Why are you running for school board?
“When I returned to Las Animas, I knew that being back would allow me the time to contribute to the community that supported me from Kindergarten through 12th grade. The Re-1 School District has always employed teachers who are dedicated to its students. Their encouragement and praise helped me to get to college and earn a degree. I also wanted to be here for the children who are ever changing the look of our community through their own never-ending journey of learning. Simply put, I am prepared to continue my own journey of learning, to share my skills and knowledge and to nurture relationships with parents, teachers, administrators and all taxpayers for the good of our students and our community.”
What experience do you bring to the position?
“Having been through our school district and graduating from Las Animas High School, I bring much to the position. Being the most recent graduate (among the candidates) from this school district, I have a respectable understanding of what the students need and want to be successful in school. I have always practiced the highest regard for teachers and the administration so that our mutual respect has high value with me. I bring my college experience in education to the Board. I’ve also become involved in community organizations to learn more about how our community works. As a result, I have gained a better understanding of the impact marginalized residents and families have had on our community.”
What do you feel are the major issues facing the board?
The four-day school week is a huge topic right now. The effect that taking our students back to a five day school week will have on the school district, as opposed to the current status quo is interesting and will be a challenge for the school board in the coming weeks. Also, in light of the recent economy, school budgets are being affected along with everything else, so we need to make every effort to utilize those funds in a way that will provide a superior learning environment for our students. The Board has a great responsibility to the public to make certain that the budget reflects the needs of the students first. This is a very serious issue and I do not take it lightly because it affects everyone involved, including students, teachers, administrators and support staff, not to mention the maintenance of school district properties. After much discussion with other people, it seems that it is time to offer programs and activities in a more centralized design that benefits more of our citizens and offers expanded activities for our youth.
How will you address the issues?
Bringing discussion to the table is the first step in any debate. Basing decisions and possible resolution of these issues on a complete evaluation and understanding of what effect such results will have would be very important to me in these hard times. Of course, ensuring that the best decision is made is sometimes not a popular path; therefore, a yes or no vote from me will not come before I have made a thorough assessment of the matter at hand. After all, we should hold the best interests of the students and the students and the community at hand.”
Do you support a four day or five day school week?
“I support a five day school week. Speaking with both students and parents in the community, I have had the consensus that people feel education is lacking and many students are falling behind. As I mentioned before, the challenge here will be for the school board to remain cognizant of the needs of the students first. One of the drawbacks to the four-day school week has been the lack of activities on Fridays where there is no school. Even our community center, where many students do go after school, is closed. Apparently, having no school on Friday has caused a gap that is affecting the performance and the quality of life of our children. The pros and cons of this issue are in our faces today and if the students are losing out on needed time in the classroom, then we must be able to acknowledge this and bring back the five-day week.”
What are your feelings about the new community center?
“I do support the history of Las Animas. I’ve supported it because I was taught the importance of history in the old Bent County High School. However, I feel that a new community center building and everything that is going to be included in this new facility, is a great idea. I do hope that more community-supported agencies will be included in the final design. It makes sense that a new location would centralize services as well as provide activities for everyone.”
What would you do to improve CSAP scores in the district?
“When I was in college pursuing a teaching certificate, many of my fellow classmates continuously supported teaching beyond the CSAP tests, saying that it wasn’t a fair measure of our students’ intelligence. I understand though, from my college years, that CSAP is important not only to the students, but to the school district. It helps designate the strong from the not so strong and helps improve services for those struggling through more financial support for the school district. I would like the instruction for the CSAP test become a year round effort within the classrooms, so that students will be better able to understand what is being asked of them when the time for that test arrives. Good nutrition and more physical activities at school will help the students to retain this type of orientation all through the school year, not just during the testing time. I see the CSAP test as part of the path that our children are on every day.”
What would you do to balance the budget?
