If I Were a School District Superintendent, This Is How I Would Take Over Eagle Pass
A hypothetical account of what may be happening
If I were the superintendent of Eagle Pass ISD and wanted to extend my influence beyond the education system, I wouldn’t need a public campaign or a seat at the city council table. I would build a quiet, calculated network of control using one of the most powerful tools at my disposal: the district’s workforce.
The first step would be shaping the internal structure of the school district around my vision. That means placing loyal individuals in key administrative and management positions. These would be people who understand their role not only as educators or department heads but as protectors of institutional alignment. Their loyalty would not be in writing, but it would be understood. Their job security, promotional pathway, and professional survival would be tied directly to their ability to enforce the direction I set. Through these top-tier positions, I could dictate hiring, influence policy decisions, and indirectly silence dissent before it even begins.
But the true power does not lie in the upper echelons of leadership. It lies in the numbers. If I wanted real control, I would focus on building a workforce that is bottom-heavy, comprised mostly of paraprofessionals and other non-certified staff members. These include classroom aides, custodians, food service workers, office clerks, maintenance teams, and bus drivers. They are the backbone of the district’s day-to-day operations, often underpaid, overworked, and deeply vulnerable to institutional pressure.
By ensuring that these positions outnumber professional roles like teachers and administrators, I would create an environment where influence through fear becomes structurally possible. This group is less likely to speak out, less likely to access legal resources, and far less likely to challenge authority, especially in smaller communities where job opportunities are limited. These individuals often live paycheck to paycheck, making them ideal targets for subtle but effective political messaging.
I would never need to tell them outright who to vote for. I would simply tie their sense of job stability to their perceived loyalty. Through campus meetings, department briefings, or administrative interactions, I could embed the idea that certain candidates, those connected to the district, represent continuity and safety. Others, who might question district leadership or propose independent oversight, could be quietly framed as risks to job security or funding.
Through this workforce, I would activate a reliable voting bloc, one that is not politically driven but economically dependent. This base would turn out for elections that typically draw low turnout, hospital board races, housing authority seats, city and county positions. It would be the margin of victory in close races. From that position, I could begin placing trusted district employees or allies into those external roles, all while maintaining the façade of independence.
Those elected would remain employees of the school district, bound not just by professional obligation but by the reality that their paychecks, evaluations, and work environment still answer to my administration. While they would appear as civic-minded community leaders, their allegiance would remain fixed. Their votes, whether on city budgets, county infrastructure, healthcare spending, or land development decisions, would quietly reinforce my reach.
This influence would grow organically. No press conferences, no campaign slogans. Just the slow embedding of district-affiliated decision-makers across the city. Soon, the public hospital district’s board, the city council, or even the housing authority could be shaped by people who depend on me. If they ever opposed my interests, their professional future would be at stake.
To protect this network, I would also ensure a tight grip on internal communication and public messaging. Local media would be managed with carefully prepared statements, access limited to favorable coverage, and critics marginalized as disgruntled or misinformed. Internally, I would discourage political conversations, frame dissent as disloyalty, and reward those who support “stability.” The school environment would remain pleasant on the surface, filled with school pride campaigns, parent nights, and teacher recognitions, while the deeper current of control flows just below.
In this way, I would take over Eagle Pass. Not with slogans or signs, but with staffing decisions, whispered expectations, and voter manipulation. My name would rarely be in headlines, but my influence would be present at nearly every level of local government.
This, of course, is hypothetical. But the method is real. And the danger is real, too.
Communities must pay attention. When the head of a public institution begins to influence elections through employment pressure, hiring practices, and strategic placements, democracy begins to erode. A healthy civic environment depends on independence, transparency, and the protection of every employee’s right to think, vote, and act without fear.
If one public office becomes the root of control for every other, it’s not leadership—it’s occupation by proxy.
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