By Ruth Ferguson
NDG Editor
Despite a cold and rainy Saturday afternoon, several concerned members of the community met at Bear Creek Community Church to discuss their concerns about fair representation on the Irving Independent School District (Irving ISD). Although the student population is reportedly over 80 percent the school board is filled with only white trustees.
The community leaders believe it is time for Irving ISD to move from the at-large system to single-member districts. The goal is to elect a school board that reflects the minority population of the communities within the district.
Carlos Quintanilla, community activist and founder of accionamerica.com, spoke with the North Dallas Gazette after the meeting about the importance of the board reflecting the student population in Irving ISD.
“Children need role models,” Quintanilla pointed out, so the lack of diversity is very disappointing. “There are zero minorities making decisions on behalf of our children,” Quintanilla continued and added this is out of sync with the way of doing things America.
After reviewing the map provided by the school and the alternative maps drafted, Quintanilla warns, if the district is not willing to address their concerns, additional steps will be explored, including litigation or seeking intervention of the Justice Department.
Irving ISD has agreed to hold three public hearings in January to allow parents and concerned citizens to share their concerns. The hearings are scheduled for January 5, 9, and 10, 2012.
In the meantime, the leaders recommend developing a plan of action to gain community involvement through sharing flyers about the upcoming meetings. Also, they suggested asking everyone to send a letter, email or call members of the school board. It is hoped that vocal outreach will cause the district to realize the level of concern parents and community members have about the lack of representation.
Anthony Bond, longtime Irving community activist, indicated he was planning to contact U.S. District Judge Sidney Fitzwater’s office. A lawsuit was filed previously seeking the court to force the district to change. At the time Judge Fitzwater did not rule in their favor but left the door open to reconsider the matter after the 2010 census data was released.
The clerk has previously informed Bond that anyone with standing in the Irving community can submit a statement to the court regarding their concerns on representation in Irving.
The citizens group is working with attorney Bill Betzen who will review the information made available by the district and the draft of a map they propose. Betzen will use the data to generate drafts of an alternative map. This information will be shared with a request for feedback.
Irving City Council Member, Rev. Dennis Webb shared with the gathered citizens the advantages of a single-member district system. Webb, a native of Irving, recently won election to the city council position after they transitioned to a single-member district. He pointed out the cost of running a city wide election is prohibitive for most minorities. However, with single-member districts, candidates can knock on doors and if they are active in the community, the citizens know them. This significantly reduces election costs.
