onsol
Brown
NAME: Herman D. Brown
RACE: Position 2
Professor in Agricultural EE LI
GATION, Ed.D. in Agricultural
Eqcuation and Higher Educa-
tiob, Oklahoma State, 13-year
resident of College Station, 47
years old.
BVhat is your opinion on:
a school board member’s respon-
siljilitv to his electorate?
A trustee should be receptive to
comunity input and make a diligent
effort to interpret the wishes and
desires of the community. This in
formation provides a working
knowledge for school board action.
The trustee should be available to
thefelectorate and not away from the
community for extended periods of
time.
a school board member’s respon-
to the school system?
board
Fellenz —
NAME: Mary C. Fellenz
RACE: Position 1
Homemaker, B.A. in History
with teacher certification,
seven-year resident of College
Station, 41 years old.
What is your opinion:
a school board member’s respon
sibility to his electorate?
A school board member s responsi
bility to his electorate is to establish
policies that will promote an excel
lent educational climate. To do this
Position 1
The primary responsibility of the
school board is the development of
policy statements that will enable
the administration to function in an
effective manner. The school board
cannot afford to become involved in
administrative matters. A relation
ship should be developed between
the school board and the school sys-
ten that will insure mutual respect.
the present board’s handling of
the Hopson termination?
The laity does not have sufficient in
formation on the termination of
Fred Hopson s contract in which to
make a valid statement. Since a new
superintendent has been employed,
it is best to think of the future in
stead of the past. This candidate will
not make a statement on the Fred
Hopson case.
the proposal to combine city and
school district tax offices?
A merger of city and school district
tax offices has merit. It would ap-
positions contested
Position 1
you must listen to parents, teachers,
and students and decide what’s good
for the total community rather than
one special interest group.
a school board member’s respon
sibility to the school system?
A school board member must first
keep herself informed on what is
happening in education, nationally
and locally, constantly being aware
of the needs of the local district as
well as the resources available.
the present board’s handling of
the Hopson termination?
HERMAN D. BROWN
pear that a merger would be finan
cially beneficial to the city an to the
school.
What are your pet projects, if
any?
None.
Since I do not know the facts which
brought about the board’s action, I
feel it would be improper to com
ment.
the proposal to combine city and
school district tax offices?
In the interest of saving money and
of efficiency, I support a study and
implementation of the consolidation
of the tax appraisal functions of the
city and the school district. How
ever, I feel that tax collection ac
tivities of each entity should be
separate.
What are your pet projects, if
any?
I’d like to help set a climate for
constructive communication be
tween school personnel, parents,
and community, e.g. to allow
teachers to voice their opinions
without feeling threatened, that
parents can speak of the needs of
their children without antagonizing
school personnel, that teachers and
citizens work together on special
committees and projects.
A. Jones — Position 2
NAME: Ann Jones
RACE: Position 1
Homemaker, attended Texas
A&M majoring in Home Eco
nomics, 22-year resident of Col
lege Station, 42 years old.
What is your opinion on:
a school board member’s respon
sibility to his electorate?
To be available to the problems and
comments of the community and to
represent them tto the best of my
ability. To serve as a liason to bring
the community and school system
closer together.
a school board member’s respon
sibility to the school system?
To participate in the process of set
ting policy for the system and to see
that the policies are properly im
plemented.
the present board’s handling of
the Hopson termination?
Mr. Hopson’s termination is past
history and not pertinent to this
election.-
ANN JONES
the proposal to combine city and
school district tax offices?
By combining the city and school tax
offices, we would save money and
provide on tax appraisal for prop-*
erty.
what are your pet projects, if
any? None.
Position 2
McNamara
Oran Jones
NAME: Oran Jones
RACE: Position 2
Technical buyer, Texas A&M
Purchasing Department, B.A. in
Business Administration, Sam
Houston State, 19-year resident
of College Station, 34 years old.
What is your opinion on:
a school board member’s respon
sibility to his electorate?
To be open and honest in all of his
dealings involving the district. To
be willing to listen objectively to all
suggestions, complaints, criticisms,
and ideas from the public, seek
input from the staff and adminis
trators within the system, and,
mixed with common sense, set pol
icy for the district. The only job of a
trustee is to set policy for the school
district to provide the best education
possible for the students within the
district.
a school board member’s respon
sibility to the school system?
To set policy by which the system is
run in order to provide the best
education possible for the students
(within state and federal guidelines
and monetary limitations). The resi
dents must not be overtaxed, yet the
quality and the education provided
cannot be lowered — a difficult bal
ance to maintain.
the present board’s handling of
the Hopson termination?
A school board has the right to ter
minate any employee for just cause.
However, the use of a large amount
of educational funds to buy off a con
tract is an overt misuse of public
funds. The present board was
neither open nor honest with the
public regarding this matter. I be
lieve they operated capriciously and
are guilty of misfeasance regarding
this action.
the proposal to combine city and
school district tax offices?
Position 2
NAME: James F. McNamara
RACE: Position 2
Thas A&M Professor, Ph.D.
from Penn State, five-year resi
dent of College Station, 42 years
old.
Wl
hat is your opinion on:
a school board member’s respon
sibility to his electorate?
C The public elects a school board to
Jake policy. The board appoints a
(d superintendent to administer pol
icy Accordingly, the major source
of school district power is electoral
^ support and the model for policy-
1 making should be responsiveness to
public demands and preferences.
Responsible board members must
never view communications
gathered solely from supportive
constituents as a substitute for
either public dialogue or open
communication of community pref
erences in formal school board
meetings.
a school board member’s respon
sibility to the school system?
Two factors that act to inhibit school
districts from becoming responsive
local governmental agencies are (1)
LOW PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
which often prevents open com
munication of demands and prefer
ences the community has for schools
and (2) EXECUTIVE DOMINA
TION over legislative representa
tives (school boards) and community
groups which makes the expression
of public preferences irrelevant. Re
sponsible board members must
strive to eliminate these and other
barriers which make the school dis
trict less responsive to its con
stituents.
the present board’s handling of
the Hopson termination?In a school
district, formal control of educa
tional policy rests with the school
board. The board appoints the
superintendent. If the superinten
dent fails to effectively administer
established policies, the board may
terminate the superintendent’s con
tract. While open communication
between the board and the commu
nity has regrettably suffered with
regard to Mr. Hopson’s termina
tion, I recognize the board’s author
ity to end his contract and to search
for a new superintendent who
would effectively administer estab
lished policies.
the proposal to combine city and
school district tax offices?
I favor a combined property tax ap
praisal system that would permit the
school district to reinvest the time
and resources currently allocated to
the district’s tax appraisal efforts in
educational activities more directly
linked to instructional programs and
learning outcomes.
What are your pet projects, if
any?
As a prospective school board
member, my pet projects take the
form of four campaign issues that I
have shared with the Bryan-College
Station community. These are (1)
Budget priorities that assure a high
quality education for all students, (2)
Open communications between
school and community, (3) Mainte
nance of buildings and grounds to
reflect community pride in the
schools, and (4) Public budget re
view with opportunity for citizen
observation and comment.
It will have to be studied but on the
surface appears to be an economic
savings to the taxpayer by avoiding a
duplication of efforts by two sepa
rate offices that are providing a like
service. If it will save money with
out causing problems in other areas
I am in favor of it.
What are your pet projects, if
any?
To make the board open and hon
est to the public by informing the
public of all board actions. To re
move the board from the area of
administration, that is the job of the
superintendent and his staff, and get
it back to a policy-setting body.
JAMES F. McNAMARA