Gatesville Elementary principal Karrie Judd announces retirement after school year

Karrie Judd’s retirement will close a long run in Texas schools and leave Gatesville Elementary looking for its next steady hand at a time when the campus is central to daily life for dozens of Coryell County families. Judd is preparing to retire after the 2025-26 school year, after serving as principal and being recognized in a staff spotlight presentation at the Gatesville ISD board meeting on May 18.

Judd’s career traces the kind of local path that small districts rely on. She began in education around 1992 in Killeen, where she worked as a third- and fourth-grade teacher, an instructional coach and an assistant principal. She also spent time in the Jonesboro school district before coming to Gatesville ISD, where she first joined the elementary campus as a second-grade teacher during the 2021-22 school year. After one year, she moved into the assistant principal role and later became elementary principal.

By June 2024, Judd had already logged 32 years in education, and her move up through the campus mirrored the continuity Gatesville ISD often depends on. Gatesville Elementary serves grades 1-3 and has about 611 students, 41 full-time teachers and a 15-to-1 student-teacher ratio. Across Gatesville ISD, the district enrolled 2,656 students in 2024-25, with 456 full-time staff members and a 13-to-1 student-teacher ratio.

The district’s own performance data adds context to the transition. Gatesville ISD carries an overall Texas School Report Cards rating of C, with a score of 78 out of 100, while Texas Tribune Schools Explorer lists Gatesville Elementary with a B rating. In a district like Gatesville, where the school sits in Coryell County and the elementary campus shapes the first years of formal learning, a principal’s role goes beyond scheduling and discipline. It affects how families hear from the school, how teachers are supported and how young students experience campus culture.

Gatesville Elementary’s leadership page says the principal’s focus is student safety, helping children feel valued and encouraging them to shine academically and personally. That makes Judd’s departure more than a routine personnel change. Jennifer Doss is listed as assistant principal, so the next phase will hinge on how Gatesville ISD handles the leadership handoff as the school year ends. For parents and staff, the transition will determine how smoothly the campus carries its culture into the next school year.