Entering her 35th year working in education, Kimberley James was named the new superintendent of Willis ISD in early April. James previously served as deputy superintendent for Corpus Christi ISD.
James said she grew up in a family where her parents worked in education and inspired her to continue down that path. She began her career as a special education teacher in Aldine ISD in 1990.
James holds a Ph.D. in educational leadership from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, a master's degree in education administration from Stephen F. Austin University and a bachelor’s degree in education from Southwest Texas State University, according to WISD’s website.
The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.
What are the biggest challenges and issues you think Willis ISD faces?
I think public education in general has a lot of challenges. And Willis is no different in that, that we want to make sure that parents are valued, that their voices are heard, that our resources are directed in a way that supports our teachers, which support student learning, ... and then making sure that all of our students and staff are safe. Those are three really, really important things that [are] not unique to Willis, but nonetheless, it is something that we need to address here in Willis. I think that ensuring that our community trusts us as a school district, and making sure that they know that we have the best interest of their children at our heart—I think those are challenges, again, that are universal. But I think that we have the right staff and the right people in place to do that.
What are your short- and long-term priorities for WISD?
I think number one is making sure that we have really, really good systems that ensure quality instruction, ... [and] important decisions are being made with students first. ... Number two [is] making sure that we have the right people sitting in the right places to ensure those systems happen. I think that those are probably the most important things early on. [In the] long-term, it is academic achievement. My experience has been as an academic leader, both at the principal level and at the district level. ... [So] it is making sure that our kids leave with everything they need to have [a] choice, meaning whether they go into the work field, whether they go into college, whether they go to the military—they have to still be able to critically think, communicate, and understand and solve problems. I think that those things are just incumbent of us as a school system to make sure that kids leave our system prepared.
How do you plan to help the district prepare for the expected growth over the next 10 years?
[We'll] use the historical data that we have behind us but also be able to use the resources that are in front of us. We're looking at demographic studies right now, making sure that we have really strong relationships with our city and county and state government entities so we can foresee and forecast where the growth is happening, and then clear communication to our constituents and the community, [and] making sure that our board is up front and knowing how we as a team work together to ensure that we are out in front [of the growth] and not being surprised. I think that we have a lot of resources and a lot of entities that surround us that we just have to be on the same page, and that just happens with excellent communication.
How do you think the $102.7 million 2022 bond package, which will fund a ninth grade campus expansion at Willis High School among other projects, benefits the district?
We know that the growth is out there for a second high school, but right now we're not there. So this is going to allow for that six or so years for us to really grow into the tax base that will help us be able to go out for that bond for a second high school in the future. But right now, it allows for the growth ... to make sure our students have what they need—the classrooms, the settings, ensuring that our CTE building is used in an appropriate way. So I think that the community spoke really loud when they voted for that ninth grade center [and supported] the way that we're going to utilize that to increase and provide for the growth of our high school.
What thoughts do you have about the district’s proposed fiscal year 2024-25 budget, which is anticipated to be balanced?
First of all, I have so much confidence in our CFO Garrett [Matej], and he has done such a fabulous job over the last four years ensuring that we were positioned correctly for ... growth, and also coming out of COVID[-19], we financially invested in ways that have allowed us to not have to pass a deficit budget, and that is the strength of him and the vision of our board. ... And he's even planning for the future, and I just feel like his forward thinking has allowed us to be able to give raises, be able to plan for the future, plan for the needs as far as resources and really [also] the management of our fund balance—we have a really strong fund balance that will help offset anything that were to come our way, should there be some unforeseen catastrophe or so forth.
What do you hope to see come out of the next Texas Legislature session, specifically as it relates to education issues, such as funding?
House Bill 3 two legislative sessions ago provided districts with opportunities to earn money based on what we're doing as a district. And so I think—number one—I hope that they continue to fund that. Number two—find more creative ways to increase the funding for our students because we cannot do what we do without the adequate amount of money and resources to provide, first of all, the staffing, the teachers. We've got to be able to pay teachers. It is so difficult to find high-quality teachers that have experience, that know how to really reach our students' diverse needs, and if we cannot pay for that, if we cannot fund that, if we cannot find ways to support that, we're just going to continue to go down a terrible road. And so I think that is probably one of the biggest things is making sure that they provide adequate, if not more, funding. We can never have enough funding to make sure that we can provide those resources, which means financially supporting our teachers and our staff and the resources.
What would you say sets Willis ISD apart from other districts?
To be such a fast-growth district, we still have such an opportunity to provide individualized, small-community type of relationships. When it all comes down to it, it is really, really about relationships—whether it's a business, if it's politics, if it's school—and since my heart is in doing what's right for kids, I was drawn to the relationships of supporting our students.
