DeSoto school board seat is the only contested race

by Daphne Brown of DeSoto TODAY

A third candidate will vie for DeSoto School Board's Place 6 seat this May, the only race being run in the city.

Susan Bryza joined Warren Seay and Amed Clinton in the race last week.

A former DeSoto Independent School District teacher, Bryza said she believes she can bring an educator's perspective to the board. Bryza has taught at the high school and college levels for 35 years, with experience in Dallas, DeSoto and Highland Park school districts. She is currently employed with the University of North Texas.

She said her experience in teaching, as well as studies in educational psychology and education administration, would help her as a boardmember.

“I feel like I could help in many different ways,” she said.

Bryza said that if elected she would like to ensure the gifted and talented program in the district is living up to its full potential.

“I am very disturbed by what is going on in the district with gifted and talented education, as well as the rumors I am hearing about doing away with the literacy coaches,” she said.

Bryza said that she appreciates the job that many of the teachers are doing in the district, but issues at the administrative level are causing problems. She hopes to help correct them if elected.

“To some degree their hands are tied by what is being done at the upper administrative level,” Bryza said.

Both city council positions up for election will go unchallenged this year, as will School Board Place 7, held by Board President Don Gant.

Councilmen Carl Williams and Carl Sherman, representing places 7 and 6 respectively, are unopposed.

The write-in candidate filing deadline is March 16, after which the city will order the cancellation of its May 9 general election.