Cy-Fair ISD board President Don Ryan has the opportunity to visit numerous CFISD campuses as part of his role. He was elected to the board in 2000 and has since served five terms.[/caption]

Serving on the Cy-Fair ISD board of trustees for the past 15 years has been the time of Don Ryan’s life.

Since he was first elected to the board in 2000, Ryan has watched the district evolve from a farming community to a diverse melting pot filled with more than 100 different ethnicities.

“It doesn’t feel like I’ve been on the board for 15 years because I enjoy it,” Ryan said. “If you don’t like what you’re doing, don’t do it. I’ve always been passionate about public education and this community. I don’t want our schools to go backward, I want them to go forward and we continue to do that.”

Ryan and his family moved to Cy-Fair more than 40 years ago from Spring Branch. As a student, he attended Lamkin Elementary, Arnold Middle and Cy-Fair High schools.

“As soon as we got there, a lady by the name of Wanda Jowell, who served on the board, came over to our house with Cy-Fair Bobcat gear and said, ‘There’s a game Friday night, and we’d like you to come with us,’” he said. “Immediately we were thrown into Cy-Fair, and from that point on we didn’t miss any games.”

Although Ryan attended college at the University of North Texas, he and his wife, Julie, moved back to Cypress afterward to raise their three children who attended Adam Elementary, Arnold Middle and Cy-Fair High schools.

Ryan made the decision to seek election for an open trustee position after former board member Alan Quintero suggested he run because of his passion for Cy-Fair.

“The key thing I’m proud of is that I’ve never had a personal agenda,” he said. “It’s always been what’s best for the students and taxpayers. It’s a simple way to look at it, but it’s worked for 15 years.”

During his five terms on the board, Ryan has worked with three superintendents who guided the district through periods of rapid student growth. More than 30 new campuses opened during the same time frame.

“I know we’re a huge district, but it doesn’t feel like that,” Ryan said. “You can tell when you visit campuses and see it’s still got that hometown feel.”

When Ryan was elected in 2000, he worked with former Superintendent Rick Berry—for whom the Berry Center is named—for several years before he retired. The board selected David Anthony as the new superintendent in 2006.

“David had the type of personality that he didn’t care if you were a state representative or senator, he would tell them something needed to be done because it wasn’t an equal playing field,” Ryan said. “At the time we were growing so fast we weren’t getting enough money to keep up.”

In 2011 the board selected current Superintendent Mark Henry, who had helped struggling students improve test scores in his former district, Galena Park ISD.

“With the way our community was going with our diversity, we knew he had a proven record in Galena Park and could do it in Cy-Fair,” Ryan said.

Although it has not been the case the entire 15 years Ryan has spent as a trustee, no one on the current board has a hidden agenda, he said.

“Everyone has something they’re passionate about, but it’s because they truly want to support it,” Ryan said. “That makes it nice because seven of us can spread ourselves out and attend different functions.”

In addition to meeting teachers and other district employees who work with students on a daily basis, one of Ryan’s favorite memories of serving on the board involves the inception of the district’s wrestling program. In the mid-2000s, several community members and students spoke at one of the board meetings about the need for a program in the district, prompting the board to approve it.

“I was part of the group that brought that in,” he said. “Now these kids are going on to wrestle through college, and some are probably coaching wrestling today. That’s
probably my favorite board story.”