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0 - Not fiscally conservative at all.

1 - Leans Fiscally Liberal

2 - Neither Fiscally Conservative or Liberal

3 - Leans Fiscally Conservative

4 - Fiscally Conservative

Q1. What was the BEST use of funds by the current school board?

• Richards - Our best use of funds was providing our teachers with a 3% raise this year. The teachers had not received a raise in the prior year due to the uncertainty surrounding the state budget.

• Hooker - The STEAM Academy is the best investment the current school board has made. The

cost/value proposition of the facility, its curriculum and its impact to our students are clear- and

were created collaboratively with the community. The learning model is the way business

operates, provides scalability in curriculum and integrates business concepts into the educational

experience. It’s a differentiator.

• Kaminsky - The best use of funds of our current school board is teacher’s pay. Teachers are the

ultimate key to educational success for students. Successful teachers not only inspire students

but parents as well. Successful students succeed in life and in turn, strengthen our society and

make our country great.

• Moebius - The best use of funds was the purchase of the Plano ISD Academy building at 1701

Alma. The building is 108,210 square feet, on 6.42 acres and was purchased for $6.2 million. $5

million was received from Texas Instruments for naming rights. A remodel of one of the existing

high schools to appropriately be structured for an academy implementing project based learning

would have cost over $7 million. The building’s assessment in 2011 was $6.575 million and in

2012 was $19.823 million, increase of over $13 million.

• Caldwell - The best use of funds by the Board, administration, and outside organizations was the

creation of three four-year academies opening this fall: Health Sciences, STEAM (Science,

Technology, Engineering, digital Art, and Math), and a consolidated International Baccalaureate

program. Health Sciences is in cooperation with Collin College; graduates can earn one of five

different certifications. The STEAM Academy is in cooperation with Texas Instruments, which

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has pledged $5 million. STEAM will use Project Based Learning (PBL). The advantages of PBL

were detailed in “The Last Lecture” by Randy Pausch.

These Academies are examples of the progress that can be made when the Board,

administration, focus groups, and outside organizations work together.

• Humphrey - Superintendent search expenses to hire the current superintendent.

• Harris - As line items are reviewed in the budget, careful consideration is given to the direct

impact to students and the classroom learning environment.

• Solomon - PISD has the best ratio between the amount of money spent on instruction related

items ($4,869) and the overall amount spent on every child ($7,024): 69.3%. The investment on

instruction provides the best return. I consider this a good use of funds. However, that is an

operational investment, in which the ratio should remain high. As far as capital investments go,

the investment in the PBL academy building was a good one: the reported assessed value

(typically lower than market value) of that building in 2011 was $6.6m. It was purchased by PISD

that year for $6.4m. A year later, the reported assessed value was $19.8m. I wish my personal

financial investments would all have such a yield.

• Bender - The best use of capital funds was the purchase of the Academy High School building at

1701 Alma. The District staff for identified a vacant building in the middle of the school district

that could be used to house the Academy High School, and the district was able to purchase the

building for pennies on the dollar. The competition for this building was fierce, and we were

able to purchase it for $190,918 less than its assessed value. The original purchase price of

$6.385 million on April 19, 2011 has turned into an assessed value of $19.8 million in 2012. If the

district wanted to liquidate this building it could do so and result in a tripling of its investment

based upon today’s values.

• Kravit - Delivering the best possible education

Q2. What is your TOP recommendation for FUTURE investment by the PISD board?

• Richards - My top recommendation for future investment by the PISD board is to continue to compensate our teachers as fairly as we can. A great teacher in the classroom is the best investment that we can make for our children.

• Hooker - Articulating, investing in and delivering on a future-state strategy of individualized

education for each child that empowers him or her with a competitive advantage for success,

whether career or college/career bound.

o More than 70% of our current budget is allocated to Instruction-related expenses. We do

a good job at a high level. However, because I deeply believe that when education is

right, it all becomes right, our future investment must be:

1. Aligned to our vision for all of PISD 2. High impact and return on every dollar for students, and taxpayers 3. Use of technology where it amplifies teacher reach and/or student success 4. Measured, controlled locally 5. Leveraged with all available resources including businesses, community, and

City leaders. We all benefit; we all have a stake in the success of PISD students. • Kaminsky - My TOP recommendation for future investment by PISD is using funds for properly

blending teachers with technology. Technology is a vital tool for educating our students. It has literally opened an entirely new world of learning to our students. Teachers are our children’s guide through this world of endless information which has both positive and negative consequences.

