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Sunday, January 25, 2009

Q&A: School Board Candidates for Districts 3 and 5



          QUESTIONS:
        1. What do you see as the most important issue facing the Santa Fe public schools?
        2. Do you favor closing small, older Downtown or East Side schools as a money-saving measure as schools on the South Side of Santa Fe grow and need additional funding for facilities and staff?
        3. Do you support merit pay for teachers or otherwise providing more compensation for teachers whose students perform better by standardized testing or other measures?
        4. Some critics maintain charter schools pull needed funding away from school district coffers. Do you support creation of more charter schools in the Santa Fe school district?
        5. Does the school district administration need to make any changes to make schools safer?
        6. What is your position on the No Child Left Behind Act? Should it be changed or abolished?
        7. Have you or your business — if you are a business owner — ever been the subject of any state or federal tax liens?
        8. Have you ever been involved in a personal or business bankruptcy proceeding?
        9. Have you ever been arrested for, charged with or convicted of drunken driving, any misdemeanor or any felony?
        DISTRICT 3 CANDIDATES
        Barbara Gudwin
        PLACE OF RESIDENCE: 42 Amberwood Loop
        AGE: 61
        EDUCATION: BA, George Washington University; MLS, Emory University
        OCCUPATION: Retired from working in the nonprofit sector on behalf of children and youth
        FAMILY: Married with two daughters.
        POLITICAL/GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE: I have never held elected office.
        COMMUNITY SERVICE/SCHOOL DISTRICT ACTIVITIES: First chairperson of the Santa Fe Commission on Children and Youth; member of numerous coalitions and task forces over the past 30 years focused on problems of children and youth; Partners in Education, former board member; Buckaroo Ball Committee, former co-chair; Santa Fe Community College, former foundation board member; Santa Fe Community Foundation, current board member.
        1. Our children are entitled to the best education we can provide. Current levels of achievement are not acceptable. By addressing the needs of different school populations, such as the need for some students to be provided with career and technical education curriculum, additional honors and advanced placement courses, bilingual teachers and aides, and the creation of small learning environments, we will both challenge our students and keep them enrolled in our public schools.
        2. I recognize the need for schools in the Downtown and East Side of Santa Fe, which continue to serve our community. However, the district needs to maximize the benefits of every dollar spent. Regardless of size, schools need to be operated efficiently, enrollment needs to be maintained, curriculum needs to be effective, and acceptable student achievement levels need to be met. We should not be forced to sacrifice a school that is meeting our expectations.
        3. Answer not available.
        4. Charter schools have more flexibility in selecting curriculum and developing staffing patterns than do schools following a more traditional model in our district. Their creation resulted from a combined effort by both educators and parents for a new school model. Provided that charter schools meet their educational goals, I feel their presence enhances the educational opportunities for our students. At this time I do not know if additional charter schools are needed or warranted.
        5. The school district must maintain safe schools for our students. The number of disruptive incidents in our schools is on the decline, but more could be done to keep our children safe. The addition of fences surrounding a number of schools is under consideration, as is the possibility of assigning police officers to our secondary schools. I do understand, however, the need to balance school safety with the goal of maintaining a positive school environment.
        6. There are aspects of the act which could be helpful in measuring the progress of students and the quality of a school. However, I don't support the continuation of the act without adapting proficiencies to reflect the different abilities of students, without providing funding to support the educational institutions trying to meet these proficiencies, and without a thorough review of the benefits achieved to date from its implementation.
        7. No.
        8. No.
        9. No.
        Martin G. Lujan
        PLACE OF RESIDENCE: 1333-A Hickox
        AGE: 43
        EDUCATION: Graduated class president of Santa Fe High School, 1984. BS degree from New Mexico State University. Robert O. Anderson Graduate School of Management Certification Program. University of New Mexico, MPA, initial coursework completed.
        OCCUPATION: Assistant division director at the Genoveva Chavez Community Center
        FAMILY: Married, one son
        POLITICAL/GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE: 2001, elected, and in 2005 re-elected to the Santa Fe School Board
        COMMUNITY SERVICE/SCHOOL DISTRICT ACTIVITIES: 2001-present, Santa Fe Regional Juvenile Justice Board; 2001-present, National Association of Latino Elected Officials; 2001-present, New Mexico School Boards Association; 2001-present, National Schools Boards Association; 2007-present, First-Tee Santa Fe; 2001-04, Santa Fe Junior Wrestling Association; 2002-present, New Mexico Youth Athletic Association; 2004-present, National & New Mexico Recreation and Parks Associations; 1997-99, La Nueva Casa Solana Neighborhood Association; 1997-98, SFPS Drop-Out Prevention Task Force; 1996-98, Santa Fe Independent Youth Girls Basketball; 1995-97, School-to-Work Steering Committee; 1994-97, New Mexico School Age Child Care Alliance.
