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[I. CALL TO ORDER]

[00:00:06]

GOOD MORNING.

WELCOME TO THIS CALLED MEETING OF THE RICHARDSON ISD BOARD OF TRUSTEES.

I AM REGINA HARRIS, PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD.

FOR THE PURPOSES OF CANVASING THE ELECTION, ONLY TWO BOARD MEMBERS ARE REQUIRED FOR A QUORUM.

WE DO HAVE A QUORUM PRESENT AND THIS MEETING IS CALLED TO ORDER AT 10:04 A.M..

AT THIS TIME, WE WILL HAVE OUR PUBLIC COMMENT SECTION.

[II. PUBLIC COMMENT SECTION]

MR. POTEET, DO WE HAVE ANY PERSONS WHO HAVE REGISTERED TO ADDRESS THE BOARD? YES, WE DO. MS. HARRIS.

THANK YOU. SORRY.

THANK YOU, MS. HARRIS, ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD, I WELCOME OUR VISITORS.

FOR TODAY'S CANVASING MEETING, DURING TODAY'S MEETING, SPEAKERS MAY ONLY COMMENT ON THE TOPIC THAT IS ON THE BOARD'S AGENDA.

A SPEAKER WHO ATTEMPTS TO ADDRESS A NON-AGENDA RELATED ITEM MUST STOP HIS OR HER COMMENTS WHEN DIRECTED.

AS A REMINDER, SPEAKERS ARE REQUIRED TO FOLLOW THE PUBLIC COMMENTS PROTOCOL AS NOTED ON THE WEBSITE.

SPEAKERS PLEASE APPROACH THE PODIUM AT THE FRONT OF THE AUDITORIUM WHEN I CALL YOUR NAME.

WE'LL START WITH MR. EWAN BLACKMAN.

GOOD MORNING. THIS TIME, BOARD OF TRUSTEES, SUPERINTENDENT BRANUM.

ESTEEMED EMPLOYEES AND STAFF.

CONGRATULATIONS ON WINNING YOUR RACES.

BUT WHAT DOES THIS PORTEND FOR OUR DISTRICT? OR EVEN EDUCATION IN GENERAL.

LET'S LOOK AT THE NUMBERS AND THEN WE'LL TAKE A LOOK AT THE NAME CALLING.

MS. RENTERÍA WON BY SOME 450 VOTES, OR ABOUT A THIRD OF THE 1500 OF OUR STUDENTS WHO LEFT OUR DISTRICT.

MR. EAGER IN AN AT LARGE ELECTION, WON WITH A LITTLE MORE THAN 2000 EXTRA VOTES OR JUST A LITTLE MORE THAN THE 1500 STUDENTS WHO LEFT OUR DISTRICT.

THOSE STUDENTS AND THEIR PARENTS WHO REMOVED THEM REPRESENT ABOUT $11 MILLION DOLLARS IN LOST REVENUE.

THAT IS SIGNIFICANT.

WHERE DID THEY GO? WHY DID THEY LEAVE? WILL MORE FOLLOW.

I RECENTLY READ A RICHARDSON ECHO ARTICLE ON PARTIZANSHIP IN OUR LOCAL ELECTIONS BY MR. ANDREW LASKA. HE RELAYED A STORY THAT I KNOW WELL AND ITS EFFECTS IN 2017 RACE WHEN INCUMBENT AND A WELL REGARDED EDUCATIONAL ACTIVIST HAD QUASI THREATS, IN MR. LASKAS, WORDS WERE MADE, AND THE TRUSTEE AT THAT TIME DIDN'T DO ANYTHING TO DENOUNCE SUCH FOOLERY.

FAST FORWARD TO NOW AS I SPOKE LAST TIME WHEN JUDGE JENKINS AND HIS ENDORSEMENTS OF OUR TWO CANDIDATES CALLING YOUR OPPONENTS EXTREMISTS.

TO BE CLEAR, AN EXTREMIST IS THE RACIST THAT SHOT UP ALLEN OUTLET MALL.

EXTREMISTS ARE TERRORISTS WHO FLY PLANES INTO BUILDINGS.

