Campaign Endoresements
Greater Brazos Valley Builders Association
About 85% of our district’s budget is spent on personnel. The reality is if you don’t want to make cuts in personnel or salaries, you are left with a small percentage of the budget to find meaningful cuts. We have worked through that process the last couple of years and have made cuts across areas of that other 15% of the budget. We have had to look at personnel positions as well and tighten up controls over the number of positions we have. What we need now is to increase our revenue, and that can be done in one of two ways. We are working to bring our community together to advocate for public school funding from the state. We are looking at all the ways we can increase the number of students in our district.
The building of the Terafab facility, other projects that will likely come to our community now, and the trickle-down effects of these are likely going to cause our district to see growth again, making the current dip in student enrollment temporary. That does not mean we can ignore that our district has followed the state-wide trend of declining enrollment. We have worked to make budget cuts while still providing the student opportunities we are known for. We have worked to remain a strong choice for families in our community and highlight our students’ successes. We will have to continue this work as we see how our community changes and grows over the next years, but we also must stay prepared to meet the demands of future growth.
I am a deeply committed Christian, and this leads me to believe that religious freedom is important. A public school is not a religious school. I do not want my children to feel forced into a system of beliefs or activities that go against our religious convictions, and all families and children deserve the same when they are in a public school. At the same time, as a school board trustee, I must also follow the laws of the state of Texas. In our district, by state law we had to place the Ten Commandments posters in our classrooms. We were not required to spend district money on these posters, and we didn’t. We were, however, required to use them because they were donated by a community member. As far as the Bluebonnet curriculum is concerned, our district has not adopted it as it is an optional curriculum. If re-elected, I will continue to place a value on religious freedom while continuing to work under the laws of the state.
My priority is to protect classroom teachers and student support programs and services, I would carefully review administrative costs, outside consultants, contracts, and other expenses that do not directly support students. Currently our district has relied on attrition to reduce costs that leave remaining teachers with larger workloads and less support and overcrowded classrooms. I would prioritize filling essential campus-based positions while carefully reviewing district-level vacancies before automatically replacing them. Budget reductions should begin away from the classroom.
There are so many factors playing into why our student population has declined. Raising a family in College Station has some economic challenges, especially pertaining to attainable housing and now that school choice funding is available, it has opened the door to other options for families. When families decide to leave CSISD, it's not because our school is lacking in opportunity, but because parents are choosing smaller classes and less behavioral issues for their children. We must rebuild families’ confidence in CSISD, highlight the strengths of our schools, and advocate for adequate state funding so declining enrollment does not unfairly reduce opportunities for students.
As an educator who was given a Ten Commandments poster to hang in my classroom, I found the situation rushed and not carefully orchestrated. I have no issues personally with displaying the Ten commandments or bible based curriculum so long as the curriculum adopted by CSISD is evaluated for academic quality, accuracy, age appropriateness, and student outcomes, with meaningful input from teachers and families.
I respect the important role faith plays in many families’ lives, including my own, while also believing that public schools must welcome and respect students of every faith and those who do not practice a religion. The separation of church and state protects that freedom for everyone.
As a trustee, I would follow the law and applicable court rulings while protecting every student’s constitutional rights and ensuring children of all faiths and backgrounds feel respected and included.
