Board Leadership

Highland Park ISD Board of Trustees

The Highland Park ISD Board of Trustees consists of seven members, each of whom has been elected to serve a three-year term. School board members are entrusted with the responsibility of setting policy and promoting educational excellence for Highland Park ISD, and receive no compensation.

Maryjane Bonfield
President, Place 2

Term expiration: 2024
[email protected]

Maryjane Bonfield was elected to the Highland Park Independent School District Board of Trustees in May 2021.

Bonfield attended University Park Elementary School, McCulloch Middle School and Highland Park High School, where she graduated “Top Ten” and received the Blanket Award in 1996. She received a double major in mathematics and fine arts from Vanderbilt University in 2000 and earned her law degree from the SMU Dedman School of Law in 2004. Between college and law school, Bonfield worked as a business consultant for Arthur Andersen. Following law school, she worked as a judicial clerk for the Texas Supreme Court and then as a corporate attorney for Carrington, Coleman, Sloman & Blumenthal, LLP.

Prior to being elected to the Board, Bonfield served in many different volunteer capacities across the district. She has served as a member of the HPISD Facilities Advisory Committee, the HPISD Technology Committee, the Highland Park Education Foundation Board, as well as the Foundation’s Bylaws Committee. Bonfield co-chaired the Hyer Legacy Committee and chaired the 5th Elementary PTO Establishment Committee. She has held several different positions within the Hyer PTA including the e-News Chair, Cafeteria Finance Chair, and most recently, Hyer PTA President.

Bonfield is married to Chris Bonfield. They have three children, all of whom attend HPISD schools: Boone (Class of 2026), Mary Hays (Class of 2028), and Duke (Class of 2030). The Bonfields are active members of Park Cities Presbyterian Church.

Bryce Benson
Vice President, Place 3

Term expiration: 2025
[email protected]

Bryce Benson was elected to the HPISD Board of Trustees in 2021 and fulfilled a partial term ending in 2022. He was reelected in 2022 for a full three-year term and also served as Board Secretary for the 2022-23 school year. In May 2023, Benson was elected to serve as Vice President of the Board of Trustees. Benson also currently serves as the Chair of the Education Services Committee and as the Board representative for the Highland Park Education Foundation. From 2021 to 2023, he served on the ELA Subcommittee. Prior to his election in 2021, he served as President of the University Park Elementary School Dads Club, among other volunteer roles.

Benson is a partner at Akerman LLP, a national law firm with over seven hundred attorneys. His legal practice focuses on business and securities litigation, and he serves as head of the litigation practice group in Dallas. Benson considers it an honor to use his law degree on pro bono matters, particularly adoption. He graduated cum laude from Vanderbilt University with a degree in history and a minor in Spanish, and from the University of Texas School of Law. Studying abroad in Madrid, Spain was a highlight of college and fostered a life-long love of travel and appreciation for other cultures.

In addition to his volunteer roles for HPISD, Benson has been an Eagle Project Coach for Boy Scout Troops 82 and 518. He earned his Eagle Scout award in 1990 and is proud to be the parent of two Eagle Scouts, with his youngest son on the trail to Eagle.

Benson is married to Amy, who has served in various PTA roles since 2014. They have three sons: Carter (Class of 2023) attends Texas A&M University, Caleb (Class of 2025) is a junior at HPHS and Barrett (Class of 2030) is a sixth grader at HPMIS. The Bensons are active members of Park Cities Presbyterian Church, where Mr. Benson serves as a deacon.

Jae Ellis
Secretary, Place 4

Term expiration: 2025
[email protected]

Jae Ellis joined the HPISD Board of Trustees in 2019 and currently serves on the Finance Committee, Property Acquisition Committee, and Design & Construction (Facilities) Committee. Ellis also serves as the Board’s Representative on HPISD’s Sounding Board for Inclusive and Respectful Schools and as the Board’s Liaison to the Park Cities Dads Club. Earlier in his School Board service, Ellis served as Board Secretary, a member of HPISD’s Calendar Committee, and the Board’s Liaison to the HP Sports Club.

Having graduated from Highland Park High School in 1990 and Harvard University in 1994, Ellis returned to HPISD to work as a classroom teacher and coach at Highland Park High School before he earned his law degree from The University of Texas in 1999. Ellis has been licensed to practice law since 1999, and he currently serves as a Regional Sales Executive for publicly traded CS DISCO (NYSE: LAW), where he provides litigation technology solutions for law firm and in-house attorneys.

Prior to joining the HPISD Board of Trustees, Ellis served as the Chairman of the Board for Project Unity, a DFW organization made-up of community leaders from multiple communities, races, ethnicities, and faiths, with the mission of combatting racism and injustice by promoting meaningful conversations, fellowship, and the development of genuine and diverse friendships. Ellis continues to serve as a community facilitator of “Together We Dine” programs for Project Unity. Ellis is also a member of the Salesmanship Club of Dallas, where he serves as an elementary school reading buddy at the Momentous Institute in Oak Cliff. Ellis is also a member of the Board of Directors of Friends of Harvard Football.

Ellis is married to former HPISD classroom teacher and HPHS 1990 graduate, Liza (Graham) Ellis. Liza and Jae are the proud parents of two children: Caroline (HPHS Class of 2019) attends the University of Texas and Judge (Class of 2023) is a senior at HPHS.

Doug Woodward
Finance Officer, Place 1

Term expiration: 2024
[email protected]

Doug Woodward was elected to the Highland Park Independent School District Board of Trustees in May 2021 and serves as the school board's Finance Officer.

Prior to his election to the Board, he served as a member of the 2019 HPISD Boundary Rezoning Committee as well as numerous volunteer leadership roles across HPISD campuses.

