According to Nov. 8 election results from the Harris County Office of the Elections Administrator, Arellano defeated challenger Kristin Cobb with 35,149 votes, or 53.05% of all votes, while Ellis defeated challenger Jack "Joaquin" Velasquez with 40,847 votes, or 63.15% of all votes.
"I want to thank the community for allowing me to serve another term," Arellano said during the Dec. 12 board meeting. "I love this place; I love the celebrations; I love that we are a team, and I'm just very thankful to be a part of this team."
As previously reported by Community Impact, Arellano was first elected to the KISD board of trustees in 2016 and was re-elected in 2019, after running unopposed. Ellis was first elected to the board of trustees in 2019.
Following the swearing-in ceremony, the board unanimously approved new officers for 2023. Ellis, Arellano and Position 4 Trustee Dustin Creager were appointed to serve as board president, vice president and secretary, respectively. Those positions were previously held by Position 5 Trustee Ronnie Anderson, Ellis and Arellano, respectively.
"It's an honor to continue to serve with you," Ellis said during the Dec. 12 board meeting. "It's incredible—the caliber of public servants that are here. We are all volunteers. ... Each of [the board members] are so focused on our kids and on our teachers. .... In the last three years that I've been on the board, that's been very apparent. ... Thank you for your friendship, and I look forward to learning how to guide the board."
In addition to officers, the board also appointed trustees to serve on a slate of committees in the coming year.
Position 3 Trustee Chris Todd will serve alongside Ellis and Anderson on the audit committee, while Ellis and Creager will serve on the safety committee. Additionally, Position 1 Trustee Georgan Reitmeier will serve as the board representative on the Klein Education Foundation, while Arellano will serve as an alternate. Position 2 Trustee Doug James will serve as KISD's board delegate for the Texas Association of School Boards, while Creager will serve as an alternate. Finally, Arellano will serve as the board representative on the student health advisory council.
"Congratulations to both Cathy and Rob. We're very thankful to have you serving our school district as trustees and very excited for our new slate of officers," KISD Superintendent Jenny McGown said at the Dec. 12 meeting.
According to the KISD website, each member of the board of trustees is elected to an at-large position for three years in a nonpartisan election. For more information about the KISD board of trustees, click here.