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• Moebius - My top recommendation for future investment would be in technology and assimilating the advantages it provides into instruction. With opportunities offered by technological advances, students will need curriculum that incorporates its appropriate use as a tool. We should recognize how ALL businesses rely on technology at varying levels. Teachers who use technology can inspire students in ways never imagined. Some educational sites, used as supplements, such as iTunes University, TedEd, Kahn University offer opportunities for students as well as teachers for exposure to a variety of topics such as “how does an atom smashing particle accelerator work?” or “Math in Real Life”. Through virtual reality, CTE teachers have an option of actively engaging their students in learning environments that will be exciting and intriguing such as welding. Children being digital natives need exposure to technology which will increase their future opportunities.

• Caldwell - Many of these questions ask what the Plano School Board should do. The School Board works in cooperation with the Plano ISD administration, also known as the Leadership Team or Cabinet

Assuming we have available funds, we can invest in people in the short run and another Academy in the long run. In 2011, Plano had to release about 350 employees, about 5% of the work force. We could fill the positions that are still needed. The loss of 350 employees saved PISD about $18 million a year.

After the three Academies have started, more learning opportunities should emerge. The Board should ask: “What does PISD need to do now to prepare our students for the world in 2018 and 2023? Since we want our graduates to be employed when they enter the work force, area businesses should also be involved in the process.

• Humphrey - My top recommendation is to continue to offer more schools of choice to serve a full spectrum of students, either college-bound or career-ready. This fall, the district will be opening three new academies: Academy of Health Sciences will be in partnership with Collin College, with options for students to graduate with their esteemed Plano ISD high school diploma, plus dual credits to earn an Associates Degree for immediate career or apply toward a four-year post secondary school.

Plano Academy High School, the first single-campus four-year high school in Plano, will instruct students in the project-based learning style to complete inter-disciplinary projects with the focus of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math.)

The IB (International Baccalaureate) World Academy will continue the IB program that the district has offered to students since 1985, but will combine the district-designed 9th/10th grade International Honors courses together with the established IB courses at PESH.

• Harris - Working collaboratively with the Plano Police Dept for additional officers responsible for increased security at each campus and remodeling facilities to increase security at entrances of older, identified ‘open-entrance’ campuses, ASAP.

• Solomon - The role of PISD is to make investments in education, and not be speculative about investments that are not related to education. I would like to continue and see a high percentage of the operating budget invested in instructional areas (teachers, instructional material). I would like to see an investment in education technology that could make education more effective. Offering more eLearning classes that give our children more career options would be one such area, and will allow handling a higher student-to-teacher ratio at the high level, which might be the result of reduced state funding for education.

• Bender - In order to transform Plano ISD into a learning organization that prepares its graduates

for the digital age, I believe that we have to invest in our teachers. Scaling up change across a system with nearly 4000 educators requires a commitment to professional development. We have incredible educational technology resources, but we have not fully prepared all of our staff

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members to incorporate the use of these resources into their classroom instruction. I don’t believe that this requires a significant investment of dollars, but it is a significant investment of courage and commitment which must come from the school board itself.

• Kravit - There are 2 types of investment:

M&O – In this area we need to invest in our teachers, we need to make sure they are motivated to be the best they can be. They need to feel secure in their jobs and have all the necessary tools to provide the best education experience for the students.

Capital Investment – We need to invest in the technologies that motivate our students to learn and keep our students current in technology. We also need to invest in alternative tracks of education, not every student is college bound or can afford college.

Q3. If the economy were to improve and the state were to return more of our tax dollars to Plano,

how would you allocate those resources?

• Richards - I would ensure that we provide appropriate pay raises to our teachers. I would also

return to a 22 to 1 student to teacher ratio in our elementary classrooms, and I would reduce the student load per teacher in our secondary classrooms. It is now as many as 165 students per teacher.

