Keller ISD fights on books, guns at center of board race. Here’s our recommendation | Opinion

Keller ISD dealt with some controversial issues this year — no one knows that better than Bev Dixon, the school board member seeking a third term on the May 6 ballot. Her experience and focus are why we recommend her re-election in Place 5.

In our interview, Dixon, 53, who lives in Forest Lakes, was informed and conversant on what matters in Keller ISD, from student success or book controversies to teachers carrying firearms and how to support them. Since schools reopened following COVID, Dixon said, they’ve lost focus on students, and the kids themselves are still struggling. “We need to get our kids mentally in the classroom,” she told us.

It’s clear she has observed what kids and teachers need, and she suggested other board members do the same due to there being quite a bit of nuances between different campuses.

Dixon, who is president of the Keller Chamber of Commerce, said she has tried to stay nonpartisan but thought that the process the board adopted for dealing with controversial library books “went too far.”

“I was the conservative, but now, I’m not conservative enough,” she said.

Dixon’s opponent, entrepreneur Chris Coker, 38, resides in Hidden Lakes and would bring business acumen to the board. A father of two, Coker says he is dialed in to what parents need from their school board, particularly the acknowledgment that they’ve been heard in meetings.

Coker said he would better represent parents and supported the school board’s rubric on books and a plan along the lines of the one the board adopted to allow trained teachers to carry guns.

Despite some good ideas and obvious zeal, Coker hasn’t engaged enough in school governance and isn’t quite ready for the responsibility of a school board seat.

School board members are elected to three-year terms. Members are elected at-large and represent the entire district.

Early voting starts April 24 and ends May 2. Election day is May 6.