Born and raised in Allenhurst, NJ, Woodward graduated from Christian Brothers Academy and went on to receive his bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Kentucky in 1984 and his MBA from Rollins College in 1996. He began his professional career with Procter & Gamble in Cincinnati, OH and has built a successful career in Consumer Goods with executive roles at Walt Disney Attractions, 7-Eleven Inc., MillerCoors and Dean Foods. Currently, he serves as Vice President, Sales Strategy & Operations at CROSSMARK, a leading national sales and marketing services agency based in Plano.

In addition to his HPISD service, Woodward is a graduate of Leadership University Park and has served the city on numerous committees including Public Safety, Retail Advisory and the Centennial Master Plan Focus Committee. He has also served the Finance and Scholarship committees for the Highland Park Education Foundation, as Stewardship Chair for United Way Metropolitan Dallas and on the Board of Directors for United Cerebral Palsy (now Ability Connection).

Woodward is married to Genevieve and has two children, Dylan (HPHS Class of 2022) attends the University of Alabama) and Maggie (Class of 2024) is a junior at HPHS. They are active members of Highland Park United Methodist Church where he has led Sunday School and Confirmation classes, served on the executive committee for Carpenters for Christ and volunteered multiple times as a member of HPUMC’s international mission team in Costa Rica.

Ellen Lee
Place 5

Term expiration: 2025
[email protected]

Ellen Lee was elected to the Highland Park Independent School District Board of Trustees in May 2022.

Lee attended University Park Elementary School, McCulloch Middle School and Highland Park High School, where she graduated “Top Ten” in 1992. She received a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from the University of Virginia in 1996 and a Teacher Certification from the University of Texas at Dallas in 1997. Following her time in education, Lee was a copywriter for nonprofit organizations including World Vision, World Concern, Open Doors and others.

Prior to being elected to the Board, Lee served in various volunteer roles throughout the district. She was a member of the HPISD Boundary Redistricting Committee, the Highland Park Education Foundation and the Parent Education Committee. She also volunteered in the community including initiatives related to the Golden Pennies for Teachers Campaign. She has given 15 years of service in classrooms, libraries, cafeterias, outdoor gardens and on field trips.

In addition to her volunteer roles for HPISD, Lee is a graduate of the City of University Park’s Leadership UP Program and has subsequently served on the City’s Zoning and Development Advisory Committee and the City’s 100 Year Master Plan HPISD/SMU/UP Focus Group.

Lee is married to Paul Lee (Class of 1994). They have three children, all of whom have attended HPISD schools: Trip (HPHS Class of 2020) attends Texas A&M University, Davis (HPHS Class of 2022) attends Texas A&M University, and Marshall (Class of 2025) is a sophmore at HPHS. The Lees are active members of Watermark Community Church.

Blythe Koch
Trustee, Place 6

Term expiration: 2026
[email protected]

Blythe Koch was elected to the Highland Park Independent School District Board of Trustees in May 2023. She serves on the Education Services Committee and Policy Committee and is the Board liaison to the PTAs and the School Health Advisory Committee.

Koch attended Bradfield Elementary School, McCulloch Middle School and Highland Park High School, where she graduated “Top Ten” in 1997. She went on to graduate Summa Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Vanderbilt University in 2001 with a major in Psychology and a minor in Business Administration. Following school, Koch worked as business analyst for Capital One before becoming a stay-at-home mom.

Prior to being elected to the Board, Koch served in many volunteer capacities across the district. She served as a member of the HPISD Facilities Advisory Committee, the Boundary Rezoning Committee, the 5th Elementary Design Committee, and the 5th Elementary PTO Establishment Committee. She also held several positions with the Hyer PTA as Treasurer, Fundraising Chair, and Facilities & Grounds Chair, with the HPHS PTA as the Scots Challenge Chair-Elect, and with the Boone PTO as the inaugural President. Koch has also served in roles with the HPHS Theatre and Band Booster Clubs.

Koch is married to Adam Koch, whom she met at Vanderbilt. They have three children, all attending HPISD schools: Natalie (Class of 2025), Cooper (Class of 2027), and Blake (Class of 2029). The Koches are members of Highland Park Presbyterian Church and are also active with the National Charity League and Young Men’s Service League.

Pete Flowers
Trustee, Place 7

Term expiration: 2026
[email protected]

Pete Flowers was elected to the Highland Park Independent School District Board of Trustees in May 2023.

Pete was born and raised in the Park Cities and attended Hyer Elementary School, McCulloch Middle School and Highland Park High School, where he graduated in 1997 in the top 10% of his class and received the Blanket Award. Following graduation from high school, he attended Baylor University in the Honors Program, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude in 2001 with a BBA in Finance and a Minor in Spanish. After college, he worked for Wells Fargo in the Middle Market Banking division in Houston and San Francisco, then in the Commercial Real Estate Lending group in Dallas. Pete received his MBA in Finance from SMU in 2010, where he was a Cox Scholar, and is now working in commercial land development and investment.

Before his election to the HPISD Board of Trustees, Pete served on the Highland Park Education Foundation Board of Directors (2021-2023), the Highland Park Alumni Association Board (2018-2021), Park Cities Dad’s Club Executive Board (2020-2023), President of the Bradfield Dad’s Club (2019-2020), and Treasurer of the Golden Pennies Campaign (2021). He has served as a volunteer with Troop 82 and has coached more sports teams at the Moody YMCA than he can really remember.

Pete and his wife Ashley have four children, three of whom are at HPISD schools (HPHS, HPMS and MIS). He and his family are active members of Park Cities Presbyterian Church.