Election
BY ANGELA BONILLA
KEY: *Incumbent
Conroe ISD board of trustees, Position 5
Kristin Guardino Occupation & experience: Exxon Company, U.S.A., headquarters litigation department; BBA, economics, cum laude, University of St. Thomas at Houston ... www.kristinguardino.com
Josh Webb Occupation & experience: business owner, CISD graduate, TAMU graduate, nance background josh.webb.cisd@gmail.com
Lindsay Dawson Occupation & experience: founder and CEO, uThrive Academy; former economic analyst, CIA Former Foreign Service Ocer, Department of State www.lindsay4cisd.com
Our challenges are driven by population growth, diversity of backgrounds, awareness of curriculum expectations of students and parents in meeting their duties, obligations and available bene ts of a public school education that propel children into good citizens and happy lives. What are the main challenges the district is now facing and how would you plan to address them?
Budget de cit, controversial topics. Work with the state to address the budget issues. Stop trying to please everyone and do what is right for the children, teachers and district as a whole.
Student learning outcomes are declining as parents’ voices are being marginalized, teachers are leaving, and exponential student growth is straining already stretched resources. We must be proactive in preparing for growth while also maintaining a laser focus on the basics to ensure academic success.
Conroe ISD board of trustees, Position 6
Scott Buzbee Occupation & experience: Candidate did not respond to questionnaire before press time.
Stacey Chase* Occupation & experience: director of internal audit, Conroe ISD trustee and head of Audit Committee www.votestaceychase.com
Melissa Semmler Occupation & experience: English professor; I have experience teaching high school ELA and in community college admin. www.melissasemmler forconroeisd.com
Candidate did not respond to questionnaire before press time. What are the main challenges the district is now facing and how would you plan to address them?
CISD faces funding shortages, a de cit budget, teacher retention challenges and a $2 billion bond to execute. I’ll prioritize essential services, implement cost-saving measures and seek alternative funding while advocating for full state funding. These actions are needed to preserve CISD’s excellence and protect jobs without increasing taxpayer burdens.
Teacher issues, including shortages and retention, are current challenges. We must prioritize our teachers and make sure that classrooms are safe. Retaining teachers will also lower recruitment costs, and improve student outcomes. Discipline must be addressed, and violent children must be removed from the classroom.
Conroe ISD board of trustees, Position 7
Marianne Horton Occupation & experience: former Conroe ISD language arts teacher; district K-12 substitute; small- business owner www.marianneforcisd.com
John Robichau Occupation & experience: co- owner of Robichau’s Jewelry; lead a team of 10 in two retail locations www.john4cisd.org
What are the main challenges the district is now facing and how would you plan to address them?
The district faces a $12 million budget de cit which could be partially addressed by cutting administrative waste. Many of the new administrative positions brought on during the pandemic not only add cost but also add additional workload burdens to our teachers.
Funding. Lack of funding puts additional strain on teachers. Doing less with more. Less support to address behavioral issues.
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THE WOODLANDS EDITION
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