SUBMITTED PRESS RELEASE
Hays CISD Education Foundation board member and Kyle resident Holly Smith Raymond has filed for candidacy to the at-large post being vacated by outgoing Hays CISD Board of Trustees President Patti Wood. In endorsing Raymond, Woods stated, “Her experience with our district as a student and a parent, along with her unwavering support for our schools, our teachers, our students, and our community, will enable her to be an outstanding school board member. I am proud to support her and extremely confident that she will continue to move our district forward in a positive direction.”
Raymond summarized her motivation for entering the May school board race by noting “our Hays county schools have given so much to our community and to me personally. In this environment of funding and external challenges faced by our teachers and administrators, I’m humbled to have an opportunity to bring my experience, leadership, and ideas to help our great district continue providing the best possible education for our children.”
In addition to her role as Treasurer for the Hays CISD Education Foundation, Raymond also serves as Vice President of Finance and Operations for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Texas. She is a member of the Negley and Barton PTAs, HYBA basketball coach and Girl Scout Troop 2283 Cookie Mom. A 1996 graduate of Hays High School, Raymond continued her education at the University of Texas at Austin, graduating in 2001 from their top-ranked accounting program with a Masters Degree in Public Accounting.
Raymond and her husband, Jeff, have three children, Madalyn (12), Beck (8), and Bristol (6), who are students at Hays’ Barton Middle and Negley Elementary schools. “I’ve had the privilege of seeing the passion and devotion of our Hays teachers as a student and parent, as well as through service to our district,” said Raymond, adding “I look forward to doing everything I can to honor their service to our district and our children.”
