Parents from both schools signed a letter asking Morath to close their campuses<\/a> in an effort to avoid a takeover of the district \u2014\u00a0in which the superintendent and board of trustees would be replaced. But Morath could still decide to close the campuses and appoint a new board, creating uncertainty for elected trustees.<\/p>\n The candidates running for district positions would represent specific areas of the district, while an at-large position represents the district as a whole. The new board would be sworn in as the district has been grappling with lower enrollment, continuous budget challenges that have led to deep cuts, and efforts to bring up academic performance at D and F rated schools.<\/p>\n KUT News asked candidates why they decided to run, their priorities if they were to remain on the board and their plans if a board of managers is appointed by the state. Here\u2019s what they told us.<\/p>\n To see what Austin ISD district you live in, visit the map on the district’s website<\/a>. <\/p>\n District 1<\/p>\n Cheryl Bradley<\/a> <\/p>\n Bradley served as the District 1 trustee from 2002 to early 2015. She said she felt compelled to run for the AISD board again because she felt the district had stepped away from its primary responsibility of educating children.<\/p>\n Bradley said her main priority would be putting children first and making sure schools are not receiving Fs in the accountability system<\/a>. She would like to see the district going back to small classroom sizes with qualified teachers at the front and capable leaders in each campus. She said the district also has to focus on the budget, but never put aside the focus on students.<\/p>\n Amid the possibility of being replaced by a board of managers, Bradley said she hopes the state listens to families in District 1 that have been ignored for years.<\/p>\n \u201cThe district doesn’t listen to our community. If TEA comes in, possibly they may listen \u2014 they might not,\u201d Bradley said. \u201cI’m not saying I want a TEA takeover, but I’m getting ready to act like it’s gonna be the worst thing in the entire world.\u201d<\/p>\n Candace L. Hunter<\/a><\/p>\n Hunter, a former educator, is running for reelection and has been on the board since December of 2022. She said that, despite the challenges AISD has faced in recent years, she has seen a positive trend for African American, emerging bilingual and economically disadvantaged students in the last year. She said her ultimate goal would be to have better academic outcomes for all students, but especially for these populations.<\/p>\n She said one of her priorities would be informing families of the high-stakes changes taking place in public education, but that she would also like to focus on fixing AISD\u2019s finances, since selling properties will not fix the problem in the long run, she said.<\/p>\n Hunter said she would like to try to prevent the appointment of a board of managers. But if that were to be the case, she would continue being an advocate for her community, by keeping a sharp eye on the board’s meeting agenda and helping people speak out.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat I did back in the day before I was elected is I’m basically a watchdog as part of a couple of different groups,\u201d Hunter said.<\/p>\n District 4<\/p>\n Edward M. Bradfield<\/a><\/p>\n Edward M. Bradfield campaign<\/p>\n Edward M. Bradfield<\/p>\n Bradfield said he wanted to run for the District 4 board seat because AISD needs new thinking that can turn the ship around. He said his previous experience advocating for special education makes him the right person to bring new ideas into the district. <\/p>\n He said his priorities would be for AISD to have more clear and direct communication with families about the challenges the district is facing. Bradfield said he understands the budget needs to be balanced, but teachers and staff need more support. He said he would like to standardize academics across the district with individual support for schools that have failing grades.<\/p>\n Bradfield said he has hope that the district could avoid a takeover, but that the worst case scenario would be for the state to appoint a board of managers. He said he would track the district\u2019s improvement to get out of a takeover as quickly as possible.<\/p>\n \u201cI would continue to do what I’m doing, and that is to advocate for the parents and the families in Austin ISD, to make sure that the state knows what we want,\u201d he said. \u201cI will make sure that we get the district [back] as quickly as we can.\u201d<\/p>\n Tricia Mitchell Kim<\/a><\/p>\n Tricia Mitchell Kim campaign<\/p>\n Tricia Mitchell Kim<\/p>\n Mitchell Kim has experience working on quality improvement and runs an outpatient psychiatry practice for adults in Austin. She said she decided to run for the District 4 seat because she has seen improvement take place at AISD, and her multidisciplinary background could bring a fresh perspective for the district to improve in other ways.<\/p>\n Her top priorities would be working on the schools that are below passing rates and scaling back the budget, taking into account changes in enrollment and demographics in the city. Mitchell said she would keep the community engaged in having conversations about public education.<\/p>\n She said that if the board is replaced, she would take a close look at the agenda of every meeting to keep an eye on changes. She would also consider applying to be one of the appointed members of the board. She said that would allow her to bridge a gap between Austinites and the state.