Debra Kerner

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Debra Kerner

Democratic Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

March 3, 2020

Education

Bachelor's

Syracuse University, 1971

Graduate

Columbia University, 1973

Personal

Birthplace

Syracuse, N.Y.

Religion

Jewish

Profession

Speech-language pathologist

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Debra Kerner (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Texas State Board of Education to represent District 6. She lost in the Democratic primary on March 3, 2020.

Kerner completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.

Kerner was a 2018 Democratic candidate who sought election to the U.S. House to represent the 7th Congressional District of Texas. Kerner suspended her campaign on August 23, 2017.

Biography

Debra Kerner was born in Syracuse, New York. She earned a bachelor's degree from Syracuse University in 1971 and a master's degree from Columbia University in 1973. Kerner's career experience includes working as a speech language pathologist. During her career, she has worked with students in school districts throughout Houston at all grade levels.

Elections

2020

See also: Texas State Board of Education election, 2020

General election

General election for Texas State Board of Education District 6

Will Hickman defeated Michelle Palmer and Whitney Bilyeu in the general election for Texas State Board of Education District 6 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Will Hickman (R)	49.8	371,958
		Michelle Palmer (D)	47.4	354,179
		Whitney Bilyeu (L)	2.9	21,414

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 747,551
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary runoff election

Democratic primary runoff for Texas State Board of Education District 6

Michelle Palmer defeated Kimberly McLeod in the Democratic primary runoff for Texas State Board of Education District 6 on July 14, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michelle Palmer	64.2	39,757
		Kimberly McLeod	35.8	22,139

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 61,896
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Texas State Board of Education District 6

Michelle Palmer and Kimberly McLeod advanced to a runoff. They defeated Debra Kerner in the Democratic primary for Texas State Board of Education District 6 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michelle Palmer	46.7	51,778
✔		Kimberly McLeod	34.7	38,439
		Debra Kerner	18.7	20,712

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 110,929
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Texas State Board of Education District 6

Will Hickman advanced from the Republican primary for Texas State Board of Education District 6 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Will Hickman	100.0	88,900

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 88,900
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Libertarian convention

Libertarian convention for Texas State Board of Education District 6

Whitney Bilyeu advanced from the Libertarian convention for Texas State Board of Education District 6 on March 21, 2020.

		Candidate
✔		Whitney Bilyeu (L)

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2018

See also: Texas' 7th Congressional District election, 2018

Kerner briefly sought election to the 7th Congressional District of Texas in 2018. She suspended her campaign on August 23, 2017.

Campaign themes

2020

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Debra Kerner completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Kerner's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Debra Kerner is a speech-language pathologist and former Vice President of the Harris County Department of Education, first elected countywide in 2008. She is the owner of Southwest Speech, a private practice in speech-language pathology, and former instructor of speech pathology at the University of Houston. She has worked with children of all ages, from preschool through high school in various school districts across Houston.

She governed on the Harris County Department of Education Board, working with Democrats and Republicans to provide education services for the people who live in Harris County. She was elected Vice President of the Board in a bipartisan vote. As a board member, she had oversight of a $100 million budget, worked with parents on a new Head Start curriculum and ushered in a new superintendent, all while keeping her focus on how to improve conditions for school kids.

She lives in the Meyerland area with her husband Ron, and is an active member of the Anti-Defamation League. She also is a former president of the Houston Association for Communication Disorders and a vice-president of the Texas Speech Language Hearing Association.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Preparing students - 1) Prioritize kids, not tests. 2) Give educators the tools to be great at their jobs. 3) show parents that we have their backs
• Developing Curriculum - 1) Let educators & specialists weigh in on curriculum development. 2) Utilize best practices over far right agenda. 3) teach to the kid not to the test.
• Financial accountability - 1) No politically connected investment managers. 2) Seek an independent outside audit to get the most out of the Permanent School Fund for our children

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Education. I have worked in education my whole adult life and am passionate about making education better for the students. I want them to be college, technical school and career ready.

What qualities does this office possess that makes it a unique and important part of the state government and legal system?

The State Board of Education (SBOE) sets policies and standards for Texas public schools. The primary responsibilities of the SBOE include:

​
Setting curriculum standards
Reviewing and adopting instructional materials
Establishing graduation requirements
Overseeing the Texas Permanent School Fund
Appointing board members to military reservation and special school districts
Providing final review of rules proposed by the State Board for Educator Certification
Reviewing the commissioner's proposed award of new charter schools, with authority to veto a recommended applicant
​

Source: Texas Education Agency

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

I believe that it is important to be able to get things done. An elected official has to know how to be collaborative to get ideas passed. I have shown that when I was on the Board of Trustees for the Harris County Department of Education.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

My profession requires me to be a good listener, helping school children develop the skills they need to learn and succeed. Some politicians like to talk; I like to listen, evaluate and come up with sound policy decisions that help us progress as a society.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My first job was at Albany Medical Center Hospital, where I taught preschool deaf and hearing impaired children. I worked with students from the time their hearing loss was first discovered until they entered kindergarten. The program was so renowned that people drove long distances to attend. I was employed there for 1 ½ year, but had volunteered in the program for 4 years while in high school. That's how I decided on my career choice.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

Baby Shark

What responsibilities of this office do you personally consider the most important?

The most important responsibilities of this office include: setting curriculum and adopting instructional materials, overseeing the Permanent School Fund, new charter school approval or denial and establishing graduation requirements,

Do you believe that it's beneficial for holders of this office to have previous experience in government or politics?

Yes. My time governing as a progressive on the Republican dominated Harris County Department of Education Board gives me valuable insight on how to govern and get things done. For too long, the SBOE has been a national punch line, fodder for late night comedians. Our students deserve better, and my background gives me the skills to help impact the way business operates.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

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