Diane Patrick (born January 9, 1946 [1]) is a politician from Texas. She currently serves as the District 3 representative on the Tarrant County College District Board of Trustees. [2] Prior to that, she served as a Republican in the Texas House of Representatives for District 94 from 2007 to 2015, and on the Texas State Board of Education from 1992 to 1996. [2] [1]
Patrick earned a bachelor's degree from Baylor University with a major in elementary education. [2] She then went on to the University of North Texas where she earned a master's of education and then a Ph.D. in philosophy/educational administration. [2]
With her husband, Ned, she has two children, Craig and Claire. [1] She lives in Arlington, Texas and is a member of the Junior League. [1]
Patrick taught at Texas Christian University and at the College of Education at the University of Texas at Arlington. [2] [1] She was also a teacher in the Birdville, Richardson, and Waco, Texas Independent School Districts. [2] [1]
At CPC Millwood Hospital, Patrick was the director of adult program services and at Bedford Meadows Hospital was the director of education, in-patient, and adolescent services. [2]
Patrick has served on a number of boards, including the Texas Center for Educational Research, the Arlington Museum of Art, the Children's Advocacy Network, and the Texas Education Reform Foundation. [2] [1] She was the president of the Center for Professional Development and Technology's executive committee and a county co-chair for March of Dimes. [2] [1]
From 1981 to 1992, Patrick served on the Arlington Independent School District Board of Trustees. [2] [1] From 1992 until 1996, she was on the Texas State Board of Education, and on May 6, 2017, she was elected to the Tarrant County College Board of Trustees. [2] She beat the incumbent, Sean Hayward, in a special election for the District 3 seat with 68% of the vote. [2] She had been appointed to a seat on the board in 2016. [3]
From 2007 until 2015, Patrick was a Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 94. [2] [1] To win the seat, she defeated 19 year incumbent Kent Grusendorf, who disparaged her as an "educrat." [4] She opposed school vouchers, while Grusendorf supported them. [5] While in the legislature, Patrick served on the Appropriations, Higher Education, and Rules & Resolutions Committees. [2]