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Jesse (back left), Manuel (back right) and (front from left) Melinda Martinez, Mari Gonzales, Monica Gonzalez, and Jo Linda Martinez at a family gathering.<\/p>\n
To offer more leadership and communication training for his three daughters and other Latino students, his wife Jo Linda, a FWISD bilingual school teacher, and Jesse started the Hispanic Youth Promoting Excellence (HYPE) program. For 13 years, they offered after-school instruction and competition in Hispanic poetry, public speaking, reading interpretation, Hispanic leaders, and cultural pride.<\/p>\n
![\"Jesse](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1aee7467ef10592138be72d76ab7ac87.jpeg\"\/)
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Jesse and Jo Linda Martinez during a belated honeymoon vacation to Cola de Caballo falls in Monterrey, Mexico, in 1969. They were married in 1964.<\/p>\n
Election to the Fort Worth school board<\/p>\n
After FWISD school board member Jack Morrow moved out of District 6 in 1997, he encouraged Jesse to run for office. Jesse claimed he initially had no interest in an elective seat and enjoyed working behind the scenes. However, several civic leaders encouraged him to run based on his business expertise, civic leadership, and many volunteer education experiences. David Bucher, John Sandifer, and G. Pat Taylor, also vied for the position.<\/p>\n
The Fort Worth Education Association and Fort Worth United Educators Association officers endorsed Jesse. \u201cHe\u2019s accessible and he\u2019s knowledgeable,\u201d UEA Executive Director Larry Shaw said. \u201cHe\u2019s been there. He\u2019s helpful with teachers, parents and kids. \u201c FWEA President Rubidel Johnson said, \u201cWe\u2019re also very impressed with his community service record.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jesse won the school board seat on September 6, 1997, in a run-off election against Bucher, 1,544 to 1,199 votes. He won two additional school board elections, the last one on May 4, 2002, with 82.3 percent of the vote.<\/p>\n
Normally a conciliatory individual, Jesse\u2019s diplomacy was tested by an opponent\u2019s racist remark. After Jesse arrived late to a debate, one of his opponents commented, \u201cJust like a Mexican to be a day late and a dollar short.\u201d Jesse immediately confronted the person. After the debate, the person told a Star-Telegram reporter, he had apologized but was only joking and Jesse had overreacted. Jesse said he didn\u2019t tolerate any ethnic slurs or wisecracks about the disabled and the poor. The fact that Jesse\u2019s community work was in Wedgewood, a predominately white neighborhood, must have eluded the opponent. Jesse had remarked he considered himself an American who happened to be of Latino heritage and whose ancestors had come from Spain to the Americas.<\/p>\n
Jesse\u2019s business acumen rose to the fore involving Briscoe Construction Corp. In 2001, Leonard Briscoe won a $523,000 contract for six elementary school building projects. Briscoe asked for an additional $231,000 in 2002, pointing to hiring extra project managers. Jesse disagreed with the requests for additional funds and stressed the importance of adhering to the original contract. \u201cA deal is a deal,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Keeping in touch with regular school visits<\/p>\n
Jesse\u2019s management style called for direct communication with principals, teachers, and students. He visited schools in his district every other Friday to discuss their concerns and ideas for improvement. Parents called him on his personal phone about school issues or stopped him in the grocery store to share their concerns.<\/p>\n
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