Edgewood ISD board votes to publicly censure trustee Michael Valdez

Edgewood Independent School District trustees voted Sept. 8 to adopt a resolution publicly censuring Trustee Michael Valdez and imposing sanctions that include removal from committees, an immediate travel ban on district-related travel, ineligibility for election as a board officer in 2025 and 2026, and a requirement that Valdez complete additional governance training by October 2025. The vote followed a closed-session review and more than 20 minutes of public comment earlier in the meeting.

The censure resolution, read aloud by board counsel and introduced in open session after a closed-session discussion under Texas Government Code §551.071, cited Board operating procedures and board ethics and found that Valdez’s remarks to the media in August 2025 “were in violation of the board operating procedures and board ethics.” Board attorney Cruz described a sanction as a formal reprimand and told the board that a sanction does not remove an elected official from office: “The board of trustees does not have the authority to remove a board member from his or her elected position. The only ones that can remove a board member from an elected position is either the electorate or a district court judge.” Cruz also cited the U.S. Supreme Court decision Houston Community College System v. Wilson (2022) as legal context for censure authority.

The resolution spelled out the penalties: rescinding Valdez’s appointment as a delegate to the TASA/TASB conference, declaring him ineligible for board officer elections in 2025 and 2026, banning EISD-related travel effective immediately, removing him from all four standing committees, and directing him to complete training through the Education Service Center, TASB and/or TASA by October 2025. The motion was made by Trustee Luis Gomez and seconded by Trustee Sergio Delgado; the board president called the roll on the motion and announced that the motion passed. The transcript does not record a numerical roll-call tally.

Public comment before the closed session was dominated by members of the community who urged the trustees not to sanction Valdez. Melody Herrera, a community speaker, said she came to “urge you to vote against sanctions on Trustee Michael Valdez,” adding that sanctions “do nothing for students, teachers, or classrooms. They only create division and waste valuable time.” Leticia Sanchez told the board the proposed sanctions were “a violation of our First Amendment rights” and asked trustees to reject the censure. Several speakers tied their support for Valdez to his background as an Edgewood graduate and his visibility at school events and community activities. One speaker, Lisa Owens, expressed the opposite view, calling Valdez “a repeat offender” and urging removal from the board.

Trustees who spoke during the discussion framed the resolution as an enforcement of board policy and operating procedures. Trustee Sergio Delgado said trustees must distinguish when they speak as private citizens and when they speak as representatives of the board, noting that a trustee “failed to notify the media that his comments to the media were being made in his individual capacity.” Trustee Frank Espinosa questioned the financial impact of legal matters tied to recent disputes and described legal fees the district has incurred. Several trustees referenced prior warnings and a prior censure action in January 2024; the resolution itself recites the January 2024 censure as prior board action.

Procedural context: the board president announced at the start of the special-called meeting that notice had been posted under the Texas Open Meetings Act and that a quorum was present. The board heard 20 public speakers during the “communications from citizens” portion; the president then moved the meeting into closed session at about 5:46 p.m. under Texas Government Code §551.071; the board reconvened in open session at about 6:42 p.m. The board then read the resolution and voted to adopt it; the president later declared the meeting adjourned at about 7:04 p.m.

Board counsel and multiple trustees emphasized legal limits on the board’s authority: counsel said a sanction is a public reprimand rather than removal, and he cited the Houston Community College System v. Wilson decision to explain that a censure ordinarily does not create a viable First Amendment claim by the censured official under the facts described. The resolution directs Valdez to comply with board operating procedures going forward and to complete governance and ethics training by October 2025.

The board’s action will change Valdez’s formal roles on the board (committee assignments, delegation and officer eligibility) but, per counsel’s statement, does not change his status as an elected trustee. The transcript does not record any subsequent appeals or legal filings by Valdez or the district following the vote.

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