I am committed to improving the quality of education in our district. I am an active listener and have the confidence to make decisions. I will support and defend local students and educators. I have the skills to incorporate the community’s consensus, needs, and priorities into strong policies.
Education Opportunities:
All children deserve a high-quality education. In Mansfield, we need to continue reducing the opportunity gap by increasing academic rigor and inclusive opportunities. We need to develop trusting and productive relationships with the parents and family as a community for students with disabilities as well as students.
Education is the critical foundation for all children. To continue to grow as a responsible contributor to society, children must have a firm educational foundation. From special needs children with disabilities to the special needs of gifted and talented children we need to develop trusting and productive relationships with the children, parents, and families. Educational opportunity programs principally engaged in the provision of education help develop the intellect, serve social needs, and prepare students for a job or career to contribute to the economy/society. These same programs keep children challenged and engaged as well as keep students committed to creativity and achievement for a lifetime. They are critical in helping kids socially adapt to a world of peers and adults. The larger triumph is they prevent early dropouts and support long-term career success. Education is essential to the growth of the economy.
Areas to continue focus and grow to continue to bridge gaps: Special Needs with Disabilities, Special Needs Gifted and Talented, Accelerated Growth, and Discipline.
Teacher Retention:
Teachers are the single most impactful in-school factor in determining student achievement. A truly great teacher can have a transformative impact on a student’s academic and life trajectory. Increasing teacher retention can support greater equality across the district. Improving teacher retention can directly benefit our schools and students.
Turnover undermines quality especially when there is an inadequate supply. Experienced teachers who are familiar with the needs of a school and its students are best poised to provide advice on how to meet those needs. When they leave, these voices are lost, and education policy suffers, as senior education administrators no longer receive their feedback on different initiatives’ success (or failure). Small changes in turnover rates can have big effects on the adequacy of supply. Reducing turnover and reliance on temporary substitutes is an integral step toward shaping scholastic policies informed by firsthand insights into our local community.
Three areas we can build on: Mentorship, Compensation, and Teaching Conditions.
Safety First
Safety and learning go together. The safety and security of schools are on the minds of everyone today, as plans, processes, and systems are put in place to protect the children, staff, and property. Providing a safe and secure environment at school is imperative to helping students succeed academically, and students and educators socially as well as emotionally.
Safe schools promote the protection of students from violence, exposure to weapons and threats, theft, bullying, and the sale or use of illegal substances on school grounds. School safety is linked to improved student and school outcomes. Emotional and physical safety in school is related to academic performance.
Keeping schools safe allows children to look forward to being in an encouraging environment that promotes social and creative learning. A safe learning environment is essential for students of all ages. Without it, they are unable to focus on learning the skills needed for a successful education and future. Policies on school safety promote increased learning, feelings of school unity, higher levels of pro-social behavior, and decreased levels of violence.
Areas to continue to improve: Physical Security, Visual Security, and Emotional Safety.
Financial/Enrollment
School finance is something that affects us every day. Dollars must be at the start of every conversation around equity. Funding is a central component to providing high-quality education and often leads to improved outcomes.
Schooling resources that cost money are positively associated with student outcomes. Resources such as class sizes, additional instructional supports, early childhood programs, and more competitive teacher compensation, permit schools and districts to recruit and retain a higher-quality teacher workforce.
Sustained improvements in the level and distribution of funding across schools lead to improvements in the level and distribution of student outcomes, ranging from graduation rates to educational attainment and wages. Appropriate combinations of funding with standards and instructional supports for learning are the most promising.
Concentrating dollars on Educational Opportunities, Teacher Retention, and Safety will allow for growth in the city and strengthen the reputation of the best public education and place to live in the region.
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It is important to know what the provision of a school board trustee.
As outlined in the TEXAS EDUCATION CODE
TITLE 2. PUBLIC EDUCATION
SUBTITLE C. LOCAL ORGANIZATION AND GOVERNANCE
CHAPTER 11. SCHOOL DISTRICTS
SUBCHAPTER C. BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT–GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 11.051. GOVERNANCE OF INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT; NUMBER OF TRUSTEES. (a) An independent school district is governed by a board of trustees who, as a body corporate, shall:
(1) oversee the management of the district; and
(2) ensure that the superintendent implements and monitors plans, procedures, programs, and systems to achieve appropriate, clearly defined, and desired results in the major areas of district operations.
(a-1) Unless authorized by the board, a member of the board may not, individually, act on behalf of the board. The board of trustees may act only by majority vote of the members present at a meeting held in compliance with Chapter 551, Government Code, at which a quorum of the board is present and voting. The board shall provide the superintendent an opportunity to present at a meeting an oral or written recommendation to the board on any item that is voted on by the board at the meeting.
(b) The board consists of the number of members that the district had on September 1, 1995.
(c) A board of trustees that has three or five members may by resolution increase the membership to seven. A board of trustees that votes to increase its membership must consider whether the district would benefit from also adopting a single-member election system under Section 11.052. A resolution increasing the number of trustees takes effect with the second regular election of trustees that occurs after the adoption of the resolution. The resolution must provide for a transition in the number of trustees so that when the transition is complete, trustees are elected as provided by Section 11.059.
Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 260, Sec. 1, eff. May 30, 1995.
Amended by:
Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1244 (H.B. 2563), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2007.