North Texas Daily

After 19 years of living in Denton, North Central Texas College English and writing professor Emily White will run to lead the city she has such close ties to.

Since she first got here, the town has transformed from a sleepy small town to one of the fastest-growing communities in the state. She said this growth is a good problem to have.

“We have issues maintaining the small town feel of Denton with the courthouse and size of the community, as well as monitoring the development,” White said. “The only problem with growth right now is construction. We can’t have any local businesses in distress or closing because of construction. That’s our only problem.”

With the polls opening May 6 and applications now closed, White will run against Gerard Hudspeth and Fran Hawes for the District 1 seat. The seat opened after Kevin Roden reached his term limit and is disallowed from running again.

As a professor, White said she loves to learn and considers herself a lifelong learner.

The Fort Worth native first moved to Denton when she attended Texas Woman’s University to earn her bachelor’s degree in theater arts in 1998.

After finishing her bachelor’s, White received a full scholarship at Virginia Tech University and completed her master of fine arts in 2002, then returned to Denton and began the doctoral program in rhetoric and English at TWU in 2004.

“After I graduated [from Virginia Tech], I wanted to come back to Denton,” White said. “I missed the community and small town feel. It had come full circle.”

The development has left a bad taste in her mouth, though. With growth comes more problems, like Denton’s homeless population. She said she wants to address the homelessness and hunger issues that parts of Denton face.

“There have been several ideas coming my way, currently with the idea of tiny houses,” White said. “I know there are churches here doing enormous work, feeding people and continuing collaboration with other organizations, combining forces and taking it a step further. I am so pleased Denton is my adopted community.”

Some things White said she is looking forward to include navigating start-up businesses, the tech businesses and the growing Denton Community Market.

While she was a student in Dent0n, White worked at Cool Beans, Good Eats (now the Horny Toad), Tia’s, Ellington’s (now the Loophole) and Greenhouse where she was a server and bartender. Now, her former manager at Greenhouse, Ken Currin, is her treasurer.

White has volunteered at the Koan private school as a leader of their book club and a literature teacher and is currently a board member. She has also been the music coordinator at the Denton Community Market for four years and currently volunteers with GOAL, Guys/Girls Operating As Leaders.

White said that being on the city council is another opportunity for her to continue giving back to the community.

“This is the deal. I love Denton. There is music, culture, education. Everywhere you turn, there is someone with a contribution. Every minute counts in Denton,” White said. “This is why I try to stay busy, there is someone to spend time with, a good relationship to cultivate. I think city council will give me the opportunity to help with the community. I look to try to organize these relationships, looking forward to make more connections in that way.”

If she is elected on to city council, White said that she will continue to keep her full days full.

“I would keep my professor job, I have a whole lot of energy,” White said. “I think it would be a good practice for me.”

White will be hosting a campaign fundraiser Saturday, March 4 from 1-4 p.m. at Dan’s Silverleaf.

Featured Image: On Friday morning February 24, 2017, Dr. Emily White discusses examples of logical fallacies with her students at North Central Texas College. White has been a professor for NCTC for 6+ years. Katie Jenkins