Donna Bahorich
Chair of the State Board of Education
In office
June 2015 – July 2019
State Board of Education
GovernorGreg Abbot
Personal details
Born (1955-09-14) September 14, 1955
Ronceverte, West Virginia
Political partyRepublican
Residence(s)Houston, Texas
WebsiteDonna4Texas

Donna Bahorich is a member of the Texas Historical Commission and a former member of the Texas State Board of Education (TXSBOE), serving as Chair from June 2015 - September 2019.[1][2] She was elected to the 15-member TXSBOE board in 2012 and 2016.

Early life and education

Bahorich was born in Ronceverte, West Virginia on 14 September 1955. She received her Master of Arts degree in 1990 from Liberty University and Bachelor of Science degree in 1977 from Virginia Tech.[3]

Career

Bahorich began her career in 1977 in telecommunications working as a supervisor for Chesapeake & Potomac Telephone under the AT&T umbrella. In 1981 she was transferred to Mountain Bell to work as a contract negotiator responsible for procuring tools and telecom supply equipment after the break-up of AT&T. Bahorich left full time employment in 1985 to begin her career as a mother and, eventual, home educator.

She served as the founder and director for Home Ed Plus, Inc., a homeschool cooperative serving 100+ students in the West University area for over 20 years. She left her position on the board of Home Ed Plus in 2010.

In 2004, she became a volunteer director for the Harris County Republican Party. In 2005-2006, she was the campaign manager for Dan Patrick (current Texas Lt. Governor) for his first run for state senate.[1] In 2009, she was selected to be the Harris County Republican Party 2010 Primary Director. Bahorich ran for the TXSBOE and was elected as the District 6 representative in 2012 and 2016.[3][4] She was appointed by the governor as Chair in June 2015[5][6] and served on all three of the board's standing committees, finishing her final term of service as a member of the $34 billion Permanent School Fund Committee.[3]

In 2017, the State Board of Education undertook the work of "streamlining" the curriculum standards in science and then social studies under Bahoriches' leadership as chair. Public controversies arose in both science[7] and social studies[8] revisions. Regarding the Alamo, Greg Abbott and other elected officials urged the TXSBOE to amend the committee-recommended history standard proposed for the state's seventh-grade that removed the "heroes" of the Alamo story.[9] In an attempt to reduce the large number of historical figures required to be taught, TXSBOE work committees suggested a number of changes including trimming the number of historic figures required in the curriculum of Texas schools.[10][5][11][12] In 2018, the TXSBOE approved the first in the nation high school Mexican American ethnic studies course,[13] followed by the African American ethnic studies course in 2019.[14]

Bahorich was a member of the pastor's council at Houston Vineyard Church, the West Houston P-16 Council and served as president (and many other positions) of the Daughters of Liberty Republican Women. She is a Senior Fellow with the American Leadership Forum-Houston, Education Class 43, and was a member of Conservative Leaders for Education.[3]

Recognition

Bahorich was recognized by The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) for the 2017 State Director's Leadership Medal, 2018 Leadership Award, and 2019 Consensus Builder Award.[3] Bahorich has received other awards: 2019 Greater Houston Coalition for Justice Award Honoree; 2020 Governor Abbott commissioned her with the Yellow Rose of Texas award; 2021 the City of Houston recognized Bahorich for exceptional community service; 2021 Children At Risk nominee for Education Advocate of the Year.

References

  1. 1 2 Chang, Julie (26 December 2016). "State Board of Education chairwoman pleasantly surprises critics". NA. No. NA. Statesman. GateHouse Media LLC. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  2. ↑ "Q&A: New State Board of Education chair Donna Bahorich on her homeschool background, vouchers and Jim Crow". NA. No. NA. The Dallas Morning News. The Dallas Morning News Inc. 1 July 2015. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "SBOE Member District 6". NA. No. NA. Texas Education Agency. Archived from the original on 2 May 2019. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  4. ↑ Crampton, Liz (18 June 2015). "Abbott Names New Board of Education Chair - Gov. Greg Abbott has appointed Donna Bahorich, a former staffer for Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, the next chairwoman of the State Board of Education". NA. No. NA. The Texas Tribune. The Texas Tribune. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  5. 1 2 Marcotte, Amanda (26 June 2015). "Texas Governor Appoints a Homeschooler to Head State Education Board". NA. No. NA. Slate. The Slate Group LLC. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  6. ↑ "Senate Confirms Donna Bahorich as SBOE Chair and Mike Morath as Commissioner". NA. No. NA. TASA Inspiring Leaders. TASA. 14 March 2017. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  7. ↑ "Texas Board OKs Science Curriculum Compromise on Evolution". U.S. News & World Report. April 21, 2017.
  8. ↑ "Opinion: I lead Texas's education board. Here's why we want to cut Hillary Clinton — and Barry Goldwater". Washington Post. September 20, 2018.
  9. ↑ Armus, Teo (7 September 2018). "Gov. Greg Abbott warns Texas education board of "political correctness" over Alamo history standards". NA. No. NA. The Texas Tribune. The Texas Tribune. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  10. ↑ Boyette, Chris (18 September 2018). "Texas students may not be required to learn about Helen Keller, Hillary Clinton". NA. No. NA. CNN. CNN. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  11. ↑ Jones, Emily (20 September 2018). "Texas Board of Ed Defends Decision to Put Moses in Classrooms, Cut Hillary Clinton and Hellen Keller". NA. No. NA. CBN News. CBN News. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  12. ↑ "A Texas Teaching Moment". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved July 22, 2015.
  13. ↑ "§113.50. Ethnic Studies: Mexican American Studies (One Credit)" (PDF). Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Social Studies. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-07-21.
  14. ↑ "§113.51. Ethnic Studies: African American Studies (One Credit)" (PDF). Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Social Studies. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-07-21.
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