“I’ll be honest, since this is my first campaign for a seat on the school board, the budget will be my foremost challenge in the beginning. However, from what I have seen and heard, I understand that portions of our budget are automatically put aside for mandated expenditures. From my own experience with balancing a budget for the Bent County Food Endeavor, I know that it is important to eliminate waste, to increase productivity and to always keep accountability where it needs to be. The duty of the school board is to maintain the budget and I will bring these skills to that process.”
How would you encourage teachers to stay in the district?
“Incentives are a great start. Award those teachers that out-perform. Create a forum for teachers to speak to the administration and the school board about ideas to improve education on a regular basis. Give teachers what they are worth. Everything seems to be drawn back to the economic downturn, but we need for our teachers to stay. Students get to know their teachers and it’s a reward in itself to see generations of students relating to a tenured teaching staff. It saves time and money in the long run and gives new teachers the chance to settle in to our community. Buying homes here, paying taxes here and bringing revenue so that we can do more, such as building a new community center. Also, reward the students they educate and we will see more teachers become vested in our district. It’s not that we are not making the effort in these areas; it’s that we can improve on what is already in place and inject our district with much needed praise for a job well done.”
What needs to be done to improve student achievement?
“Well, expanding to a five day school week will be a good start. Give students that extra day back to regain their competitive drive. Don’t cram it all into a four-day school week and then expect the students to perform well during the CSAP testing period. Students need that precious time to absorb what is being taught to them. Teachers need to manage their classrooms for five days in order to lend support to students who are falling behind. When we shorten the week, we also shorten a student’s opportunity for help. Parents also need to continue to take part in their child’s learning; going over homework, studying with them and helping them stay on track. Parents should have consistent one-on-one time with their child’s teacher in order to understand the expectations of the assignments. This is a two-way street. You can have the best education in the world, but it’s up to the parents to continue the process at home. I realize that this has been a challenge in recent years, but instilling a mindset that we cal all work together to make this the best environment for learning is no longer something to be said and then forgotten. The bottom line here is that our students deserve the best start in life and team effort is a must to that end. We will just have to give them what they need without judgment, acting in their best interest as a community. I believe that most parents want to help their children, but they may not have the resources to do that on their own. Make use of volunteers in the classroom by encouraging retired citizens and others who have the time to assist in this endeavor. There are parents and community members who have the ability to help with tutoring beyond what is offered at the community center. Improve what is already in place so that parents and teachers are working together for the betterment of the student. Create phone trees and utilize the Internet so that parents have a lifeline when helping their child with assignments at home. The teacher is not the enemy and they are going to be much more receptive to parents who are showing an interest in their child’s education.
I mentioned better nutrition and more physical activities at school. A mind is a terrible thing to waste and a mind without nutrition is not going to function properly. Getting the students up and moving more will make them more alert in the classroom when it counts. At the last school board meeting, I listened as the superintendent voiced his concerns about the number of students taking advantage of the free lunch program. This is not good when I can report to you that the food pantry has seen a 60 percent increase in requests for emergency food assistance. As a community, we must support all programs that can help feed our children. I know very well how difficult it can be to ask for help, but in these hard economic times, we must continue to utilize all services that we pay into. Our children are counting on us to provide them with everything that they need to become the leaders of this community some day. Education is no small matter when you think of terms of “who” will be the future leaders of our community.
Finally, school board members and administrators should be out in the community talking about how they are taking part in following the policies of the school district as well as creating new policies that will enhance our students learning experiences. They should be informing community members of the work that is being done on the budget to keep quality education in Las Animas to the forefront. Most parents and taxpayers for that matter do not know the school board members beyond the times that they run for office. They are probably not aware of what it takes to set up a budget that can meet the demands of the district. Perhaps more visibility on the part of the board would bring more understanding and more action from the community in supporting the board’s decisions. In all that I have said here in answering these questions, I am ready and willing to become a part of the process of ensuring that Las Animas Re-1 School District will be dedicated to the advancement of every student passing through the doors of its schools.
