SAN BENITO — After two years as the San Benito school board’s vice president, Janie Lopez is resigning to take District 37’s state House seat after school board members unanimously appointed former longtime Cameron County Chief Appraiser Frutoso Gomez to fill the rest of her term, expiring with the May election.
Earlier this week, the school board accepted Lopez’s resignation a month after the Republican won the new House of Representatives seat, drawing 14,451 votes to defeat Harlingen businessman Luis Villarreal, who took 13,685 votes in the Nov. 8 general election.
During a meeting Tuesday, Gomez is set to take the oath of office.
Lopez makes history
During Thursday’s meeting, Lopez, a leader of the board’s four-member majority, turned in her resignation, which was effective Monday.
In her victory, Lopez made history, becoming the first Republican Hispanic woman to win a state House seat in South Texas.
“It has been an honor to serve on the San Benito CISD school board as your vice president and chairwoman of the finance and administration committees,” Lopez, who won election to the board in November 2020, stated Friday. “I am grateful for the trust from my community and unity with board trustees for the best interest of the students and employees. Together, we improved schools’ safety measures, hired policemen for elementary campuses, increased wages, reduced taxes, made schools equitable, improved infrastructure, enforced accountability measures of taxpayer money, increased enrollment and prioritized students’ academic and extracurricular activities. Moving forward, as your elected state representative, I will be fighting for better funding for our schools, cities and counties, Willacy and Cameron, and will continue to work with the school district on legislative issues.”
On Friday, board member Ariel Cruz bid Lopez success as District 37’s first representative.
“I want to wish Janie luck as she moves on to her new role as state representative,” she said.
Gomez family tradition
On Tuesday, Gomez is set to take office after working with the Cameron County Appraisal District for 35 years, serving as chief appraiser from 2003 to 2015.
In 1973, he and his wife Isabel graduated from San Benito High School, where she went on to work as a special education teacher.
Now, two of their daughters are working as district educators, with another working with the Los Fresnos school district while another daughter is working with the San Antonio school district.
“I’m going to do the best I can for the students and employees of the San Benito school district,” Gomez said Friday. “I plan to work with everyone on the board and work closely to provide the necessary tools for our school district. I’ve always been a public servant. I graduated from the San Benito school district, my children graduated from the San Benito school district and now my grandkids are attending the San Benito school system. I see this as something I want to do to give back to the community.”
Trustees hail appointment
On Friday, board members said Gomez was the only candidate who presented a letter of interest for the board’s Place 7 seat.
“We are confident that he will have the best interest of the school district in mind when making decisions,” board President Ramiro Moreno stated. “Although I do not know the gentleman on a personal basis, he is a respected member of the community. Mr. Gomez is retired but brings to the board a vast knowledge and experience within the public sector. I personally look forward to working with Mr. Gomez in moving the district forward and continue to provide our students with the gold standard in education.”
During Tuesday’s meeting, board member Rudy Corona nominated Gomez.
“In my opinion, I think he’s going to be a great asset to the board and the community,” Corona said Friday. “He seems to be a very neutral and fair person. I know his family. I’m really excited to have him joining the board. It’s important to have someone who is neutral and fair.”
Board member Orlando Lopez seconded Corona’s motion to nominate Gomez.
“I think he’s going to be a great asset to the board,” he said. “He’s a great guy. He’s a stand-up, respectable guy. He’s from San Benito — his kids went to school here. He’s very experienced in business. His professionalism and experience are going to be great assets to the board.”
Meanwhile, Cruz said Gomez presented each board member with his letter of interest in the position.
“I thought that was cordial and I know he wants to work with us all and I look foward to working with him as we continue to strive to be the gold standard in public education,” she said.
