Topeka ? A newly elected State Board of Education member said Wednesday that she thought she was in danger because of her view that the state should not educate the children of illegal immigrants.

During the board’s meeting, Connie Morris, a St. Francis Republican, held up her cellular telephone and said she would remain prepared to dial 911.

“My life has been threatened on some of my stands,” Morris told her colleagues. “This is a very serious issue.”

She was not more specific about the nature of the threats.

“We need to feel safe,” she said. “You can disbelieve me, but I can tell you, there is danger.”

On Tuesday, the board began its first meeting for its newly elected members, including Morris, who said funding education for immigrants was an issue for her western Kansas constituents and she would be vocal about it.

Four people criticized Morris directly during a public forum, saying her stand on illegal immigrants was unfair, illegal and would embarrass the state.

Morris defeated board chairman Sonny Rundell of Syracuse in a Republican primary in August, and again in November, when Rundell mounted a write-in campaign. Critics have said her proposal on immigrants is unconstitutional.

During Tuesday’s meeting, Morris objected to a recommendation from the state education staff to allow the Topeka school district to hire a woman fluent in Spanish who would teach parents how to help educate their young children.

The woman has seven hours of college credit and is working toward the requirement of a minimum of 60 hours.

The board denied the waiver request on a 5-2 vote, with three abstentions. Six votes are needed to approve any item on the board agenda.

“Meeting these parents’ needs crosses the line, in my opinion, of educating their children, particularly when it jeopardizes the quality of education for other students and comes at an added price to the taxpayer,” Morris said.

Following the meeting, Morris declined to respond to the critics, saying she had a lot to learn as a new board member. “I think I’ll let my statement speak for itself,” she said.

Board member Sue Gamble of Shawnee said there were many third- and fourth-generation Kansans who still speak their native language at home. She said Morris should not assume that a lack of English proficiency translates to illegal immigration.

“I just find that offensive and highly inaccurate,” Gamble said.