ALERT

“Hi Diane,

If you don't want your granddaughters to be joined by some peeping tom in the locker room vote for Diane Houser for School Board Director.  She was a teacher and know how to get it done. We at Right Reason support Sanity in schools. Thank you! STOP to End"

My husband also received this same message along with countless others. 

I immediately responded:

“Right Reason, please retract this text to everyone that you sent it to. I am Diane Houser. I do not sanction this message.” 

Make no mistake, the views expressed by this organization, Right Reason, do not reflect the views of the candidate, Diane Houser, or the candidate’s committee.

Throughout my campaign, I have maintained the same messaging. My views are based on data, my own personal experiences as a teacher and mother of 2 sons that attended Downingtown schools k – 12, and concerns from the community. My campaign has not been about division but about finding solutions to the issues that have been expressed to me by parents, taxpayers, and teachers. Unfortunately, I received some nasty comments, and it is evident that some of those who received this inappropriate text believes that it came from me and my campaign. 

I recently conducted an interview with Broad and Liberty for their School Director Spotlight Series. My views are clearly spelled out in this article. 

Diane Houser — Downingtown Area School District

This installment of our series of interviews with school director candidates across Pennsylvania brings us to the Downingtown Area School District.

Diane Houser is running for school director in the Downingtown Area School District in region 6, located in Chester County. She is a registered Republican and taught public elementary school for 31 years.

Why are you running for school board? 

As a former third and fourth grade teacher, it concerns me that so many third grade to eighth grade Downingtown Area School District students are below proficiency in language arts and math (25 to 35 percent). I knew that if a student was struggling in third grade, that interventions needed to be made so that this student could become more successful. I would support common sense, back to basics academic solutions. 

As a teacher, I also teamed up with the students’ parents. Parental involvement is one of the most important factors that leads to student success. Parents should have access to what is being taught to their children. As a school board director, I would promote more positive collaboration and transparency with the parents and taxpayers. I would be their voice on the school board. 

Children are our most valuable resource. Every child is unique and special. Teaching should be tailored to the individual needs of every student (inclusion) not custom-made to a group’s wants (exclusion). Students must be prepared to meet the challenges of this ever-changing world and become productive, self-sufficient citizens. Are students being passed on even though they have not met the educational standards? I believe that the future of our children depends on effective leadership from our school boards. 

What are the most important issues facing your district?

There are two important issues facing the Downingtown Area School District: the percentage of students who are below proficiency in language arts and math and parental involvement. 

Proficient means competent or skilled in doing or using something. This level represents solid academic performance for each grade assessed. Below proficient means that a student’s performance falls short of the expected standard for their grade level. Student growth is the change in student achievement between two points in time.  

In 2019, 12.8 percent of the Downingtown School District third graders were below proficiency level in language arts. In 2024, that same group of students, now in eighth grade, were 28.7 percent below proficiency level in language arts. Language Arts encompasses reading, writing, listening and speaking. 

In 2019, 19.8 percent of the Downingtown School District third graders were below proficiency level in math. In 2024, that same group of students as eighth graders were 51 percent below proficiency level in math. One can see the same trends in fourth grade. 

The question is why? One factor of course is that schools were closed in 2020 due to Covid. Virtual instruction was offered. However, the gap did not close but continued to widen. 

In the chart below, I subtracted the proficient and above percentage from 100 percent to find the below proficiency percentage. 

Source: https://www.pa.gov/agencies/education/data-and-reporting/assessment-reporting

As a school board director, I would look for ways to encourage more positive parental involvement. In my classroom, promoting parental involvement was the most important aspect in fostering student success. I accomplished this through positive communication and collaboration. Parents were aware of the content and concepts that were being taught in the classroom. However, parental involvement is a two-way street. Parents must also be willing to partner with the teacher.

Recently, a mother of three Downingtown Area School District students, won a major victory in court for her right to be able to see the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) curriculum that was being taught to her children. This battle with the Downingtown Area School District began in 2023 when the school district denied this parent’s request and said that this curriculum was a trade secret! This case went all the way to the state Supreme Court. The content that is taught to students and paid for by taxpayers should not be confidential information. Tax dollars were used by the Downingtown Area School District to prevent this parent and others from seeing what is being taught to their children. This parent still has not seen this curriculum.  

What is your professional background/experience? What skills would you bring to the board?

I attended Penn State University for my Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education, Temple University for a Master’s Degree in Elementary Education, and received a second Master’s Degree in Reading from Widener University. I became a Master Teacher after completing fifteen more credits geared towards adapting curriculum to meet the needs of every student. 

As a teacher, I tried to make connections within the curriculum so that it made more sense to the students. This is how kids learn best. I wanted learning to reflect what was essential for them to function in the real world. I began to develop economic education units that were interdisciplinary. I wanted my students to understand the basic principles of economics.

I won three school district awards and three state awards for my innovative economic interdisciplinary units that I developed for my third and fourth graders. One of those programs, Bizz Buds, also won a national award and I was invited to Salt Lake City to do a presentation. In addition, the Pennsylvania Department of Education invited me to Harrisburg to work on the Elementary Economic Standards. I believe that teacher creativity should be encouraged. 

Both of my sons have a learning disability, dyslexia. I know first-hand how important it is to meet the individual needs of every student. The positive communication that I received from Downingtown teachers enabled me to be able to chunk up and explain new concepts at home so that my sons would have a better understanding of the content that was being taught in class. I had full access to the curriculum. Both of my sons graduated from West Chester University. Back to basics academics and positive collaboration with parents can lead to student success. 

Have you run for political office previously? Have you been politically active?

I am a Chester County Republican Committee Member for Uwchlan 7 Precinct.

Are you running with other candidates?

I am not running with other candidates. Downingtown School Board Candidates run by region and not at large. 

What is the most important role of the school board in your opinion? 

School board directors must be independent thinkers who can thoughtfully direct administrators to achieve the School District’s goals:

Please list any campaign websites and social media sites.

Diane Houser for DASD School Board Region 6 website, YouTube channel, and Facebook.

 

https://broadandliberty.com/2025/10/15/diane-houser-downingtown-area-school-district/