• Hooker - It would be great to have more tax dollars return to PISD. I would use the same criteria

listed in Question #2. I believe in a zero-based approach to all our investments. Based on the

information I have, what has suffered most from the drastic 59M budget cut is increased class

size in some of the core subjects. It would be optimal to reward instructors, stop depleting our

fund balance, and continue to provide a very diverse, competitive and responsive curriculum.

• Kaminsky - Any return of tax dollars to our districts should be used for augmenting our teacher’s pay either through a merit pay or bonus program. I realize merit pay is not allowed under current Texas law, however I believe our great teachers deserve to be paid much better than they are now. Merit pay, fairly and properly administered can pay huge dividends in recruiting and retaining great teachers.

• Moebius - If PISD’s fund balance was in a healthy position, with forethought of our responsibility to students and how quickly funding changes, I would ensure the PISD team would be competitively paid to retain our strong staff, master teachers and attract highly successful individuals. Teachers are the driving mechanism that empowers our kids to succeed now and in the future. To attract and retain the best teachers, we must have a competitive pay scale and offer engaging and relevant training. A company thrives when employees are paid well, appreciated for their creative and collaborative abilities, and their desire to be life-long learners. I would expect the superintendent’s recommended budget, prepared by cabinet and other PISD staff, would state the district’s financial needs appropriately. Relevant curriculum choices and students’ demand is analyzed and considered as part of the process. What works in the business world, works in the education world.

• Caldwell - If we have additional funds from Austin, the Board should work with the PISD administration to determine the best uses; the many options include: 1) In 2011, Plano had to release about 350 employees, about 5% of the work force. We could fill the positions that are still needed. 2) Our 2012-2013 Budget has a $19 million deficit funded from our cumulative reserve. We could stop deficit spending and put any extra funds into our reserves. 3) Many of our classes have more students than are allowed by Texas law, so we have to get class size waivers. Teachers could be hired to bring all classes down to the correct size. This class size reduction will let teachers provide more individual attention to their students.

• Humphrey - As a board member, I recognize the board’s role is to provide governance and oversight to management. The board doesn’t manage the district; the superintendent does; however, the board hires and evaluates the superintendent. I would suggest policies that clearly define the expectation that the district prioritize spending to be focused toward direct student

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achievement. I’d utilize the superintendent and staff to provide their combined educational expertise about what would be the best strategies to spend the additional dollars to maximize student achievement. I would listen to our community to obtain feedback about which programs it deems important. Together with information from the community and management, I would discuss with my fellow board members in open meetings the recommendations of management and approve those that best fit the needs of our community to lead education now and into the future to serve our students to be college-bound or career-ready.

• Harris - Reviewing budget items cut last school year, my first choice is to restore Kindergarten programs.

• Solomon - I’m not a fan of throwing money away simply because you got it. We need to plan how to deliver better education based on a sustainable budget, and not to have knee-jerk reactions to “surprise” funding sources. We also need to remember that the economy is cyclic. The economy might be improving now, but 4-7 years from now it might decline into another recession. Putting money aside for such rainy day is advisable. Reducing our debt (we are assuming debt now through a bond at about 3% interest rate) could be a good use of the money, allowing us to borrow from the public later. Although we are raising $1.04 (for every $100) in taxes for the operational fund, we are also raising $0.33 to pay out debt. If this could be reduced—I would support it.

• Bender - The State has reduced our revenue by $658 per student. The State assumed control of

our revenue in 2006, and property value growth is now sent to the State. Current estimates are that we could see a restoration of funding that could range anywhere from $23 to $130 per student as a result of this legislative session. This is still a far cry from the $658 loss per student. I would really look to the Superintendent to recommend the best use of this small restoration of funding. There is little hope for full restoration, but I continuously advocate for that with our legislators. We worked hard to protect the instructional environment when we had to significantly reduce our spending. However, the classroom was affected in some ways. I would estimate that the priority of any dollars to Plano ISD would be targeted to the classroom to reduce student/teacher ratios.

• Kravit - I would like to see every dollar invested in education not new administration or support staff. I would like to see our teacher student ratios reduced.

Q4. How should the school board get involved with state legislative decisions?