        1. Student achievement percentages is an important issue faced nationwide. SFPS has realized increases in achievement percentages over the recent years. I spearheaded improvements in my district to support student achievement progress, including the rebuild at Tesuque, K-8 conversion at Gonzales, sustainability magnet school at Alvord, and remodeling of Carlos Gilbert. Two examples from my platform for increasing student achievement include establishing strong working community partnerships, and reconfiguration and reform of Alameda Middle School and our high schools. We must continue to focus on this issue, make it one of our highest priorities, and lobby for adequate funding.
        2. I absolutely do not favor closing small schools. I have championed these schools as SFPS District 3 represents the majority of small schools. The answer for funding the growth on the South Side does not lie in closing smaller schools. Small schools receive a small school stipend for their operational support. Funding for facilities comes from capital dollars. Additional facility funding will be dependant on the passage of the GO bond in this election.
        3. No.
        4. Our current charter schools successfully provide very important educational options. I support these schools because they provide great settings for different learners/students. The state charter law is challenging to work with, and in its current interpretation, it allows funding to be pulled from the district. With the district's new magnet school policy, I am encouraging schools with additional capacity to create magnets so that more children will enroll, which will bring more operational dollars districtwide.
        5. Safe schools are paramount to all school districts, therefore the administration has a responsibility to continuously track and modify practices and policies for safe schools. We need to continue to lobby for funding for additional security features. We need to continue to monitor closely the truancy and behavior of our students and use community resources like the Juvenile Justice Board, Restorative Justice concepts and school mediation programs.
        6. I am in support of the movement to amend not end NCLB. There are areas within the act that if modified would result in more effective student assessments. We need realistic assessment reform for the subgroups of Special Education and Bilingual/English-language-learner programs. The performance for each special population needs to be assigned an appropriate starting point and stated growth goals. Funding and reform are essential for NCLB to improve the knowledge and skills of every child.
        7. No.
        8. No.
        9. I have not been arrested for, charged with or convicted of drunken driving. While in college, 23 years ago, a fraternity brother and I were detained and questioned about potential trespassing. I have never been charged or convicted of a misdemeanor or felony.
        Sergio Rodriguez-Romo
        PLACE OF RESIDENCE: 178 Ephriam St.
        AGE: 48
        EDUCATION: Licenciado in mathematics, Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila, Mexico
        OCCUPATION: House painter
        FAMILY: Married, two sons
        POLITICAL/GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE: None.
        COMMUNITY SERVICE/SCHOOL DISTRICT ACTIVITIES: Board member, La Familia Medical Center; treasurer, Torreon Neighborhood Association
        1. One of the biggest challenges the Santa Fe Public Schools have to face head on is to provide hundreds of students with a real bilingual education. The Mexican-American student is forced to learn subjects solely through English even though he or she may not be able to speak or understand it — an absurdity (resulting in) shortcomings and degradation. School authorities do not pay attention to reality and refuse to accept that Mexican-American students by the thousands are enrolled in South Side schools and do not speak standard English. Ignoring this reality has been sending students to failure. Education is itself the tool, planning with proper strategy from one single language to bilingual education. This will happen and should be done in the near future when administrators and teachers in our schools themselves are bilingual.
        2. No, I am against closing smaller schools.
        3. I favor holding teachers accountable to principals and parents for student learning.
        4. It's obvious that charter schools suck some funds from students and from public schools. But public schools do not get the message, and corruption and politics are still on their agendas. This does not serve students, and you can see the results. Charter schools have worked pretty good so far and are a good option for students and parents.
        5. Changes need to be made. Clashing among the students is the worst thing that could happen.
        6. Abolished.
        7. No.
        8. No.
        9. No.
        DISTRICT 5 CANDIDATES
        Peter Brill
        PLACE OF RESIDENCE: 1021 Camino Redondo
        AGE: not available
        EDUCATION: BA, Clark University; JD, UNM School of Law
        OCCUPATION: Construction contractor
        FAMILY: Father of two children
        POLITICAL/GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE: Served on three city of Santa Fe committees: the Historic Design Review Board, the Planning Policy Commission, the Long Range Planning Subcommittee of the Planning Commission.
        COMMUNITY SERVICE/SCHOOL DISTRICT ACTIVITIES: Served on the boards of the National Dance Institute and the Santa Fe Children's Museum
        1. The core challenge for SFPS is improving student achievement and graduation rates. Our community cannot tolerate the glaring achievement gap between Anglo and Hispanic student populations. Solutions are not easy, and the schools need the support of the entire community. If the board views its role as facilitating, rather than micromanaging, the good ideas that our professional educators are developing, I believe we will begin to see major gains in student achievement.
