Marshall heads to state semifinals: Page 6
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The Perfect Christmas Gift (FSA and HSA Accounts Accepted)
WEDNESDAY • DECEMBER 12, 2018
Fort Bend / Southwest • Volume 43 • No. 17
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FBISD holding school boundary meetings From staff reports FOR THE FORT BEND STAR
Allen Owen served as mayor of Missouri City for 39 years.
Ford ousts Owen in Missouri City She becomes city’s first black, female mayor By Joe Southern JSOUTHERN@FORTBENDSTAR.COM
Fort Bend ISD is engaging with the community to review possible options for attendance boundaries associated with the opening of Elementary 51, and balancing high school enrollment in the southeast portion of the school district. The attendance boundary process is aligned with the recommendations that resulted from the 2018 Facilites Master Planning process, as well as the projects included in the 2018 Bond Program approved by voters in November. Following recent focus groups held in November, three options to attend community information meetings are planned for December. The first was Dec. 11 at Marshall High School. The next is Dec. 12 at Travis High School, 11111 Harlem Road, Richmond, from 7-9 p.m. The last will be Dec. 13 at Elkins High School, 7007 Knights Court Missouri City, from 7-9 p.m. During each meeting, the same information will be shared about proposed boundary options. Following the meetings, an online survey will be shared for feedback. The administration will consider feedback from the community and input from recent focus group meetings to refine boundary options and make final recommendations to the board of trustees for consideration during the spring semester. To learn more about the areas to be addressed in the fall of 2018 for implementation in the 2019-20 school year, visit www.fortbendisd.com/ boundaryplanning.
Volleyball’s very best The all-district teams have been named in volleyball. Did your favorite player make it? See the story in Sports on page 6.
Yolanda Ford was elected the first black woman as mayor.
The Blue Wave that swept several Republican stalwarts out of office on Nov. 6 made its final sweep across Missouri City on Saturday in historic fashion as longtime Mayor Allen Owen was defeated in a runoff election by Councilmember Yolanda Ford. Ford became the first black and the first woman to be elected mayor of Missouri City. Although the election is non-partisan, Ford had the backing of the Democratic Party. Owen has long been tied to the Republican Party. “I am so proud that the residents of Missouri City have elected me as their mayor. After having served on the city council for the past five years, and as a lifelong resident, I am deeply invested in the well-
being and growth of Missouri City, and I look forward to working with citizens, the city council and others toward its betterment,” Ford said in a statement. Ford had 5, 015 votes (51.9 percent) to Owen’s 4,642 (48.1 Percent). In another runoff election, Councilmember Chris Preston easily won re-election 6,050 (64.2 percent) to challenger Susan Soto’s 3,377 (35.8 percent). The so-called Blue Wave was a major push by the Democratic Party to get Democrats elected locally and across Texas. Nearly every Democrat won their election in Fort Bend County on Nov. 6, taking the seats of County Judge, Precinct 4 Commissioner, and many other positions and judgeships. Owen was first elected mayor in 1994 and served on the city council for eight years prior to that. "I am proud of what I have helped
the City to accomplish this past 39 years,” he said. “When I began this journey we were a little sleepy bedroom community of 24,000 people. Today we are a thriving multi-purpose City of nearly 80,000. I am glad to have just been a part of that growth. “In elections there are always winners and losers. The citizens have spoken and said they are ready for someone else to take the reins. I wish the new Mayor and Council the best and I will now go back to being the normal citizen I was 39 years ago. It will give me the opportunity to spend more time with my family, play more golf, and sleep better at night. I have not gone away, I am just starting another chapter in my life. I think God still has other plans for me.” Ford took the oath of office as a city council member in July of 2013, becoming the fourth woman in Mis-
souri City’s history to be elected to council. With 20 years of experience in community development, land acquisition and leadership, Ford ran a grassroots mayoral campaign based on key issues such as increasing city revenue, building economic opportunity, creating redevelopment incentives, promoting community safety and addressing aging infrastructure. Ford is a native of Missouri City and a graduate of Dulles High School. She earned a bachelor of science in psychology from the University of Houston and a master of architecture from Prairie View A&M University. The runoff election results will be canvassed at the Monday, Dec. 17, special city council meeting. The candidates can then be sworn in after that at the regular meeting that immediately follows the canvassing. Ford becomes the 11th mayor of the 62-year-old city.
Separate groups debate fate of graves at construction site By Theresa D. McClellan THERESA@FORTBENDSTAR.COM
In the first public talks since a district court judge ordered more community input on the future of the 95 graves found at the construction site of the James Reese Technical Center, the Fort Bend Independent School District and community members held two separate meetings at the same time illustrating how much work needs to be done between both parties. Sam Collins III was a member of the Sugar Land Task Force before it disbanded and was picked up by the FBISD task force. He organized a community meeting for the public and Sugar Land task force members on Wednesday, Dec. 5, at the Buffalo Soldier Museum in Houston, led by Reginald Moore’s Convict Labor and Leasing Project (CLLP) and the Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) community organizing group. They heard a presentation at the 5:30 p.m. meeting from the courtappointed mediation attorney Michael Elliott, who was named master of chancery by District Court Judge James Shoemake and charged with multiple tasks including gathering community input. “I’m not for the FBISD or for anyone. My job is to
help the judge get the information so he can make an educated decision. We are here to represent justice. I will give the judge a brief update at the status hearing Dec. 18 of what I’ve done. He will hear from the FBISD lawyer and may or may not hear from anyone else,” explained Elliott. On the other side of town, some members of the former Sugar Land task force, who also signed up for the school district task force, attended a 90-minute session that started at 6 p.m. at the FBISD administration building. After his presentation in Houston, Elliott and other attendees rushed to the district meeting. Elliott, whose involvement is being challenged in court by the FBISD which says there is no need for his skill sets in what they see as an FBISD issue, was not allowed to speak. Richard Vogel, a member of the CLLP, and his wife attended the district meeting. He said he left hopeful with the promise of a “fresh start” but was concerned because not everyone was at the table. He would have wanted to hear Elliott’s perspective and he wanted more to hear Superintendent Charles Dupre’s point of view. “My wife and I have been in this since the beginning. We know it’s a
complicated issue and we are concerned about the 95 people being represented and recognized,” he said. The discovery of the graves garnered national attention as well as high interest among communities outside of Fort Bend County. “We are convinced that this has to be settled locally. The question of who the community is is up in the air. The question has come up, who has a right to speak. But we believe it is a local issue,” said Vogel, who wrote a story for the Fort Bend Star depicting an introductory history of the convict labor system which often enslaved free blacks with trumped-up charges and condemning them to hard labor in prison. The prison in Sugar Land was known for its brutality and was called “the Hellhole on the Brazos.” Vogel said the history is important to know and so is the school’s viewpoint. “Dr. Dupre’s position needs to be respected by everybody and I lament that a lot didn’t hear him. Since the beginning he has been committed; it happened on his watch and he wanted it to be done right,” said Vogel. “He wants a memorial at the new school and he
SEE CEMETERY, PAGE 2
Presenting the colors Members of the Austin High School Navy JROTC marches off the field Sunday at NRG Stadium after presenting the colors for the national anthem at the game between the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts. (Photo by Joe Southern)