Our Namesake
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Edna Mae Fielder returned to teaching in 1955 when she was hired by Katy ISD as a sixth-grade Katy Elementary teacher. At that time, there were approximately 500 students in the district and teacher salaries were about $3,000 per year. Katy Elementary occupied the building housed by Katy Junior High today.
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When Mrs. Fielder resumed her teaching career,
she also resumed her own education.
While teaching, she enrolled at the University of Houston and received a Master's of Education degree in 1960. However, she didn't stop there. During the 1960s she spent her summer vacations taking mathematics courses at universities. Later, her summers were spent attending workshops and seminars or teaching children in poverty areas, such as Mexico, Alaska, New Mexico or California.
While at Katy Elementary, one of her students was Mike Griffin who is now executive director of ancillary services. Griffin said he remembers Mrs. Fielder reading to her students after lunch. "I still remember the book Mysterious Island, and how exciting it was," he said. "And she had the most beautiful handwriting. I was always trying to copy it."
In 1964 Edna Mae Fielder wrote Superintendent James E. Taylor expressing her desire to teach mathematics at the new junior high school. This was followed by a letter from her mathematics instructor at the University of Texas. He wrote, "Mrs. Fielder has been more than a student; she has been the outstanding student in both courses. Again and again she has demonstrated to my complete satisfaction her interest, her diligence, and her ability." In 1965, Mrs. Fielder was hired as a Katy Junior High mathematics teacher. "She was an excellent math teacher," said fellow teacher Kenneth Welch who later became the school's principal.
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In 1970, Edna Mae Fielder transferred to Katy High School where she taught mathematics and later became the head of the math department.
She was a very caring person. She cared about her students and her co-workers. She was always a lady and never lost her temper, but she would stand up for her convictions and go to bat for her students.
Bill Haskett, former Principal
During her teaching career, she also was active in the community and the First Baptist Church Katy. "Besides going on mission trips, she taught Sunday School all those years," said her Pastor Charles Wisdom. "She headed our 24-hour prayer room which will be named in her honor. She also served on numerous committees and was a member of the pastor search committee. Of the 1,000 plus female members of our church, Edna Mae Fielder would be among the top ten most respected."
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In 1983 she became the Katy ISD Supervisor of Mathematics and in 1986 was named the District Math Consultant. However, shortly thereafter, she became seriously ill and retired on June 26, 1987. She wrote, "I have enjoyed the benefits of being associated with this fine district for 32 years. These have been wonderful years, and I will miss the job and my associates. I want to thank the Board for the opportunity I have had to work with the students and staff all these years. They have been very rewarding to me."
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Edna Mae Fielder died on April 4, 1992. Two weeks later, the Board of Trustees voted to name Katy ISD's 14th elementary school, the Edna Mae Fielder Elementary School at Cinco Ranch. The school opened for the 1993-94 school year.