Three incumbents face challengers on Valley View school board

All three incumbents up for reelection on the Valley View Independent School District Board of Trustees will face a challenger this November.

Place 1 incumbent Anthony Pinal, who is an educator from Hidalgo, will run against Elizabeth Bella, an operations work lead from Hidalgo.

Place 2 incumbent Efrain Perez, a self-employed Hidalgo resident, will face librarian Raul “Coach” Sanchez, also from Hidalgo.

Place 3 incumbent Claudia Coronado, an educator from Hidalgo and the current board president, will defend her seat against Francisco “Frank” Santana, a teacher from Pharr.

The largest news out of Valley View during the current board’s tenure was the suspension and subsequent reassignment of then-superintendent Monica Luna, just after a board election in 2020.

The district later agreed to a Texas Education Agency corrective action plan stemming from a complaint over Luna’s hiring.

Silvia Ibarra, Luna’s replacement and the current superintendent, embarked on significant cost-savings measures during the early days of her tenure in 2021.

The election will be held on Nov. 5.