By: Tom Behrens
Reports and interviews from across the Katy area provide key information on candidates running for Katy ISD school trustee positions. I share these to help Katy voters stay informed.
Mary Ellen Cuzela
Mary Ellen Cuzela has lived in the district for 23 years and is a Katy ISD substitute teacher.
Shana Peterson
Shana Peterson has lived in the district for 17 years and is retired.
Each candidate responded to four questions.
Question 1: What will be your top two priorities if elected to the Katy ISD Board of Trustees?
Mary Ellen Cuzela
Discipline and Teacher Retention…
In speaking with teachers and parents across the district, it is clear that discipline is a major concern. Cuzela wants Katy ISD’s discipline policy consistently applied at all campuses and to back up teachers when disruptive students are in the classroom. Teachers should not have to repeatedly waste valuable classroom time because a few students are disruptive. Students in the class should not lose valuable learning time because of a few students. With consistent discipline comes consistent teaching and learning. Teachers get to do the job they love to do, and student outcomes improve.
With the statewide teacher shortage, Katy ISD needs to work to attract and retain great teachers. Teachers are essential to the success of a school district. They rarely enter the teaching profession because of pay. They become teachers because they love to teach. Ensuring their job satisfaction is critical. Decreasing their administrative workload, adhering to classroom size limits, and backing them up with a consistently enforced discipline policy are some ideas to help retain and attract great teachers.
With high inflation combined with the teacher shortage, teacher pay is now also critical. Katy ISD teachers need to be paid comparable to surrounding districts and a bit more if we want to attract and retain great teachers.
Shana Peterson
Peterson said her attention would be focusing on supporting and retaining current teachers and school staff, while providing an environment that attracts highly qualified staff. These individuals have the most direct impact on our students. We need to prioritize ways to reduce workloads and provide resources, so that teachers can focus on what they do best, teach.
Another top priority is the physical and emotional well-being of Katy students. With safety and mental health issues on the rise, we need to focus on the emotional and social well-being of our students. When students are emotionally healthy, they experience fewer disciplinary incidents and can concentrate better on academics. Mental health support for students and faculty needs to be a priority.
Question 2: Why do you want to be on the school board?
Mary Ellen Cuzela
Keep the focus on academic excellence and the basics of education, stand with parents and teachers, protect students and safeguard the learning environment and provide leadership and financial oversight.
Parents are the first and primary educators of their children. Parental authority should be respected. Teachers are the front line. They should be heard and equipped to do the job they love to do. No child should be sexualized or indoctrinated, especially at school.
She will work together with the board to lead the district to get ahead of problems before they get out of hand. She will steward taxpayer dollars, ensuring they are invested wisely in the classroom and that district operations run lean.
Shana Peterson
“This is an opportunity for me to give back and serve my community using my knowledge and skill set.” She believes her experience in education would be an asset to the board, sharing and developing goals and expectations for the district.
Question 3: What experiences or life events have prepared you to be a school board member?
Mary Ellen Cuzela
“I have current classroom experience as an active substitute teacher in all different parts of Katy ISD. I have a unique perspective on how different administrations run schools and how classrooms operate.”
She has actively participated at school board meetings for the past 3 years advocating for parents’ authority over their own children, the protection of students from sexualization and indoctrination, for online testing / learning concerns and for teacher and bus driver job satisfaction and pay. She has working relationships with current school board members and teachers. “I am courageous and passionate about why I’m running for Katy ISD School Board.”
Shana Peterson
“I have recently retired from the Texas public school system after 31 years of service, 17 of those years right here in Katy ISD, spending time in over 80% of the schools within the district.”
She has teaching experience in both general and special education and held leadership roles in the departments of dyslexia and special education. The majority of her career was working as an educational diagnostician to determine why students were struggling to learn and ways to help them overcome these challenges. She participated in helping develop the special education operating guidelines, various training documents, and served on campus advisory boards.
Question 4: Is there anything else you’d like the voters to know about you?
Mary Ellen Cuzela
“I also bring financial acumen and analytical skills to the board. I have a BBA in Finance and a BA in Spanish from the University of Houston. I worked as a software and technology consultant for eight years at Accenture. I am fluent in Spanish.
“Our three children have grown up in Katy ISD schools for their entire education … elementary, junior high, and high school. I have been a parent volunteer in Katy ISD schools for over 14 years (in the classroom, Junior Achievement, International Festivals, Athletics & Fine Arts). I am a 5th generation Texan, a native Houstonian, and a long-time resident of Katy.”
Shana Peterson
“My husband and I chose to raise our children in Katy because of the high quality of education Katy ISD could provide. Our children all graduated from Katy ISD ready and prepared for the future.
“My sole goal is to join together with the board, parents, community members, and district staff to continue providing the high level of education that Katy is recognized for.
“I have the experience, time, and dedication needed for this position. I’m looking forward to the opportunity to serve the community in this capacity.”
Election day is Saturday, May 6, 2023. Early voting begins April 24 and runs through May 2. Early voting locations include Leonard Merrell Center, 6301 S. Stadium Lane, Katy; Cinco Ranch High School, 23440 Cinco Ranch Blvd., Katy; James E. Taylor High School, 20700 Kingsland Blvd., Katy; and Seven Lakes High School, 9251 S. Fry Road, Katy.
