Endorsement: 1 candidate ready for Mansfield school board. Opponent may not be eligible | Opinion

Updated Thursday morning to reflect the Mansfield school board declaring candidate Angel Hidalgo to be ineligible to take office.

Mansfield school district voters have a chance to elect a trustee with a strong head start on the issues the district faces — and to avoid a likely ineligible candidate whose victory could mean a court battle and a new election.

Jandel Crutchfield, a university professor who’ll turn 42 just after the election, has amassed a long record of service to Mansfield schools. She has served on four district committees and the city of Mansfield’s library advisory board. She’s the right choice for the board’s open Place 2 seat.

Her record of involvement gives Crutchfield, who lives in the Legacy High School feeder pattern, a chance to hit the ground running as a trustee. She’s familiar with the trustees and Superintendent Kimberley Cantu. And her background as a professor of social work gives her an understanding of the broad challenges a diverse district faces.

In an interview, she expressed a strong desire to dig deep into student achievement issues in the district. She wants to examine issues at the grade and campus level and push for “continuous improvement.” She identified fifth-grade math and reading as a priority, given the lasting effects of the COVID pandemic.

Her opponent, Angel Hidalgo, is ineligible to take the office, the Mansfield board ruled Thursday. Hidalgo, an instructor at Tarrant County College, does not appear to have registered to vote at an in-district residence six months before the election, as the law sets out. Hidalgo disputes this.

At this point, Hidalgo, who did not respond to repeated requests to join our candidate interview, will remain on the ballot. But if he wins, the board will have to appoint a fill-in and run another election.

Hidalgo is backed by conservative groups; Crutchfield acknowledges that she is a Democrat, having worked as an election judge during the party primary last month. But trustees are a board of directors, and what’s important is judgment, analytical ability and willingness to serve voters and students’ needs. Crutchfield has the clear advantage.

The seat is at-large, so all Mansfield ISD voters can cast a ballot. Early voting starts Monday and is available through April 30. Election Day is May 4. Mansfield board members are elected for three-year terms.

Editor’s note: An earlier version incorrectly described Jandel Crutchfield’s employment. She is a university professor.

This story was originally published April 18, 2024 at 5:28 AM.