EXTREMISTS ARE NOT MR. SAWYER OR MS. ABADIE. THOSE WORDS DESCRIBING OUR NEIGHBORS AND IN YOUR CASE, MS. RENTERÍA SOMEBODY WHO LIVES JUST A STREET AWAY.

THEY ARE NOT EXTREMISTS. THEY ARE COMMUNITY MEMBERS PUTTING THEIR LIVES ON HOLD, THEIR PRIVATE LIVES TO SERVE THEIR COMMUNITY LIKE YOU AND MR. EAGER HAVE DECIDED TO DO.

SO I'LL CHALLENGE YOU BOTH AGAIN TO REPUDIATE THAT TYPE OF NAME CALLING, ESPECIALLY FROM THOSE WHO WOULD ENDORSE YOU.

WILL YOU SPEAK UP? WILL YOU SPEAK OUT? WILL WE CHANGE THE TENOR? DO WORDS MATTER? IN THE DUTY OF CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE, HENRY DAVID THOREAU FINISHES WITH THIS THOUGHT THE AUTHORITY OF GOVERNMENT, IN OUR CASE, THE SCHOOL BOARD, EVEN SUCH AS I AM WILLING TO SUBMIT TO, FOR I WILL CHEERFULLY OBEY THOSE WHO KNOW AND CAN DO BETTER THAN I.

GOES ON TO SAY, TO BE STRICTLY JUST, IT MUST HAVE THE SANCTION AND THE CONSENT OF THE GOVERNED.

SO I'LL MAKE MY CHALLENGE A SECOND TIME.

PLEASE REPUDIATE THE ENDORSEMENT COMMENTS UNLESS MS. ABADIE AND MR. SAWYER KNOW THAT YOU DON'T THINK THAT OF THEM.

AND THOSE TYPES OF COMMENTS ARE NOT HAVING A PLACE IN OUR COMMUNITY IN THESE CONTENTIOUS AND SOMETIMES RANCOROUS ELECTIONS.

THANK YOU AND GOOD MORNING.

THANK YOU, MR. BLACKMAN.

OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS MR. RANDY BLANKENSHIP.

JUST WASHED MY HAIR AND I CAN'T DO A THING WITH IT ANYWAY.

GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS RANDY BLANKENSHIP AND I WANT TO THANK THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE A PUBLIC COMMENT.

[00:05:01]

MY TOPIC IS GOING TO BE A BADGE OF HONOR.

YOUR ELECTION CAMPAIGN AND THE WORDS OF YOUR SURROGATES HONOR ME.

IT IS A PLEASURE TO STAND BEFORE YOU AND BE HONORED IN YOUR CAMPAIGN WITHOUT YOUR REFERENCE OF ME THE ELECTION RESULTS MIGHT NOT HAVE BEEN SO FAVORABLE.

THIS ACT HAS IDENTIFIED YOU AND YOUR CONSTITUENTS.

I HAVE ALWAYS PRESENTED THIS ELECTION BODY WITH THE TRUTH REGARDING ANY APPLICABLE SCHOOL LAW AND THE TRUTH ABOUT ELECTION BOARD POLICIES AS ARE PRESENTED FOR ADOPTION. I MAY NOT BE PERFECT, BUT I'M LEANING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.

I HAVE MY FLAWS.

THIS CONTINUED COMMITMENT TO PROVIDE YOU WITH SOLID AND VALID UNDERSTANDING IS NOT BASED ON PERSONAL OPINION, OR BELIEFS, AND I'M ALWAYS AVAILABLE TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL ADVICE OR CONSULTATION.

IN TYPICAL FASHION, YOU HAVE ATTACKED YOUR OPPONENTS WITH AND ME WITH OUTRAGEOUS POLITICAL LABELING AND CONDUCT OF USUAL PLAYBOOK ACTIVITY WITH NAME CALLING. I HAVE BEEN A TARGET OF SUCH LAUGHABLE LABELS AND NAME CALLING.

I AM TRULY HONORED TO BE ON YOUR LIST.

IT'S A BADGE OF HONOR AND YOUR FEAR OF CITING YOUR OWN RECORD.

YOU HONOR ME AS THE OPPOSITION, AND WHEN I'M STANDING WITH TRUTH, THAT'S A BADGE OF HONOR.

YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO ANYWAY.

