GOP’s Brooks garners most votes in race for District 14 State Board of Education

Democratic opponent Tracy Fisher garnered 35.1% of the vote. The incumbent is Republican Sue Melton-Malone, who lost to Brooks in the primary election.

The unofficial results appear to represent a rightward shift for the district on the state board.

The winner of the race will represent school districts in a newly redrawn district map that includes Denton, and central and southern Denton County, in a G-shaped zone that stretches from Wichita Falls to Killeen.

The race reflected heightening national tensions over education, especially over culture war issues such as sex education, book challenges and how much of a say parents have in school curricula. All candidates running for the State Board of Education are facing rising political pressure to approve more charter schools in Texas.

Brooks taught for several years in Maryland and Colorado public schools and chose to home-school her daughters. She’s still a tutor and home-schooler in Frisco. She opposes critical race theory and opposes “comprehensive sex education,” saying the latter promotes high-risk sexual behaviors among teens.

In a visit to Denton, Brooks told retired teachers that while social issues facing Texas classrooms are real, she wants schools to teach basics and to improve elementary school math curricula by selecting a program that includes a textbook.

Fisher is a 40-year Republican who decided to run as a Democrat because she worried the rightward swing of Texas Republicans is attracting fringe candidates to races. Fisher’s children spent a few years in charter schools, but the family returned to Texas public schools because she found public classrooms more rigorous, and she developed a deep confidence in credentialed teachers. She is a trustee on the Coppell ISD school board, a seat she has served in since 2012.

Fisher said she would push for fewer, smarter educational standards for Texas schools, and policies that support teachers — especially teachers who have education degrees and certifications to teach their areas of expertise. Fisher has criticized the way charters schools are opened in Texas. In her candidate interview for the Denton Record-Chronicle, Fisher said charter schools hurt public schools by diverting tax funds meant for public education while enriching charter school property owners who sell properties in high-value areas.

In the Board of Education’s District 12, which includes northern Denton County, incumbent Republican Pam Little received 61.1% of uncanvassed votes. Democrat Alex Cornwallis and Libertarian Christy Mowry received 36% and 2.9%, respectively. Write-in candidate Rosiland Davis received 0.03% of uncanvassed votes, according to the Texas Secretary of State’s Office.