• Richards - The school board must continue to advocate on behalf of our children and our district

to our state legislators. This year we hosted an informative session for all our house and senate representatives. We also advocated in Austin, including meeting with the Speaker of the House. We are in frequent email and phone contact with our legislators informing them of the district’s position on any pending legislation.

• Hooker - It’s a significant part of the role of a school board trustee to build legislative

relationships. A board trustee must be highly informed and passionate about representing Plano

ISD. That includes working with other ISD’s, activating our community, being visible in Austin and

in DC, and being closely tied to our business and City leaders in a collaborative agenda. I have

been involved as a local Mom and professional, testifying recently to the Senate committee on

education for balance in student assessment and changes to the STAAR high stakes testing.

• Kaminsky - The school board must be aware of pending legislation which will affect our district and provide the proper input so our legislators can make the best decision. This does not mean individual school board members need to travel to Austin. The school board must speak with one voice directly to those in Austin who represent Plano. Accordingly, our legislators must act in the best interest of Plano schools and taxpayers.

• Moebius - Boards should always be engaging legislators and developing personal relationships. Our trustees should be the ones the legislators call to ascertain our thoughts regarding public education opportunities or proposed bills that affect ISDs before and during the legislative session. Suggestions for measuring a school’s/district’s performance, reflecting a clear picture of

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all the factors that create a strong school should be addressed such as parental involvement, parents’ perception of their school/district, Town hall meetings, community outreach… My concern lies with devising a system that compares over 1,000 school districts that is fair. One consideration may be comparing like school districts. Students’ results should be segregated based upon length of residency producing more meaningful results.

We do not know ALL of the Texas ISDs’ needs or expectations. We are all unique and therefore the legislators should listen to the Boards who should have the pulse of their community.

• Caldwell - According to the PISD web-site article, Leaders Meet with Legislators during Collin County Days, “Legislators told us that they have not heard from the Plano ISD community regarding the lack of school funding.” http://www.pisd.edu/ (April 24, 2013) I have been meeting with the PISD administration since 2011. One common theme was that our legislators are paying less attention to the Board members and PISD administration because the legislators have heard from them for many years. We need to get the parents of our 55,000 students more involved. The PISD web-site has the e-mail addresses for Austin legislators: http://www.pisd.edu/news/advocacy/gov.contacts.shtml We welcome parents’ involvement. Here is one possible theme for their letters: Although Texas wants to be a business magnet, our funding per student is in the bottom five states. Our SAT averages are in the bottom five states. Texas needs an educated work-force to attract companies. Please restore our funding!

• Humphrey - I believe the school board should take an active role to be well informed of current events in the legislative process and to develop and maintain well-engaged relationships with legislators regarding issues that impact public education. Superintendents and school board members have intimate knowledge about what it takes for the district to deliver quality instruction and how to best deploy resources. We must keep abreast of how proposed legislation will impact schools. I believe we should advocate in order to guide legislation to best serve public education and protect the interests of the students, parents, and stakeholders in their school district.

• Harris - Keeping Plano ISD stakeholders informed, on legislation which directly impacts our students, with suggestions on how the public can respond to our representatives, to best help our schools.

• Solomon - First of all we need to remember that we are on one side of “Robin Hood” laws, and state legislators are addressing the needs of all 1,032 districts in Texas, and not only those who have the same concerns as we do. Keeping that in mind, we need to make sure they see our side, and make sure that state funding for education doesn’t hurt us more than others. We need them to see that having a strong PISD helps the entire state, and not only the PISD residents. We need to have open communication links with legislators, build trust with them, and let them know that we support them, although not blindly. Continuous communications and mutual respect between the PISD board and legislators will help us. But for that, we need to not assume a “grand stand” with them.

• Bender - The school board, as a corporate body, should develop and adopt legislative advocacy

positions, suggest solutions to accompany those positions, and engage the community in the advocacy effort. I worked with Trustees from neighboring school districts to develop these positions for members of the North Texas Regional Consortium. Plano ISD adopted these positions. The Board should then follow legislation related to these positions throughout the session and meet with legislators (ours and others) to advance these positions further. I also believe that I have a role as a school board member to serve as an informed resource to legislators to explain the process and fiscal implications of legislation that is under consideration during the legislative session. I am known as an informed advocate, so the Texas Association of School Boards frequently asks me to testify on behalf of Plano ISD and all public schools during the legislative session.

