Edinburg CISD trustees name Adele Felix interim superintendent amid public concerns over process and conflicts

The Edinburg CISD Board of Trustees voted in open session to name Adele Felix interim superintendent and authorized the board president to finalize an acting superintendent agreement, after multiple public commenters raised procedural and conflict-of-interest concerns about earlier steps in the selection process.

Public commenters pressed trustees on transparency and the handling of an earlier effort to name a different interim candidate. A speaker who identified herself as a union president told the board that at the prior meeting “board members with 5 or more years of experience…were either incapable or unwilling to make a proper motion for interim superintendent,” and said the ECISD attorney had told the board it needed to provide a name before voting. The union representative said the board ended up with what she called “two incomplete motions” and said that made the subsequent vote invalid.

Fern McClearty, a community member, urged trustees to use internal candidates rather than hiring from districts that had experienced state intervention, saying it would be wasteful to spend taxpayers’ money on an outside interim and asking the district to conduct background checks on employees. Alondra Lizette Flores Aguilar, a vendor and parent, raised a separate concern about conflicts of interest, saying a trustee “had a prior business deal on La Jolla during Gisela [Saenz’s] tenure and did not abstain from voting.” Flores cited board policy BBF (ethics) and chapters 171 and 176 of the Texas local government code and urged trustees to follow disclosure rules.

During discussion of Item 4, one trustee moved that the board remain in open session and nominate an internal candidate. Chair (as recorded by the meeting facilitator) recognized the nomination of Adele Felix; the chair announced the nomination was seconded by trustee David Torres. A trustee clarified that an earlier candidate identified in the record as Dr. Gisela Saenz had withdrawn her name and was not available. The motion was amended on the floor to authorize the board president to finalize an acting superintendent agreement with Felix.

The chair called for a show-of-hands vote. The chair announced, “Motion carries.” The board then moved to adjourn and the meeting concluded.

The meeting record does not include a roll-call vote tally in the transcript; the chair reported the result by voice and gesture. Public commenters left the meeting urging transparency, internal consideration of existing district administrators, and adherence to conflict-of-interest disclosure requirements. The board’s authorization to finalize an agreement signals that Felix will serve in the interim while the district proceeds with next steps for a permanent hire.