The Magnolia ISD board of trustees appointed former Magnolia Education Foundation President Dacia Owens to board position No. 1 at its meeting Sept. 20. The position had been held by Kelly McDonald, who resigned from the board effective Aug. 23 to run for state representative of District 3, Community Impact Newspaper previously reported.

Owens studied marketing at the University of Nebraska and spent 10 years working at Verizon. She joined the MEF in June 2017 and stepped down as its president earlier this year, according to the district.

“She’s been very active in our schools with a servant’s heart,” board President Chuck Adcox said.

MISD Superintendent Todd Stephens welcomed Owens to the board while also bidding farewell to McDonald, who served on the board for six years.

“It’s certainly a pleasure to get to welcome you to the board, Dacia, and I know that your tenure will be profitable," Stephens said. "It’s not without a little bit of sorrow that we have to say goodbye to one of our outstanding trustees.”

In order to keep her position, Owens will need to be elected to the board at its next election, Adcox said. MISD's next board of trustees election is scheduled for May 7, according to the MISD website.