<\/p>\n \u201cIf that’s the body that is making decisions about the district and if I could have an opportunity to be engaged in that, that’s something I would at least want to try to do,\u201d Mitchell Kim said. \u201cPeople can surprise me by being reasonable.\u201d<\/p>\n Jessica Neufeld<\/a> <\/p>\n Neufeld said she decided to run because the board could use a lawyer that can understand how to comply with statutes and regulations. She said her experience as a lawyer could help the district implement bonds and look into repurposing recently closed schools. She said her experience as a parent and school advocate will help bring the community together in the event of a takeover.<\/p>\n Neufeld said her top priorities as an AISD trustee would be strengthening community voices, improving transparency and accountability throughout the district and pushing for more academic consistency for all campuses. Neufeld said she wants the district to be able to identify issues early on and have enough time to come up with solutions that include the community\u2019s input.<\/p>\n She said if a board of managers were to be appointed, she would continue the work of a trustee even without the official title.<\/p>\n \u201cAs a trustee, you will [need] to leverage existing relationships and community trust,\u201d she said. \u201cTo put a grassroots effort into doing things like continuing to hold the state accountable, demanding transparency, and also ensuring that the community voice continues to be heard.\u201d<\/p>\n District 6<\/p>\n Sarah Dille<\/a><\/p>\n Dille is a former AISD teacher who now teaches future educators at the University of Texas at Austin. She said she decided to run for the board because she thought her 26 years of education experience would be helpful during the \u201ctumultuous time\u201d AISD is going through.<\/p>\n She said she would prioritize supporting teachers to give students the best classroom experience they can have. Dille said the district needs to work on regaining families\u2019 trust and boosting its enrollment. She said another priority would be focusing on equity issues by making sure all AISD schools are equally strong and underserved populations get the support they need.<\/p>\n Dille said she hopes to help prevent a takeover, but that in the event a new board is appointed, she would be an active listener and would inform families about how to better organize and rally against any policies that don\u2019t align with the values of AISD.<\/p>\n \u201cI do think I’m uniquely qualified to translate what’s happening instructionally in classrooms under a takeover into language that families understand,” she said. \u201cAnd then to also talk about whether or not those practices are research-based best practices for the education of our children.\u201d<\/p>\n Marie Lebron<\/a><\/p>\n Lebron is a community advocate and consultant who said she decided to help the district come up with a clear plan to fix the “convergence of issues\u201d AISD is facing. She said the district needs a solid plan to improve schools with unacceptable ratings.<\/p>\n She said her main priority would be using her training in literacy interventions and the science of reading to develop plans to help the district improve early childhood literacy and secondary literacy. Other priorities would be working on improving special education services, reducing central office spending and making sure campuses are properly funded.<\/p>\n Lebron said that in the case of being replaced by an appointed board of managers, she would continue listening to parents, teachers and staff, as she does now, and uplifting their voices. She said she would also use Fort Worth and Houston independent school districts as examples of what happens during takeovers and try to prevent that from happening at AISD.<\/p>\n \u201cI would also want to work with the folks who are in our district to try to negotiate based on AISD’s values,\u201d Lebron said. \u201cWe want to keep librarians. We want not to have punitive cultures in our classrooms. So how can we work together?\u201d<\/p>\n Alex San Martin<\/a><\/p>\n San Martin said he decided to run because he would bring direct classroom experience and legislative policy experience to the board. San Martin, who currently works as an analyst for the Texas Department of Public Safety, said he has previously worked as a legislative assistant in the Texas Legislature. He has also served on state and local boards, like the State Independent Living Council, and he said his experience gives him a unique understanding of the government systems shaping public education.<\/p>\n He said his priorities would be student achievement, teacher retention, fiscal responsibility and strong support for students with disabilities. San Martin said he would work to make sure teachers are certified and principals have the experience to lead schools. He said he would like to increase teacher pay and improve teacher retention to boost academic outcomes and create a sense of community in each school.<\/p>\n He said, if a board of managers is appointed, he would try to work with them and try to get the district out of state control as quickly as possible.<\/p>\n \u201cI understand that I might not have any voting power, but you can still advocate and focus on the students and teachers and parents and make sure that they have a strong voice and represent at the local level,\u201d San Martin said. \u201cAnd then make sure that the district’s moving forward and achieving the academic outcomes that are needed.