• Kravit - The school board should take an active role in lobbying its position in pending legislative decisions. It should not vilify or blame the legislature when it does not agree with the outcome.

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Q5. What is your experience with budgets and setting financial goals?

• Richards - In my 30-year business career, I have managed a $80 million product line, been on

the executive management team of a $500 million division, sat on the board of a $40 million non-profit, and now run a $15 million non-profit with 200 staff members. I have established budgets, set financial goals, and obtained those goals for 30 years. I have an engineering degree and an MBA, so I am well-versed in financial management.

• Hooker - In my 26 years in HR in small, medium and large businesses every budget for which I

had responsibility was clearly tied to a leadership objective. HR budgets are notoriously small,

and generally considered to be a cost item- not one with an ROI. It takes a value-driven mindset

to convince a leadership team to invest in HR programs. I have managed small department

training budgets, annual company headcount and forecasting plans; company benefits budgets

and recruiting budgets. Without exception I have met or exceeded my financial goals by being

accurate, negotiating contracts and adhering to a strict “no surprises” philosophy.

• Kaminsky - As a small business owner I work with budgeting and setting financial goals every day. Every dollar is precious to me. I work very hard to earn my dollars to survive in our current economy. This is exactly how PISD should run this district by considering every tax dollar as a precious resource and not to be wasted. Prior to moving to Texas six years ago, I served as a trustee to a large home owner’s association which required a detailed knowledge of budgeting, setting financial goals, and investment. Also, I served as a political appointee to a county housing board, again requiring budget and investment experience. I earned my MBA in 1999, and this degree has served me well as I have served my community making sound financial decisions.

• Moebius - My small business ownership experience of 15 years has contributed greatly to my ability to analyze a situation appropriately and make hard decisions. We consistently evaluate our business, support our staff and invest in their training as well as ours. We invest in equipment, technology, customer service and quality inventory promoting a range of choices for our clients. There are times when we have to fire someone and when we choose to invest in that “star” team member. We have developed into one of the most successful businesses in the United States in our industry. With my small business experience, I’ve developed the ability to analyze investments or programs that will generate more income and have current and future value for our clients. In my opinion, public education should be viewed by all as an investment in our Community’s, State’s and Nation’s future.

• Caldwell - I have 34 years in financial management at JCPenney Corporate, including Controllers and Financial Planning. We tracked the performance of projects with costs of over $100 million and reported the results to senior management. My team projected the financial performance of 80+ proposed stores before they were approved to be built. (Some were not approved because they were bad investments.) We then reviewed the new stores three years after opening. We wanted to learn why their results were above or below budget. Budgets must have alternatives in case the income is less than expected. For example, if a store’s sales are below budget, future merchandise orders must be reduced quickly to keep the inventory in balance. All budgets need to be self-correcting if something goes wrong. This means that everyone has agreed what actions will be taken if the results are significantly below budget.

• Humphrey - I have approximately 16 years of experience in auditing in public accounting and financial accounting in industry. My experience in audit and financial analysis is extensive, and includes for-profit companies in middle-market industries with revenues in the $500 million to $1 billion ranges, as well as non-profit entities. I have prepared budgets, analyzed budgets and managed those who are preparing budgets. I understand the process of setting financial goals and how to leverage funds in order to maximize goals. Our current board just completed the update to our five-year strategic plan, and I understand how to develop a quality strategy. I

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understand the big picture when it comes to financial analysis and decision-making. I also have three years of experience on the PISD board of trustees and served on the audit committee all three years, and as chairman during the last two.

• Harris - 15 years business experience, over several industries, including transportation, human resources-self employment, and wholesale food service. My extensive education includes: Business Finance, Healthcare Finance, Campus-level and School District Finance

• Solomon - I was the founder and CEO of my own startup company back in 1995. I moved to California in 2000, and sold a company there for ~$20m, to become a VP of the acquiring company. In 2003, when I moved to Texas, I became the General Manager (with full P&L responsibility) for a ~$100m business in Texas Instruments. I am on the boards and executive committees of two non-profit organizations, and am currently an executive vice president for a public company in Plano. Finally, I am the President (and before—the treasurer) of our homeowner association. In each of those roles I had full (or part) responsibility for creating budgets, monitoring them, reporting them, and adjusting them.

