Frisco Independent School District (ISD) Trustee Stephanie Elad appeared on the July 9, 2026 episode of The Building Texas Show, titled "Frisco's Population Boom: What's Really Happening?", to discuss the district's new reality of declining enrollment after years of rapid growth. Hosted by Justin McKenzie, the episode explores how Frisco ISD, now landlocked and built out, is navigating this inflection point and what it means for teachers, families, and taxpayers.
Elad, a corporate HR executive and two-term trustee reelected to a term through 2028, detailed her path to public office. She recalled an April 2021 board meeting where the board president said, "this is our meeting, not the community's." That comment, she explained, triggered an immediate response: "The board president said, you know, this is our meeting, meaning theirs and not the community's. And that just did not sit right with me. I didn't like it. And so I was sitting waiting for my turn to talk, and I realized that what I really wanted to talk about at that point was what he had just said." The incident led to a standing ovation, statewide press coverage, and her decision to run for office in 2022.
Elad emphasized how her HR background informs her governance, particularly in improving teacher retention. She brought a confidential, third-party employee engagement survey into the district to better understand staff concerns and address them. "Tough conversations with staff and parents have never really been foreign to me because I've just been doing it for so long," she said.
Workforce readiness is another priority. Elad highlighted the need to reduce stigma around trades and expand career pathways. She pointed to a neighbor who owns a plumbing business, earns a couple hundred thousand dollars annually, but cannot find apprentice plumbers. Frisco ISD is building apprenticeship pathways in plumbing, electrical, and HVAC alongside existing CTE tracks like medical terminology, legal assistant work, and e-gaming. Elad argued that high schoolers should be able to enter apprenticeship programs earning $60,000 to $70,000 within a year or two of graduation, without debt or a four-year degree. McKenzie connected this to his advisory work with the startup Founding Up and PTECH welding programs in the San Antonio area, where students graduate with as many as 60 college credit hours through community college partnerships.
The conversation also touched on preparing students for careers that AI cannot replace and the importance of voting in low-turnout school board elections. Elad discussed the district's new superintendent, hired roughly a month before the taping, expressing renewed optimism about Frisco ISD's next chapter.
This episode of The Building Texas Show is available now on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. The show profiles founders, operators, educators, and civic leaders shaping Texas's future, with new episodes releasing weekly.