\u201d<\/p>\n District 7<\/p>\n Jimmy Counihan<\/a><\/p>\n Counihan, who is currently the policy communications director for state Rep. Donna Howard, said he decided to run for the board because his state policy experience would be helpful in the event of a takeover of AISD.<\/p>\n He said he would be working with local organizations to boost enrollment and improve academics by better supporting emergent bilingual and special education students. Counihan said he would like to fix the continuous budget problems by creating more partnerships with local providers, like the Austin Public Library, and diversifying revenue streams through shared projects.<\/p>\n Counihan said that if a board of managers is appointed, he will continue attending board meetings and uplifting the voices of District 7 and pushing for legislative changes to the state accountability system.<\/p>\n \u201cWhether it’s a board of managers that’s appointed or conservatorship, I would still work hand in hand with local lawmakers at the city and state level to try and advocate for a change to the accountability system,” Counihan said. \u201cI would also really try to work with the board of managers and try to build relationships where I could and be a liaison between the community and a board of managers.\u201d<\/p>\n Laurie Solis<\/a><\/p>\n Solis said she decided to run because her \u201cboots on the ground” experience and her work leading the Austin Council of Parent Teacher Associations give her a unique position to understand the challenges that AISD is facing.<\/p>\n Solis said her priorities would be accountability, working on regaining families\u2019 trust and recruitment and fiscal accountability. She said she would like to work on retaining and developing great teachers and principals, because they provide stability and good outcomes for students. Solis said she would also like to work on fiscal responsibility and on an easier enrollment process because those things would also allow the district to have more funding.<\/p>\n If the state appoints a board of managers, Solis said she would still focus on organizing community efforts at each campus.<\/p>\n \u201cI will still advocate in the same ways that I am now, which is organizing families, making sure that stakeholder input is provided,\u201d Solis said. \u201cIf I’m elected as board trustee, I’m just gonna make it even more incumbent on me to make sure that I’m reaching out to the community, still hearing what they’re saying, because there are still local advocacy efforts that we could be doing.\u201d<\/p>\n At-large Position 9<\/p>\n Kirk Becker<\/p>\n Becker is a retired IT support specialist who said he decided to run for AISD\u2019s school board because he\u2019s worried about school funding.<\/p>\n He said his main priority as a member of the board would be turning all AISD schools into charter schools. He said that would bring in revenue from the state while giving students a good education.<\/p>\n Becker said the per student allotment hasn\u2019t adjusted to current costs and the only way for Austin ISD to avoid giving recapture payments to the state<\/a> while providing public education for all is to turn into a charter district. He said that, while some families would leave the district, that would still happen during a state takeover. He said having charter schools could help mitigate the impact of a takeover on students.<\/p>\n \u201cIt’d take a lot of work to make it work, but I mean the options are so low that we’re kind of being pushed into this,\u201d Becker said. \u201cI mean what’s happening anyway, kids are leaving the school district. It’s a matter of getting out ahead of it and making this work.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Cheryl](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793227811_448_.png\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"Candace](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793227812_719_.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"Edward](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793227812_15_.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"Tricia](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793227813_205_.png\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"Jessica](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793227814_566_.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"Sarah](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793227814_196_.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793227815_427_.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"Alex](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793227815_802_.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"Jimmy](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793227817_638_.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"Laurie](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793227817_857_.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"Kirk](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793227818_163_.jpeg\"\/)
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![\"Pamela](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793227818_424_.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"Cynthia](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/1793227819_159_.png\"\/)
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