• Bender - I have 12 years of professional experience at Champion, Amdahl, and IBM of

developing functional department budgets and consulting project budgets. In addition, I have 14 years of civic engagement experience of serving on non--‐profit boards like the Junior League of Collin County, Forrest Outreach Foundation, PTA, and my homeowner’s association where we developed and managed annual budgets. Lastly, I also have 7 years of experience with setting budget priorities in Plano ISD’s annual budget and goal setting process. I served on the board when we received additional state funding to improve instruction and also when we have had to cut the budget to accommodate significant state funding reductions. I’ve seen it all! My deep understanding of school district operations matters as we consider the implications of budget decisions. This experience also matters when advocating for sustainable, predictable, adequate funding for Plano ISD.

• Kravit - I have spent the last 30 years as either CEO or COO of my organizations, meeting payrolls, developing strategic plans, analyzing financial matters and borrowing millions of dollars from lending intuitions. My main responsibility at each of these roles was to insure the financial stability and profitability.

Q6. Will you pledge to not raise taxes? If yes, skip Question 8. If no, skip Question 7.

• Richards - I cannot make a broad pledge not to raise taxes. • Hooker - I am not interested in raising taxes. We owe our community a vision tied to

measureable outcomes for our students. If our financial situation with Austin becomes such that

we cannot reach our goals without further investment from the taxpaying community, well then I

believe it is our job to present it to them for a vote. We are a public school district, and the public

deserves a say in where their investment is directed.

• Kaminsky - I pledge not to raise taxes. Our government is literally taxing us to death not only by raising our taxes but through many hidden fees. There are many residents in Plano who simply cannot afford another tax hike regardless of the amount. As a trustee, I shall not forget those who live on fixed incomes.

• Moebius - No. • Caldwell - The Board does not raise taxes. In our democracy, the voters decide whether or not

to raise taxes. In all elections, we want informed, active voters. For example: Plano is having a bond referendum on May 11, so they held a Bond Referendum Town Hall Meeting on April 18 to discuss the issues. If we choose to have an election on the school tax rate, similar public meetings are needed. We can raise our tax rate by $.02 and keep the money in Plano. These are called ‘golden pennies’. According to the 2012 PISD Annual Report, Plano has one of the lowest taxes rates in our area. We are also efficient. Plano’s Central Administration expenses are 2.0% of expenses; the Texas average is 3.1%

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• Humphrey - Without a crystal ball, I make no pledges. In the last biennium, the state drastically cut PISD budget by $59M. The district responded by eliminating three cabinet-level administrative positions to vertically align management, made an across-the-board 6% decrease (some departments more), cut some programs, and eliminated 334 staff positions ≈ 5%. We are a people-intensive business; 83% of budget is salaries. Fixed costs are rising; however, the district prudently locked into an electricity contract saving $4M per year going forward for next 3.5 years. PISD has the lowest administrative cost-per-student ratio in the area (and one of the lowest in the state), and has the highest instructional cost-per-student in the area: we maximize our dollars to direct student instruction. We operate in region where stakeholders demand high quality instruction and PISD continues to deliver on that promise in ever-challenging financial climate. PISD has lost >$1B to Recapture (Robinhood) since inception.

• Harris - What’s a penny worth? $1,000,000 After 2 cents, more tax dollars are returned to the state. No way.

• Solomon - I do not make campaign pledges as a principle, one way or another. Things change, and I want to be bound by my principles (which are described throughout this document) rather than by pledges. I do not want to break promises, and I do not want to keep them even when circumstances change and the best thing to do is to break them.

• Bender - I do not make pledges of this nature. I always do my homework before I make a

decision. Circumstances change and life can change on a dime. I can pledge to do my homework, listen to all sides of an issue, and make an informed and committed decision.

• Kravit - I wish I could and as much as I would like to, I am not able to make that pledge, decisions have been made prior to my participation and I would not want to handcuff the ISD while we work to prevent that tax event from happening.

Q7. If you raise taxes, what would the funds be used for?

