S&S CISD school board trustee Donna Dolezalek retires after 15 years of service

After 15 years of serving on the S&S CISD School Board, Donna Dolezalek celebrated her retirement at last month’s meeting. 

Dolezalek graduated from S&S High School in 1973 and eventually began working there as the school secretary, a position she held for 27 years. She retired in 2008, then three years later ran for the school board.

“I’ve always been committed to the district,” she said. “It was just ingrained in me to try to improve the district. I’ve always strived to be an advocate for the students, employees and tax payers.”

Dolezalek has seen a lot in her 15 years. She’s run some close races for her school board election – some contested and some not. She’s seen generations of families come through the S&S school system. She’s also seen a lot of change during her tenure. 

A highlight was seeing the addition of the middle school.

A downside has been the state’s increasingly unfunded mandates, which she believes makes things really hard for school districts. 

But her favorite thing about serving on the board has been watching the students of the district excel, both in and outside of school.

“I have a real sense of pride when our students are successful,” she said. “We have a lot of great kids. A lot of successful people come out of our district.”

After having served on the board for so long, Dolezalek felt it was time to step back. As such, she did not file to run for the school board in this year’s election. While her focus will shift slightly, she still plans to be highly involved in the district.

Both of her own children and her grandchildren have graduated from S&S, and she still has grandchildren enrolled in the district.

“I’ll still be involved with school activities, just from a different perspective,” she said.

At the April 20 school board meeting, Dolezalek was recognized for her years of service and was presented with a plaque to honor her commitment to the district.

“I’ll always be watching the success of our (S&S) kids,” she said. “They’re still my kids. I’ll stay in tune with what’s going on. I wish them nothing but success.”