Katy ISD Trustee Rebecca Fox received a 40-minute farewell at the board's Sept. 21 meeting after two decades of service. Fox watched the district grow from about 32,000 students to more than 95,000.

Fox served on the Board of Trustees from 2004 to 2019 and returned after winning election in 2021. She held every board officer position during her tenure, including three stints as board president. Her official retirement date is Oct. 12, seven months before her term was set to expire in May 2027.

Fellow trustees and district officials spent nearly 20 minutes recognizing Fox before she delivered a roughly 22-minute farewell address, Covering Katy reported.

Trustee Cicely Taylor highlighted one detail that stood out, according to the Katy Times: Fox attended every single high school graduation throughout her years on the board. Trustee Dawn Champagne, who first met Fox in 2002 when Fox was the outgoing PTA president at Creech Elementary, said she modeled her own board service after Fox. Champagne noted Fox had worked alongside at least 32 Katy ISD board members, 26 of whom were elected after Fox first joined in 2004.

Trustee James Cross thanked Fox for guiding him when he joined the board. Board President Lance Redmon led the tributes and joked with Fox before handing her the microphone: "Next time, you will only have three minutes, though."

Six community members also spoke during public comment. Among them were former Katy ISD Trustee Bill Lacy and Peter McElwain, the former district architect for whom McElwain Elementary is named. McElwain, who said he worked for the district from 1997 to 2017, told Fox she was "part of the design of every project" and called the district's campuses her legacy.

Fox told the audience she and her husband are relocating to the Dallas area to be closer to their three grandsons. She described herself not as a trustee but as "one grateful mom who found a home in Katy and never wanted to leave."

Her involvement with the district began when she organized a PTA for what was then Elementary No. 19, now Creech Elementary. Fox noted the district is preparing to open Elementary No. 49. The Texas Education Agency lists Katy ISD's 2025-26 enrollment at 95,136 across 78 schools.

Beyond board service, Fox helped establish the Katy ISD Education Foundation and said she plans to donate remaining campaign funds to the foundation. She earned the Master Trustee designation through the Texas Association of School Boards (TASB) and was reelected to the TASB Board of Directors in October 2025 for a three-year term.

Fox's Position 6 seat is expected to remain vacant until the May 2027 general election. Board President Redmon said at an Aug. 17 work study meeting that no trustee had moved to fill the seat. Community Impact reported the board has the option to appoint someone under state law but is not required to do so with less than a year remaining in the term.

Katy ISD will elect trustees for positions 6 and 7 in May 2027.