Serna’s devotion, impact as PSJA ISD Trustee will be missed

How time flies, and the older we get, the faster it seems to pass us by. If we blink, there goes another week.

That being said, it’s hard to believe I’ve known former PSJA ISD Board Trustee Diana Serna since 1992 when she first ran for a place on the Pharr City Commission, which she won, becoming the first woman in the city’s history to serve as the mayor pro tem.

She won re-election in 1996 when another old buddy of mine was on the city commission, “Pepe” Salinas, a giant among men, and the man after whom the city’s civic center is named.

In the community newspaper business, one sees so many names come and go as the decades pass by, but the good ones always stick with you.

Actually, come to think of it, I knew Diana Serna before she was elected to city government, when she and her husband, Juan Serna, owned the Gift Box in the early 1980s at Twin Palm Plaza when it first opened on the corner of Hwy. 281 and I-2 (the old Exp. 83).

Over the years, Diana has been a friend to both me and my wife, Jan, so it’s with some degree of sadness that we watched as she resigned from her seat as a PSJA ISD board trustee this spring. As a longtime educator herself, both as a teacher, a coach, and a counselor, she always brought so much incite to her elected post.

She has since been replaced by someone just as capable, Romeo Robles, but it’s still hard to see Serna leave approximately seven months before her term was set to end this November.

A Stellar Record

Diana Serna officially left her board seat in March due to some unforeseen health issues.

A cancer survivor, she knows how to handle life when it throws you a curve ball, but she knew that the busy end-of-the-year school season was set to begin this month when so many graduation events demand a trustee’s full time and attention.

“I was scheduled to read to some kids. I had to cancel, and I realized I couldn’t give it 100 percent. I didn’t like disappointing students. I felt that I had no business staying on the board and that I needed to be replaced.”

Serna’s term was set to end this November, so her replacement, appointed to the board last month, Romeo Robles, will have to run for her seat if he so chooses. A longtime PSJA ISD educator himself, he’ll be a good fit on the board, Serna says.

When she ran for her seat four years ago, she was retired, but some on the board asked her to run in the 2022 election, so she agreed.

“When I became a cancer survivor, I just felt this need to pay something back to this community I grew up in and worked in during most of my career. And what better way to do it than with something tied to education because that was my life. So I ran for the school board seat in 2022,” she said.

Serna says she finds it fascinating that PSJA ISD can run so well even though it is comprised of three cities — Pharr, San Juan, and Alamo.

“I really find that fascinating. That as many people as there are, with three different communities, and yet we are one district that finds a way to make it all work out," Serna said. "After all, we’re talking about, what, approximately 29,000 students and approximately 4, 600 employees. You know, one person can’t make something so big work so well. It takes a team. Everyone plays a part.”

Finally, as a mom, who along with her husband of many years, Juan, who passed away approximately eight years ago, together raised a family of productive adults, now is probably a good time to wish her a belated Happy Mother’s Day and many more good and healthy years moving forward.

We will miss you on the school board, Diana.

“I grew up in this community, and I can honestly say, it’s been a great pleasure to serve this district over the years as both an employee and a board trustee, as well as a Pharr city commissioner. I consider myself very grateful and thankful for all that I have,” she said.

One final note, she says:

“I thank God and the community for having given me the opportunity to proudly serve PSJA. I also wish to thank the board members, Superintendent Dr. Elias, the district’s administration and entire staff for their efforts in making PSJA ISD the best.

"I will always treasure the many calls of love, gratitude, and support I have received. God bless PSJA.”