        2. No. This year our elementary school enrollment increased by 200, which will bring more state funding. The Downtown schools are at full capacity, and financially they are running in the black. If we close any elementary schools, we will increase the enrollment pressure on our South Side schools. We need to improve efficiency in our under-enrolled secondary schools, and we need to generate revenue from our unused buildings and land. Let's improve achievement; not close schools.
        3. We must be open to considering all options to help our kids. Before deciding on a merit pay plan, we need to look at school districts around the country where merit pay systems have been implemented. Minnesota's model has had great success and support among teachers, in part because teachers union leaders helped develop the idea and sell it to teachers. Other districts have had mixed results. The question is, would it help our kids?
        4. We should be supportive of our charter schools, and we should be replicating some of their successes within SFPS. Monte del Sol's mentorship program could be an example. If we had a smaller, grade 7-12 school within our system (with a focus, like the arts, or science and technology), I believe more students would stay in our public schools. We should see charter schools as laboratories that teach us other ways to engage our students.
        5. The safety of our students, teachers and other school employees comes first. We need to re-examine our safety measures on a frequent basis to identify weaknesses and make improvements. But there is only so much that fences, cameras and security personnel can do. Moving toward smaller schools, or smaller learning communities within larger schools, will enhance safety. Anonymity goes away, all the students are known to every staff member, and strangers are conspicuous.
        6. The underlying idea that we have high expectations for our kids and expect accountability from our schools is good, but the law needs to be reworked. It needs to be more supportive and less punitive of schools and teachers. NCLB especially needs reworking in the way it applies to special-needs students. Too much testing robs our kids of instruction, and we need to bring the required amount of testing back to a sensible balance.
        7. No.
        8. No.
        9. No.
        Frank Montaño
        PLACE OF RESIDENCE: 1655 Calle Sotero
        AGE: 54
        EDUCATION: Graduate, St. Michael's High School, attended College of Santa Fe two years.
        OCCUPATION: Owner, Fiesta Tours
        FAMILY: Married, step-granddaughter
        POLITICAL/GOVERNMENT EXPERIENCE: Three-term Santa Fe city councilor 1990-2002; mayor pro-tem 1996-98; member of all major city committees; chairman Finance Committee 1994-98; chairman Extra Territorial Zoning Authority, 1994-99. One-term Santa Fe Public School Board member, secretary of the board, 2006-07, president, 2007-08. Board of directors, New Mexico School Board Association, large school representative 2005-09, candidate NMSBA master board member, member Strategic Planning Task Force, member Strategic Planning Oversight Committee, and many other committee assignments and task forces.
        COMMUNITY SERVICE/SCHOOL DISTRICT ACTIVITIES: Youth for Peace-St. Anne Church, Little League coach, City League high school basketball coach.
        1. Improving student achievement, by ensuring equal access to education, for a diverse student population, with limited revenue and resources, is the most important issue facing Santa Fe Public Schools. Our student scores in math and reading have improved over the last few years, but we must continue to improve until our students score as high as the best students in the nation and world. State and federal government must fully fund education.
        2. In the past I voted to close a small school near the Downtown area after there was a recommendation by the superintendent to close the school. I would not propose closing a small school, but, if after the school board policy on closing a small school was followed and if the superintendent recommended closing a school, I would likely vote to close a small school.
        3. I do not support merit pay for teachers. I support more professional development, smaller classroom size, better budgets for supplies, greater access to technology and other tools for teachers that help to improve student achievement. Early childhood education in every elementary school is needed to improve student achievement and would work better than providing merit pay to teachers for student improvement. I do support better compensation overall for all employees of the school district.
        4. The problem is not that charter schools pull needed funding away from school districts, the problem is that state and federal government do not fully fund education. A study done for state government showed that schools across the state are underfunded by $350 million and in Santa Fe by $11 million. The federal government has approved unfunded mandates such as No Child Left Behind and others. I would give full consideration to charter school applications.
        5. District administration, teachers, parents, community and board must continue to work on issues related to safety. Gang-related crime has risen across the state and is an issues that must be addressed by the Santa Fe school district, city and county officials. One suggestion made that I support is a 7-12 school for students that have fallen behind academically, or have serious discipline problems, such a school would be a great help in creating safer schools.
        6. NCLB needs serious attention; the concept that schools should be punished for not meeting adequate yearly progress will not improve student proficiency. Pushing educators to teach students to those subjects tested and to improve testing skills will not give students the skills they need to succeed in the work force. Setting standards for educators to work toward is important. Narrowing the achievement gap is an important goal. NCLB should be reauthorized with some serious changes.
        7. No.
        8. No.
        9. In 1976, at age 21, I was convicted of DUI.
       

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