Linda Peoples Lindsey came to her first meeting Tuesday as a member of the Connally Independent School District board of managers with a symbol of Cadet pride: her father’s coaching jacket from 1961.
Now as one of three state-appointed board members for Connally, Lindsey cherishes her family legacy in the district while cheering it on to future glories.
“Connally has given our family … the gift of community, the gift of education and the gift of lifelong friends, it’s time for me to give back,” Lindsey said.
A massive change is underway at Connally ISD this month as the state completes its takeover of the district after years of academic underperformance.
The state has appointed a new superintendent, conservator and board of managers. The district is preparing to hire new principals and teachers after nearly 100 staff resigned this spring ahead of the takeover. Connally families will have to adjust to a consolidated elementary school and a new academic schedule this fall.
But at Tuesday’s special board meeting, the new leaders assured families that the school district is on track to improve.
Lindsey took her seat with Connally parent Matthew Stufflebeam and alumna Carla Thomas on the board of managers, which will oversee the district for at least two years.
Josie Gutierrez, the former Waco ISD administrator chosen as Connally’s new superintendent, told attendees that the focus is on improving student outcomes.
“It brings me great joy to do this work that really matters,” Gutierrez said. “It matters to me. I know it matters to you, and we are going to focus on our student outcomes each and every day.”
Gutierrez will serve as acting superintendent until June, when is sworn in for the permanent post.
“I’m deeply grateful for the trust, the sacred trust, that has been instilled in me,” Gutierrez said. “I promise to show up each and every day and do the best job that I can for the students of Connally, for the community.”
The board approved Gutierrez’s agreement Tuesday and appointed Stufflebeam as board president and Lindsey as board secretary.
The state appointed the trio this month, after announcing the takeover plans in December. Five years of consecutive failing ratings at Connally Junior High and Connally Elementary School triggered the state takeover.
Stufflebeam, a real estate broker, was shocked to learn Connally ISD’s performance lagged state academic standards. He said the news of the failing accountability ratings inspired him to apply for the board of managers.
“If we’re going to succeed as an ISD, as a state, as a country, we’ve got to be willing to put our own time in,” Stufflebeam said. “So totally volunteer position. And I would do it any day to help all the kids.”
Lindsey said returning to the district that shaped her and the community she loves is a humbling and emotional experience.
Her father, Mac Peoples, was such a well-known coach that Connally named its football stadium for him.
The jacket she brought Tuesday was from the 1961 season, when the district narrowly lost the regional semifinal. After a few years away, the family returned to Connally in 1974, when her father was appointed superintendent. She graduated from Connally High School in 1981.
Lindsey returned to this area a few years ago and organized other alumni to create the Connally Education Foundation. She now has two young grandchildren who will soon be school age.
“Our lives have been positively changed forever, and now I want it for my grandchild,” Lindsey said. “That would be my ultimate wish.”
Tuesday’s meeting drew current and former staff, parents and alumni.
Clifford Anderson, a 1976 Connally graduate, taught U.S. history at Connally High School until he retired a year ago.
As a teacher, he noticed the gaps in students’ reading skills, but he believes the new leadership can fix them.
“It’ll straighten out,” Anderson said. “It won’t take long, because all you’ve got to do is focus on it for a year or two, and it ought to all be back on line. It’ll have to start in elementary and then junior high school. I would say after three years, they ought to have it all straightened out.
“We’re on the right track now, and I think that we’re going to be all right. I mean, everything will get fixed. It’s not like we have financial problems. Our problem is the kids have got to learn how to read. That’s the bottom line.”
Danielle Schell, a kindergarten teacher who has been with the district since 2005, said the district has already made strides at the early childhood level. She said recent end-of-year testing shows that early grades are off to a good start in their academic careers.
“So I feel we’ve really been able to provide that strong foundation,” she said. “And I think hopefully being in the building with the other grades, we can just continue to strengthen the teamwork across grade levels.”
Prekindergarten through first-grade students are now at the Connally Early Childhood Center, which will be consolidated with Connally Elementary at the Connally Primary campus, now renamed Connally Elementary. The new elementary principal is Betsy Burnett, who has been a Connally ISD administrator.
The consolidation comes after several years of enrollment declines. The district has lost nearly 100 students in this academic year, for a current enrollment of 1,938. Much of that loss has been at the elementary level, officials said.