IN A ROUNDABOUT WAY, YOU HAVE HONORED ME AND I TAKE GREAT PLEASURE IN BEING A POLITICAL TARGET OF YOURS.

I STAND WITH TRUTH.

AND YOU HAVE BEEN EXPOSED ON YOUR OWN LEANINGS.

AS ALWAYS, MAY I ADVISE MAY I REMAIN STEADY AND TRUE.

FOR SOME REASON I'M HAVING A PROBLEM TALKING.

YESTERDAY I WAS CALLING IN BECAUSE I COULDN'T GET ON ONLINE AND AS I WAS TELLING VERA, I SAID, I WANT TO APOLOGIZE TO MARY BECAUSE I JUST COULDN'T SPIT OUT WORDS. I KNEW WHAT I WANTED TO SAY.

AND AGAIN, I'M DOING THE SAME THING AS PART MY AGE ANYWAY.

IN CLOSING, I DO TAKE HONOR THOUGH, THAT YOU GUYS HAVE THOSE THAT ARE PARTICIPANT ANYWAY, HAVE HONORED ME WITH YOUR OWN CRITICISMS. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

AND TO BE HONEST.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR RUN AND AND THOSE THAT HAVE BEEN REELECTED.

THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MR. BLANKENSHIP. MS. HARRIS, THAT CONCLUDES OUR SPEAKERS THIS MORNING.

THANK YOU, MR. POTEET.

[III. A. Canvass Returns: May 6, 2023, Trustee Election]

TRUSTEES, IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE BOARD'S FEBRUARY 16TH, 2023, ORDER CALLING A GENERAL ELECTION AND OTHER APPLICABLE LAW TO DETERMINE THE CANDIDATE ELECTED AS TRUSTEE FOR SINGLE MEMBER DISTRICT THREE AND AT LARGE PLACE SIX OF THE RICHARDSON INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT. OUR AGENDA CALLS FOR THE ADOPTION OF THE RESOLUTION, CANVASING THE RETURNS AND DECLARING THE RESULTS OF THE ELECTION HELD ON MAY 6TH, 2023, FOR SINGLE MEMBER DISTRICTS THREE AND AT LARGE PLACE SIX.

CANDIDATE DEBBIE RENTERÍA RECEIVED A MAJORITY OF VOTES CAST FOR DISTRICT THREE BY RECEIVING 951 VOTES OR 64.69%, WHILE CANDIDATE BONNIE ABADIE RECEIVED 519 VOTES OR 35.31%.

CANDIDATE ERIC EAGER RECEIVED A MAJORITY OF VOTES CAST FOR AT LARGE PLACE SIX BY RECEIVING 8791 VOTES OR 56.72%, WHILE CANDIDATE BLAKE SAWYER RECEIVED 6709 VOTES OR 43.28%.

PURSUANT TO THIS OFFICIAL CANVASS, DEBBIE RENTERÍA IS DECLARED ELECTED TRUSTEE OF DISTRICT THREE AND ERIC EAGER IS DECLARED ELECTED TRUSTEE OF AT LARGE PLACE SIX FOR THE RICHARDSON INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT IN ACCORDANCE WITH TEXAS ELECTION CODE, SECTION 2.051.

IS THERE A MOTION TO ADOPT THE RESOLUTION, CANVASING THE RETURNS AND DECLARING THE RESULTS OF THE ELECTION HELD MAY 6TH, 2023. SO MOVED.

THANK YOU, MR. POTEET.

IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. THANK YOU, MS. MCGOWAN. THERE IS A MOTION BY MR.

[00:10:01]

POTEET. A SECOND BY MS. MCGOWAN. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? NO QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS.

ALL RIGHT. WELL, I JUST WOULD LIKE TO SAY THANK YOU.

THANK YOU FOR RUNNING AGAIN AND SHARING YOURSELF WITH THIS BOARD.

AND IF MR. EAGER WERE HERE AS WELL, I'D SAY THE SAME.

WE ARE HAPPY TO HAVE YOU BACK IN THE HORSESHOE.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

ALL RIGHT. IF THERE IS NO ADDITIONAL COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS.

ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HANDS.

ALL RIGHT. MOTION CARRIES.

FOUR ZERO.

THIS MEETING IS ADJOURNED AT 10:14 A.M..

* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.