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USD 262 Valley Center school board, at large

Candidates for Valley Center school board
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  • Bart A. Balthazor

    Design Engineer
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  • Brad Barbour

     
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  • Jeanne M. Daniels

     
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  • Richard E. Harris

    Industrial sales
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  • Jim Oliver

     
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  • Kristi D. Smith

     
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Comparison
  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?
Bart A. Balthazor: Our district started conserving last fall in anticipation of reduced funding. We have involved teachers and building administrators in identifying potential areas for reductions in spending. Those areas have been ranked by impact to student learning and by how difficult they would be to implement. Some have been implemented already such as reducing the amount of paper copying, or adjusting thermostats. A list of spending cuts is being finalized so it will be ready if needed.
Bart A. Balthazor: A district first has to hire and retain quality educators to adequately prepare students. Those same educators have to receive excellent support so that they can do their job. As a board member, one of my responsibilities is to make sure that our staff have the proper support and training they need. The board also has a responsibility to ensure our students have an optimal and safe learning environment so they have the best opportunity for success.
Bart A. Balthazor: My top priority during my first term has been student learning. If re-elected to the Board of Education for USD262 my top priority will continue to be student learning. Over the last four years since I have been on the board, our district has taken several steps to improve student learning. Two examples are; The hiring of learning specialists to assist our educators with student learning. Our staff has also implemented the Multi-Tiered System of Support to improve student achievement.
Age: 49
Education/Degrees: Associate of Arts from Butler Community College, Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering Technology from Kansas State University, Master of Science in Management from Baker University
Occupation: Senior Design Engineer for Johnson Controls
Community Involvement: Leadership Valley Center, Jr. Football coach 5 yrs
Children in school: Five. Junior, Sophmore, Freshman, Seventh & Sixth grade
Political experience: Board of Education, USD262 4 yrs, Valley Center Planning Commission 5 yrs
How long lived in district: 11 years
Campaign Phone: 316-755-1197
E-mail: bartandjean@cox.net
Brad Barbour: Candidate response is not yet available.
Brad Barbour: Candidate response is not yet available.
Brad Barbour: Candidate response is not yet available.
 
Jeanne M. Daniels: Candidate response is not yet available.
Jeanne M. Daniels: Candidate response is not yet available.
Jeanne M. Daniels: Candidate response is not yet available.
 
Richard E. Harris: Reduce hiring to only those positions that are critical to the education of our children. Reduce extra curricular activies such as field trips to a minimum. Conserve energy through turning off lights in unused rooms, reducing thermostat settings, look at our bus routes for overlap and adjust where possible. Eliminate some programs if needed. The above methods are ways to save expeditures, but it is absolutley important that we would not cut items that would affect the quality of education.
Richard E. Harris: Our district has made great strides already in working to meet the parameters of no child left behind. Our success has been due to the quality of teachers and administrators that we have, as they have worked diligently to achive the goals we have reached. As a board we monitor the progress but cannot take the creidt for their hard work and diligence.
Richard E. Harris: The top priority of any board member should be the education of the children in our district. A board member cannot enter into this position with an "agenda" because we must always do what is best for the entire district. My top priority is to assist in any way to better educate our children and to give the support and tools to our staff to achieve our goal of becoming the best district in the state.
Age: 51
Education/Degrees: High school, 1 year college
Occupation: Industrial sales, Senior Account Manager for Applied Industrial Technologies
Community Involvement: School board 4 years member Riverlawn Christian Church
Children in school: Kately Harris age 13 8th grade Madison Harris age 11 5th grade
Political experience: School board, US262 for the past 4 years
How long lived in district: 15 years
Campaign Phone: 316-755-3524
E-mail: rharris7458@cox.net
Jim Oliver: Candidate response is not yet available.
Jim Oliver: Candidate response is not yet available.
Jim Oliver: Candidate response is not yet available.
 
Kristi D. Smith: Candidate response is not yet available.
Kristi D. Smith: Candidate response is not yet available.
Kristi D. 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.