McKinney, Texas – Though their backgrounds differ, the seven elected members of the McKinney ISD Board of Trustees share a singular vision of success for all students—and they commit a great deal of time and energy toward that goal.

They certainly don’t do it for the money; there’s no compensation for the position. The motivation springs, largely, from a desire to give back to a community and school district that has enriched the lives of their own children.

And, while the work is often difficult, requiring serious study and deliberation on a broad range of issues that impact the district, that hard work is frequently punctuated with heartfelt celebration and recognition of student achievements.

Trustees are elected by the general public to serve for overlapping terms of four years each, and elections for board seats are conducted annually each May. The candidates run for specific places on the board (Place 1, Place 2, etc.), but they represent McKinney ISD as a whole. Once elections are finalized, the Board elects a president, vice-president and secretary for one-year terms.

It is the responsibility of the McKinney ISD Board of Trustees to function under the legal parameters of the state and federal constitutions, statutes, courts and administrative agencies. MISD Board members are responsible for providing the best educational opportunity possible for the students in McKinney ISD and for making all final decisions regarding school district priorities, policies, personnel, textbooks, expenditures and growth management. The MISD School Board Trustees will adopt a budget that will properly maintain and operate all schools in the district, levy taxes to support the budget as well as determine and submit bond issues to the voting citizens of McKinney regarding the need to finance specific construction projects.

The decisions of our board members and MISD Superintendent Dr. Rick McDaniel positively impact the lives of tens of thousands of students and parents as well as the broader community. It’s an enormous responsibility.

In honor of Board Appreciation Month, we’d like to take a few moments to spotlight each of our outstanding board members and to say thank you to this group of women and men who serve our community.

Amy Dankel, President
Place: 4
Term Expires: 2019
Retired Educator

Amy Dankel moved to McKinney in 1997 and has served as a public school educator for 22 years, the last 10 in McKinney ISD at Finch Elementary School and Eddins Elementary School.

She and her husband Roger have been married for 29 years and are active members of Stonebridge United Methodist Church. Roger works for Simpson Strong-Tie. Their two children were educated in MISD. Nick graduated from McKinney North High School in 2008 and graduated from the University of Colorado, majoring in Astrophysics. Stephanie graduated from McKinney Boyd in 2010 and graduated from Clemson University, majoring in International Health and Spanish.

Mrs. Dankel earned a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from Virginia Tech and a Bachelor of Science in Education from Millsaps College.

She cites a deep feeling of responsibility to give back to a school system and community that has given so much to her and to her family as her major motivation for serving on the McKinney ISD Board of Trustees.

Bobby Amick
Vice President
Place 2
Term Expires: 2017
Attorney

Bobby Amick, a sixteen-year resident of McKinney, is a partner with the law firm of Francis & Totusek, LLP, where his practice focuses on health care law, business disputes and other commercial litigation matters.

With a heart for the students of McKinney ISD, Bobby joined the Board in 2011, and enjoys working with his fellow Board members to create new opportunities for student achievement throughout the District.

Before his current position with Francis & Totusek, LLP, Bobby began his law career at a large Dallas firm where he worked on a variety of legal matters involving secured and unsecured creditors in bankruptcy cases. He is a current member of the Dallas and Collin County Bar Associations and is a barrister in the Curt B. Henderson Inn of Court.

Bobby’s formal education includes a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University, and a Juris Doctor, magna cum laude from Baylor. Following his undergraduate studies, he received a commission as an officer in the U.S. Navy where he served for eight years. Bobby’s service with the Navy is highlighted by more than 5,000 flight hours spread over several deployments to numerous countries in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. After completing his military service, he earned a general securities license (Series 7, 63).

Bobby and his wife of twenty-four years, Mindy, have three children—one attends McKinney High School and two are in college. Mindy serves as the campus secretary of McKinney North High School and shares Bobby’s labor of love for, and vested interest in, McKinney ISD.

Bobby has a heart for McKinney ISD gained through his longstanding involvement in the lives of teachers and students alike. As a Trustee, he hopes to further the District’s long list of achievements and to work alongside the community as well as the other members of the Board to seize new opportunities for excellence.

Lynn Sperry
Secretary
Place 5
Term Expires: 2019
Magazine Publisher

Lynn Sperry has served on the McKinney ISD Board of Trustees for 31 years. She holds a bachelor’s degree in music education from The Ohio State University and taught public school vocal and instrumental music for grades 1–8.

Sperry served 12 years as a Director of the Texas Association of School Boards. She is a graduate of the Texas Association of School Boards Leadership TASB program, “Class of 2000” with the designation of “Master Trustee”.

Lynn feels that her experience in education along with her years of involvement as a parent and current involvement as a grandparent are assets to the MISD School Board.

She is proud to set high academic goals for the district and sees the budget and the increase in student population as ongoing challenges for MISD. Lynn is extremely proud of how the board and district administration have handled bonded indebtedness over the years. The result is a very stable financial future for MISD.

Lynn is very excited to see students who represent many different disciplines excel in district, state and national competitions. MISD has truly become an outstanding organization, and she is proud to work with a board of trustees that makes students its priority.

