‘Let these people vote.’ Tarrant County commissioner speaks out on Keller ISD split
Speaking during a lengthy public comment section at the Jan. 30 meeting of the Keller school board, Tarrant County Precinct 2 Commissioner Alisa Simmons expressed her opposition to a proposal to split the district.
“Let these people vote,” Simmons said, eliciting a round of applause. “They do not want this district divided. The people are eager to be heard. They are essentially begging you guys for courageous leadership. It’s a lot, but it’s not that hard.”
Precinct 4 Commissioner Manny Ramirez, a Republican, has also previously called for the board to put the split to a vote.
Placed at number 180 in a line of 215, Simmons, a Democrat, waited around three hours for her chance to speak.
Splitting the district without a vote would disrespect the student body, she said, adding it would also “confirm that agendas are at play.”
Speaking to the Star-Telegram after her public comment, Simmons said her jobs is to support whatever the majority of district residents appear to want.
“The majority of the folks in this school district do not want to split this district,” she said.
While the Keller school district is not Precinct 2, which includes Arlington, Kennedale, Dalworthington Gardens, Mansfield, Pantego and part of Grand Prairie, Simmons said she represents all Tarrant County residents.
“I am a county commissioner. I serve every resident in this county,” she said.
What other area elected officials think of proposed split
Simmons is not the only area elected official to express her opinion on the proposal to split Keller ISD.
Republican state Rep. David Lowe of North Richland Hills posted a photo of himself watching the meeting on a TV in his office in Austin to Facebook.
“I appreciate residents in Keller ISD taking time out of their busy week to make their voices heard,” read the post. “I’m proud of my community this evening.”
A staffer from Lowe’s office who attended Thursday’s meeting said the representative plans to submit a bill to clear up the language of the education code that has caused confusion in this process. The bill aims to explicitly require a public referendum on a split no matter how the process is initiated.
Proponents of the split have said that the school board can bypass a public election by initiating a split, or creation of a new district by what the Texas Education Code calls “detachment,” by adopting a resolution.
The code calls for a vote in the case of a detachment being initiated via a petition signed by at least 10% of registered voters in the district, but does not explicitly require one in the case of a resolution.
Lowe told the Star-Telegram earlier this month that district residents should have a say in the process.
“You can’t just split a school district and say these buildings go to this school district and these buildings go to this school district, without having the people who own them have a say,” he said.
Lowe was recently sworn in to represent House District 91, which spans Haltom City, North Richland Hills, Richland Hills, Watauga and part of Fort Worth.
State Rep. Nate Schatzline, a Fort Worth Republican, told the Star-Telegram on Jan. 25 that he could not support a split at that time, saying it could result in lower ratings, discourage people from moving to the new districts and negatively affect property values.
“Look, I’m all about housing being affordable,” he said. “I don’t want it to be affordable because we have a lower rated school district.”
Schatzline represents Texas House District 93, which includes much of the western part of Keller ISD that would be cut out to create the new district.
Tarrant County Precinct 3 Commissioner Matt Krause, a Republican, did not explicitly support or oppose the proposal when he took to social media earlier this month to say the commissioners court does not have the power to block a split.
But Krause, an attorney by profession, said he agrees with the interpretation of the Education Code espoused by those who want the split.
“Personally, as I read the statutes, I do not believe an election must be called if a resolution is adopted by the Board,” he said in a post on X.
More supporters of a split show up to Keller school board meeting
Over 200 speakers lined up to have their say on whether they want to split the district or keep it intact.
Most who spoke told trustees they violated the community’s trust, and that the financial reports showed no evidence why the option to split the district would be an advantage.
Although most pleaded with the board not to split the district, some said they believe a smaller district would lead to better student outcomes.
Nikki Paris, a Keller mother of two district students, said in an interview with the Star-Telegram that she and others who support the split have been painted as “racist” and “KKK” by opponents and the media.
“This is beyond false,” she said.
Paris and others support the split due to a lack of funding and fear school closings if it doesn’t go through. She said a split would allocate more funding per student on the west side and the new district would get more baseline funding.
Board members proposing the split have said it would lead to more per-student funding, but a financial report presented at Thursday’s meeting showed that funding would follow the students, resulting in little to no change.
Paris said that since Keller feeder pattern students represent a quarter of the district’s student body, she and other split supporters are the “little guys” in this situation.
“It’s a David and Goliath situation,” she said.
Lane Arnold also spoke in favor of the split.
“I stand in favor. I believe smaller districts are better equipped to better serve our communities,” he said. “They offer more attention and address academic challenges more effectively.”
But opponent Matt Strong told trustees the plan to split the district “feels like a sham.” He questioned the use of the budget and infrastructure committees which he said are made up of trustees’ political supporters.
“You are shutting out people who want to participate,” he said.
Another Keller school district resident Mike Grover said, “I offer support to the school board. I appreciate you pursuing this.”
But Stephanie Harris criticized trustees for keeping her and others in the dark about the split.
“The saddest thing of all was when a student said to my son I hope they split the district so that I can go to school with all white kids,” she said.
Star-Telegram reporter Eleanor Dearman contributed to this article.
This story was originally published January 30, 2025 at 10:48 PM.
