Hon. Marisa B. Perez - Texas State Board of Education

08/06/2026

Wow!! This week has not slowed down (in the best of ways!). I had the privilege of attending the New Braunfels Teacher of the Year Back to School Luncheon on Tuesday morning. Yesterday, I started the morning engaged in thought partnership with Jerry Arellano, Vice President of Marketing & Communications at Goodwill SA. Then, I headed to The Boeing Center at Tech Port for the Parent /Child Incorporated’s (PCI) CEO Convocation to give a greeting to over 200 early childhood educators! Dr. Sharon Small is leading amazing work to support our youngest of learners! Finally, wrapped the day visiting with the incredible Justin Rodriguez. Gracias, amigo, for sharing your thoughts and expertise with us! This morning I attended the CASTschools Network partner convening! Jeanne Russell, what you’ve built is a beautiful testament to your visionary leadership and “get at it” spirit! Jennifer Maestas, what you will continue to grow is so EXCITING and you are precisely the person to do it! ❤️

08/04/2026

Finally took a week completely off to disconnect and recharge. Today was my first day back at work and what a powerful day it was!!! Kick-started my week at Sul Ross Middle School, thanks to the amazing Irene A. Zinsmeister, for the 15th Annual Community Blockwalk. We cheered on and thanked the incredible educators who have THE hardest job and do it with energy, passion, and commitment! AND, I just ended my day attending the Texas Legislature’s Religious Freedom Caucus Community Roundtable. It was a such a healing and encouraging discussion centered on respect, compassion, and commonalities across different faith/non-faith communities. Thank you, Representative Salman Bhojani for the invitation!

07/20/2026

So, I did a thing today. Not just any old thing, though…I manifested my ancestors’ wildest dreams as I spoke in defense of transformative leadership through dimensions, from a social justice lens(!), because YES(!), contrary to some beliefs, I do respect systems, while also recognizing that they were not built for people who look like me! I hope I made my parents proud; I hope I set a good example for my babies; I hope my husband knows how much I appreciate HIS sacrifices through this journey. Celebrating today as DR. MARISA B. PEREZ-DIAZ

07/16/2026

Our hearts, thoughts and prayers are with the families, students and educators impacted by the devastating flooding across South Central Texas, communities we are honored to represent on the Texas State Board of Education.

As first responders continue their lifesaving work, we stand ready to work alongside public school leaders to help ensure our schools have the support and resources they need to recover and welcome students back for the new school year.

Texas is strongest when we come together.

07/10/2026

This is the epitome of PERFORMATIVE!!! Educators are some, if not THE, hardest working professionals. Their knowledge and skillsets are valuable and often go unappreciated. Not to mention, were it not for educators…not a single other career sector would exist. Abbott’s (and Patrick’s) influence was behind EVERY single vote that stood in the face of educator supported amendments at our SBOE meeting a few weeks ago. We had a PRIME opportunity to listen to the hundreds and hundreds of educators (representing BOTH parties) THEN who pleaded with us to pass stronger standards and to not impose required reading lists that strip creativity and autonomy from the classroom… what has changed?!

Governor Abbott today launched the Texas Classroom Commission, a new teacher-led initiative that will put Texas educators at the center of shaping the future of public education.

The Commission will strengthen student achievement and ensure Texas becomes the No. 1 state for educating kids.

Read More: https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-launches-texas-classroom-commission

06/25/2026

LONG POST: I have been relatively quiet, all. The last several months have challenged me more than any other time on the board that I can remember. As I sit in the board room tonight, reflecting on my 13 years of service on the Texas State Board of Education, I cannot help but acknowledge that my “quiet” is a contemplation of where we find ourselves today: a decimation of accurate, honest, and holistic social studies education for Texas public school students. My position/perspective is NOT about partisan grandstanding; it is about standing on transparency, integrity, and centering high-quality, research-based (peer-reviewed), accurate standards, free of bias and influence. Here is one example of a standard (TEK) that will now be imposed upon students, if not changed on Friday. This language forces ANY student of divorced parents to recognize their familial situation as “negative.” What message are we sending to young people from homes where thad divorce not occurred, they would be living in toxic situations? What about ANY student that is not part of a nuclear family? Unfortunately, I have seen the minimizing & erasure of Brown, Black, Indigenous, Asian, and female influence in our state & nation’s history. I have watched, in public, the blatant discriminatory behavior toward our Muslim community, and a complete disregard of practitioner and subject matter expert voice. Professional decorum has left the boardroom on numerous occasions (and it’s only Wednesday) and we have picked and chosen when operating procedures should apply and when they don’t matter. It’s been frustrating to say the ABSOLUTE least. I’m hanging onto hope that motivated citizens are paying attention, are enraged, and manifest that rage into voting. We’ve also heard from hundreds of Texans from across the state who are pleading for the SBOE to do and be better. Regardless of how this turns out on Friday, I HAVE HOPE that we will experience a sea change soon✊🏽 ¡ADELANTE!

05/04/2026

Today kicks off a week / month (should be all year) of celebration for the special people in our community that educate, care for, and help mold our young people everywhere. Happy Teacher Appreciation Week/Month to our incredible educators!!! Your influence ripples like waves and lifts thousands and thousands of young hearts and minds. THANK YOU, for all that you do!!!

04/19/2026

WHAT’S NEXT?

The SBOE has taken the first vote to change K-12 Social Studies TEKS.

Now it’s time to plan the path forward.

Join the Democratic members of the SBOE for a virtual town hall focused on solutions and next steps. We’ve heard your concerns. We agree they matter.

This conversation is about strategy, not repetition. The proposed changes are harmful to Texas students, and we’re working together to minimize their impact.

Be part of what comes next.

Join us on Wednesday April 22, 2026 at 7pm.

Register Here:

https://us05web.zoom.us/meeting/register/Lu49SiFeTGy3_UuBnzbVRw #/registration

04/08/2026

Serving on the Texas State Board of Education has always been something I do not take lightly. It is a massive privilege, honor, and responsibility. It also requires openness, flexibility, and the ability to maneuver through incredibly challenging discussions. Today has been unique to my years of service on the board. The amount of Islamaphobia is shameful, the hypocrisy around “freedom” and “liberty” has been palpable, and the blatant disregard for centering the academic success of ALL Texas public school children has been disappointing. To the hundreds of testifiers today, and the thousands that were here in spirit, advocating for sound education practices, standards, academic alignment, and truth in education, please know you DO have advocates on this board that will continue to work as hard as we can to support you. THANK YOU for using your voices and speaking truth to power! Adelante!!

04/02/2026

Friends, colleagues, public education champions, NOW, MORE THAN EVER, the way in which our more than 5.5 million Texas public school children receive their literacy and social studies education is on the line. We need community voices lifted, heard, and supported. Next week the Texas State Board of Education will be taking up two consequential items (i. a required literary works list and ii. Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for social studies) and we need your help calling on the postponement of the social studies vote (the process has been rushed and not fully informed by those who work in Texas K12 education today) and the amendment to the proposed literary list that speaks to the true letter of the law. My CALL TO ACTION please join us next week in Austin and register to testify before the SBOE to share your thoughts and to help us get back on track to create positive outcomes for ALL CHILDREN!!! :

"The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history." — George Orwell

Individuals may register online by clicking the link below starting at 8:00 a.m. (Central Time) on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, and continuing through 5:00 p.m. (Central Time) on Friday, April 3, 2026. Late registration is available on-site up to 30 minutes prior to the start of the meeting. The presidi...