Lynn received the Carey Cox Award – The Outstanding McKinney Citizen 2006. She was awarded the Kim Hoffman Volunteer of the Year for McKinney 1997 along with her husband Neil.

Lynn’s community involvement includes: Founding and current Board Member emeritus of McKinney Education Foundation; Board Member, McKinney Baylor Scott and White Hospital; Past President, Avenues Counseling Center Board; Crape Myrtle Trails of McKinney, Board Member; Founding Member and MISD liaison to Serenity High Advisory Board.

Currently, Lynn serves as Secretary of the MISD Board of Trustees and is an officer of the North Texas Area Association of School Boards.

Her three children attended MISD schools and she is proud that the education they received prepared them for success in college and in their careers. Currently, Lynn has seven grandchildren attending six MISD campuses. Lynn and her husband Neil own Neil Sperry’s GARDENS. She and her family are members of the first United Methodist Church of McKinney.

Kathi Livezey
Trustee
Place 3
Term Expires: 2017
Retired Educator

Kathi Livezey taught fourth and fifth grade at J.W. Webb Elementary School for seven years, and served as an elementary library media specialist. In addition, she spent over 23 years as the Library Media Specialist at McKinney High School. She has also worked as an office manager and software trainer.

Livezey holds a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Southern Methodist University and a Master of Library and Information Science from Texas Woman’s University. She has been married to her husband, Mike Livezey, for 35 years and has two daughters, Kara and Katie.

She is a graduate of McKinney High School and a member of the McKinney Ex-Students Association Board (2003-2009). She is an active member of First Christian Church of McKinney.

“I am honored to have been elected to the MISD Board of Trustees, and I look forward to working with the community, MISD administration, and other members of the Board to effectively implement the mission and goals of the district,” said Livezey.

Maria McKinzie
Trustee
Place 1
Term Expires: 2017
Supply Chain Specialist – Raytheon

Maria McKinzie has deep roots in McKinney ISD. She and her husband Johnny, have raised three children—Johnny, Thomas and Deanna—in the district over the course of their 31 years of marriage. In addition, three of her six grandchildren live in McKinney and attend Webb Elementary and Scott Johnson Middle School.

Mrs. McKinzie graduated from McKinney High School in 1977 and has spent the past 38 years working for Raytheon Company in McKinney. She is currently employed with Logistics Supply Chain and is active in a number of volunteer organizations throughout the community.

“It has been an honor to serve on the MISD Board of Trustees since 2006. I’m bilingual, and I feel it is one of my greatest assets,” said Mrs. McKinzie. “I will continue to strive for opportunities to increase our community involvement to ensure our children can accomplish each of their individual dreams and goals. I am proud to serve with my fellow Board members and to know that we do not only represent our single districts—I am proud to say we represent McKinney ISD as a whole.”

Stephanie O’Dell
Trustee
Place 6 (At-Large)
Term Expires: 2019

Stephanie O’Dell has been actively involved in McKinney schools for 12 years. Serving on PTO and PTA in various roles has given her the opportunity to develop relationships with teachers and principals.

She currently serves on the McKinney High PTO, the McKinney Education Foundation Board (MEF) and she works with the youth and the women’s ministry at First Baptist McKinney. She is also a mentor in the REACH program.

Stephanie graduated from Texas A&M University with a bachelor’s degree in marketing and she worked in sales for eight years. She and her husband have two daughters. The oldest is a student at Texas A&M and the youngest is at McKinney High School.

Serving as a trustee, Stephanie has the opportunity to visit campuses and see the students in action. As McKinney grows, she will seek to pursue excellence for MISD.

Curtis Rippee
Trustee
Place 7 (At-Large)
Term Expires: 2017
Curtis Rippee and his family moved to McKinney to be a part of a dynamic community where families live, work, attend school and attend church all in the same city. Serving on the Board is Rippee’s way to give back and serve and enhance one of the most important foundations of our community, the school system.

Rippee has more than 25 years of financial management experience. He is the Managing Partner and CFO of ACIS, Inc. a commercial HVAC and Plumbing service company. Before joining ACIS in 2012, he was the the Founder and Principal of StratiFi Partners, LLC, a CFO and consulting services firm. Prior to starting StratiFi Partners, his leadership roles included serving as the Chief Financial Officer of several small to mid-sized private companies, and as the Chief Accounting Officer and Vice President of Finance and Administration for a publicly traded company.

Rippee currently serves on the Executive Committee of First Baptist Church and has served as Treasurer of the Avenues Counseling Center Board of Trustees and the McKinney Education Foundation Board. He has been a Junior Achievement volunteer and is a past participant in McKinney CAN (Community Action Network), a program involving parents and community leaders in a yearlong dialogue with the school district.

Curtis began his professional career with PriceWaterhouseCoopers, holds a Bachelor of Science in Accountancy from the University of Missouri and is a licensed Certified Public Accountant.

Rippee and wife, Deeann, are active members of First Baptist Church of McKinney and have three girls, Emma Grace, Abigail and Ellie, who attend McKinney Boyd High School and Faubion Middle School.

“McKinney ISD is well known for its excellence and innovation,” said Rippee. “My family came to McKinney specifically because of its heritage and reputation as a community and its outstanding school system. McKinney has been everything we could have hoped for and more.”

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