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USD 260 Derby school board, at large, unexpired term

Candidates for Derby school board
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    Alexis M. Buzzi

    Functional Manager, Boeing
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  • Dan F. Smith

     
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Alexis M. Buzzi
Dan F. Smith
  1. Biographical Information
  2. The Legislature may cut millions in education funding in the next two years to address state budget shortfalls. How should your school district scale back spending?
  3. Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, all students are expected to meet proficiency standards by 2014. How would you ensure student achievement in your district?
  4. If elected to the board of education, what would be your top priority?
Alexis M. Buzzi: We spend thousands each year to send school board members & administrators to the National Association of School Boards annual meetings. I question the return on this investment, and suggest that in our current economic situation, we limit the number of people sent to this conference and consider booking rooms in more modest accommodations as opposed to 4-star hotels.This spending needs to be evaluated, and/or eliminated, and would have no negative affect on our students’ education.
Alexis M. Buzzi: Our teachers have proven that when given the opportunity to meet No Child Left Behind / AYP standards they are more than capable. They have collaborated throughout the district to ensure they are meeting these standards and, given the freedom to continue to manage their own departments and curriculum, will be successful. We need to encourage bottom-up decision making giving teachers flexibility to meet the requirements instead of a top-down approach, that is not collectively supported.
Alexis M. Buzzi: My priority is to review our budget and scrutinize all areas of spending to ensure that we are getting the most value. The school boards responsibility is to ensure that for each expenditure, the maximum amount is being allocated for education and not for nonessential items. Every teacher was required to attend “Laptop” training. No survey was sent to determine if this training was necessary and subsequently, our district had to pay for a substitute, for an entire day, for over 400 teachers.
Age: 48
Education/Degrees: Derby Grad. 1979. Wichita State University, 1985. Webster University, 1995.
Occupation: Software Engineering Functional Manager for the Wichita site, have been with Boeing for 24 years. Responsible for people, processes, tools and Technology that directly affect software engineers and Wichita software programs.
Community Involvement: USD 260 Technology Committee 2005 - present. NCA Accreditation Process - selected community member.
Children in school: 2 daughters graduated from Derby High School, currently in college. 11-year old enrolled at St. Marys Derby.
Political experience: Previous School Board Candidate. Boeing Political Action Committee Member.
How long lived in district: Attended Derby public schools from 1966-1979. Derby resident since 1990.
Campaign Phone: 316-788-1749
E-mail: alexis.buzzi@yahoo.com
Dan F. Smith: Candidate response is not yet available.
Dan F. Smith: Candidate response is not yet available.
Dan F. Smith: Candidate response is not yet available.
 

The Wichita Eagle invited candidates in some contested races in Sedgwick, Butler and Sumner counties to respond to questions about key issues. You can compare the candidates and their responses side by side, and create your own printable or e-mailable ballot. The responses are largely unedited and presented as the candidates sent them to us.