Plano ISD Trustee Tarrah Lantz is usually one of the quieter members of PISD’s Board of Trustees. However, when she speaks one never knows what will come out.
Last month’s Plano ISD Board Meeting on December 10, 2024 was quite enlightening as to how far Trustee Lantz is willing to go to get parents on the opposing side of the school district/system.
Her campaign policy, according to a Ballotpedia Q and A, was very pro-parent involvement:
“Plano ISD’s history is built upon collaboration between the board, district staff, parents, students, and the community. This success is due to nonpartisanship leadership that avoids unnecessary conflict that distracts us. We need to be intentionally inclusive when engaging our community and seek out different voices. Plano ISD is a majority minority district with changing demographics. We must embrace our diversity and find innovative ways to engage our families. Family engagement is key to driving student success. If we want to see academic improvements for all students, we must work with campus administrators to build family engagement plans.”
– Tarrah Lantz, Ballotpedia, 2023
Since she was elected, it seems that she has stepped into the mindset of us versus them. Trustee Lantz would like parents to fill out something like a Google form to keep track of how many parents are requesting their kids be restricted from reading potential R-rated and inappropriate books.
History has shown us that any sort of “names on a list” does not end well. Plano tried this with the mask mandate: who was and was not in favor of masking. It did not bode well back then, nor should it bode well now or ever.
Trustee Lantz needs to be reminded that collaboration is a two-way street and to “seek out different voices” even means those parents who would like a little more control over what their kids can read or have available.
Maybe teachers can just have the list available on their About Me page and parents can choose to look or act upon the information as it is given.
Educate Plano 