2 0 2 2 L O C A L V O T E R G U I D E
Fort Bend ISD board of trustees Position 7
Occupation: commercial insurance agent DAVID HAMILTON
SHELL MCCLUE
Occupation: attorney/policy adviser and adjunct professor Top priority if elected: bridging the education gap, supporting teachers and sta , and ensuring safety and security for all www.orjanel4fortbend.com ORJANEL KIANNA LEWIS
Candidate did not respond by press time.
Top priority if elected: helping the district recover from the education fallout from our COVID-19 policy decisions hamilton4tx@hotmail.com
What would be your way of addressing the district’s budget shortfall?
First, let’s perform an expenditure review to discover cuts that don’t decrease our capacity. For example, salary is our largest line item, so wemust determine if there are positions that have been open the entire school year that haven’t been lled. If we’ve operated for that long without that position, release that salary budget hold to reduce our de cit.
The budget shortfall will be a signi cant challenge. One of my priorities will be shiftingmore of our spending into the classroom in terms of our overall budget, so as we handle the budget shortfall, I will oppose cuts that directly impact the classroom. I will work to nd ways to cut spending at the district level and with consultants rst.
For those kids that have experienced learning loss, how should the district go about catching them up with their peers?
The rst year back in regular classes should be a rebuilding year. ... Our teaching focus should be on bridging the education gap with genuine learning. FBISD is taking great strides in requiring summer school for at-risk students. ... After-school enrichment and tutoring will be critical. ... It’s vital that FBISD hires more teachers to ensure we have smaller class sizes.
The rst step has to be gettingmore parents engaged. Students with engaged parents were not hit as hard, and themost success as we recover will be found by getting parents engaged. My second priority will be nding ways to give each student answers to “why?” questions about education. ... Helpingmore students identify a plan ... will give them a “why.”
Answers and questions may have been edited for length, style and clarity. Read full Q&A’s at communityimpact.com .
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SUGAR LAND MISSOURI CITY EDITION • APRIL 2022
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