective is considered.

“When are you going to scrap this whole D&I program? When will it be openly discussed? Why are you, the school board, allowing this political program to be pushed out by the Superintendent? The community does NOT want a program that characterizes students by their race. Where is the transparency?”

A D&I program update was provided at the Aug. 16, 2021 Board Meeting. The district does not have an update to provide at this time. The program does not involve students, and the district does not have plans to remove the program.

“When will our time for public speaking return to 5 minutes?”

In accordance with board policy and this board’s operating procedures, public forum is three minutes.

“When will important topics like these and others we have brought up be added to the agenda so the board can openly discuss?”

Items will be added to the agenda when deemed necessary.

“When will the board start sharing their personal opinions instead of remaining silent?”

Board members often share their thoughts and opinions on different matters. However, school boards are nonpartisan and trustees will not engage in political matters. Instead, trustees remain focused on the education and well-being of students. Further, the board’s policy has been to direct inquiries to those who can best provide a factual answer.

“Do you support the Texas Association of School Boards?”

Every school board in Texas is a member of TASB, and all 1,024 school boards in Texas have been active members for more than 30 continuous years.

“When is the district going to address having 200-300 high school students being stuck in the cafeteria during class time teaching themselves with one teacher because they have no classroom teachers or subs?”

This issue was addressed. Due to staff shortages in January, Wylie High School moved a couple of classes to the cafeteria where they were monitored by a few staff members. Campus administrators let district administration know about the issue, and the district sent additional staff to assist with the staff shortage. This is no longer an issue.

ALEKSANDRA ROLFSON (01/24/2022)

“How is Wylie ISD measuring D&I’s effectiveness if there are no follow-up surveys?”

At this time, the district is focused on gathering and listening to the feedback provided by parents and community members at the stakeholder group meetings that are being held throughout this school year.

“When was the last time you held Mr. Vinson and Wylie ISD accountable? Example: I am president of the Riverchase gated HOA here in Wylie. On November 2, the transportation coordinator reached out to us asking for more remotes to get in our gates. Here we are January 24, bus drivers still don’t have remotes. Do any of you know anything about that? I highly doubt it.”

This question is in reference to the district purchasing remote openers for a gated community within the Wylie ISD. These remotes allow district buses to enter the neighborhood. After following proper district purchasing procedures, the payment for the remotes was processed and mailed to Spectrum Management (the Riverchase HOA management company) on January 13, 2022. The district followed up on Jan. 19, and Spectrum Management said they would mail the remotes. The district received the remotes on Jan. 31. For transparency purposes, the following email was sent to the Riverchase HOA on Jan. 26: