Vernagene Mott, Pflugerville

Vernagene Mott, Pflugerville

Written by Kathy Lesko Sunday, 07 January 2007

With each “Merry Christmas Teacher” ornament she placed on the boughs of her Christmas tree last month, Vernagene Mott remembered with fondness the many students who passed through her classroom during her 35-year teaching career.

“I went to college at a time when it wasn’t common-place for women to attend,” she said. “I received a scholarship and studied math and chemistry while I commuted from Pflugerville to the University of Texas.”

Following graduation, Mott taught in a variety of Texas cities, traveling with her husband, her high school sweetheart, while he completed his medical residency, until finally returning to the Pflugerville school system in 1978.

Although she’s been out of the classroom for several years, her dedication to the students of Pflugerville continues.

“If a community is going to be strong, public education has to be good,” Mott said.

Running for the Pflugerville Board of Education was the farthest thing from her mind after she left teaching, but she was encouraged to do so, and has found the past two and a half years she has served on the board as both challenging and rewarding.

“When I look back at my own childhood in Pflugerville, my high school years were probably some of the most wonderful years of my life,” Mott said. “That’s one of the reasons I’ve always wanted to give back to the folks who helped me get where I am today.”

Mott’s dedication to Pflugerville is equally engrained in her because of her family lineage. Her mother was a descendent of Conrad Pfluger.

“My ancestors tread these streets,” she said. “I was born in the house I was raised in.”

She remembers the good and bad times – like the 55-game winning streak Pflugerville’s football team posted, and the water drought in the 1950s that forced her and her two brothers to take a full-fledged bath only once a week.

So it was with particular endearment that Mott participated in the oral history project for the city. The two-year interview process culminated in the publication of Pflugerville: A Heritage to Remember.

“Pflugerville was (and is) changing,” Mott says. “It was no longer the little town between Round Rock and Austin. We knew we had to document, preserve and share Pflugerville’s story with generations to come.”

Mott’s dedication to being a good steward for Pflugerville also spurred her interest in the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, the regional transportation-planning group that sets priorities for spending federal transportation dollars.

As she watched SH 130 grow up around the city, she made a personal choice to become as informed as possible on the environmental impacts of the roadway and related projects. She attended meetings so she could obtain information.

“All of us in a democracy have a voice,” Mott said. “If you dare to ask questions, your voice is heard. I may not have all the answers, but I always want to do what is best for Pflugerville, and many times asking the right question will get results.”

Vernagene Mott’s ties to Pflugerville

She has been or is currently involved in:

• Heritage House Partners
• Pflugerville Independent School District Board
• Greater Pflugerville Chamber of Commerce
• Richland Community Association
• Immanuel Lutheran Church Music & Worship Committee (she also serves as lead organist for the church)
• Texas Association of School Boards Leadership Program