• Richards - If the State continues to cut our education funding, I would consider placing a tax increase before the voters to support our teaching staff. We must keep great teachers in our classrooms, and we must ensure that their teaching loads are reasonable so that they can provide the very best instruction.

• Hooker - That is completely dependent on whatever is in jeopardy of being lost or not

accomplished based upon our vision. The taxpayers can tell us what is or is not a priority for the

students of Plano ISD.

• Moebius - Keeping an investment strong, at times, requires funds to be spent. The superintendent will present a budget for approval that would reflect the needs and investment opportunities that support students’ learning such as payroll related to instruction. I would be reluctant to increase the Maintenance & Operation portion of the budget beyond the $1.06 rate. If based upon the superintendent’s proposed budget, more funds than the 2 golden pennies are required (we’re currently $1.04) and recommendation is not to use the fund balance; I would support the voters deciding. A portion of the funds over $1.06 would be retained by the state. For the taxes related to Interest and sinking rate, the increase/decrease would be for existing bond payments due. If the voters support a bond for capital improvements, technology, and buses (to name a few), the I&S tax rate may change based upon payments due or bonds maturing.

• Caldwell - If we receive additional funds from taxes, the Board should work with the PISD administration to determine the best uses; the many options include: 1) In 2011, Plano had to fire about 350 employees, about 5% of the work force. We could fill the positions that are still needed. 2) Our 2012-2013 Budget has a $19 million deficit funded from our cumulative surplus. We could stop deficit spending and put any extra funds into our surplus. 3) Many of our classes have more students than are allowed by Texas, so we have to get waivers. Teachers could be hired to bring all classes down to the correct size. This class size reduction will let teachers provide more individual attention to their students.

• Humphrey - Only case in which I recommend for voters to consider a tax increase is if state continues to cut the funding, PISD has no means of funding to conduct programs as they are demanded in our district, and the state permits our district to keep 100% of any increase. In 2006, the state cut tax rate by 1/3. The state implemented ASATR* to replace the 1/3. ASATR

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was to phase out by 2017 and be replaced by projected increase in franchise and sales taxes that never materialized. Last biennium, PISD lost $59M, or approximately $1,112/student. Currently, the House is proposing to return statewide $2B of the $5.4B taken away. In PISD, we will lose ASATR now (not phased through 2017) and our money will AGAIN be redistributed to other districts to allow the state to make that $2B. PISD will receive net about $35/student. STOP REDISTRIBUTING OUR DOLLARS RAISED LOCALLY! *ASATR = Additional State Aid for Tax Relief

• Harris - Direct impact on classroom, like funding Kindergarten programs & vocational internship programs for high school students. Motion detectors, connected in older buildings, to help reduce electric costs.

• Solomon - If taxes should ever be raised, it should only be in response to a fundamental change in order to achieve a sustainable long-term budget that supports better education, and not simply because we can. Furthermore, we need to remember that at this point, we pay $1.04 (for every $100 of property value) to PISD, but once we raise beyond $1.07—the state starts taking a part away. If we raised to the maximum ($1.17), the state would take ~$15m of the ~$45m we might raise. Not a valid outcome of raising taxes.

• Bender - There are 2 components to the Plano ISD tax rate. a. The Maintenance & Operating

component is currently set at the maximum of $1.04. State law prohibits the school board from raising this further. However, the board could authorize an election to allow the voters to decide if they want to pay more to have more. If the board were to consider this option I believe that we must propose the specific way in which additional funds would be used. One potential use of these funds could support classroom instruction by reducing the student/teacher ratios. b. The Interest & Sinking fund component of the tax rate is set at .3334. This rate can change based upon the annual debt payment that is due and the property rate values. Funds in this account can only be used for the repayment of debt, and not annual operating expenses.

• Kravit - Any budget shortfall and teacher raises. I will require a line item by line item review of the budget before I approve any tax increases.

Q8. If you pledge to not raise taxes, what changes MUST we make that you will commit to today?

• Hooker - My business experience tells me fresh perspective can bring ideas for efficiencies in

organizations. I believe strongly that local businesses want to participate in our student’s education,

as do local community organizations. We can offer further diversity in curriculum for very little to no

cost. We can add value for taxpaying parents of students by continuing our wonderful relationships

with local colleges for dual credit courses and CTE. Grants from the Education Foundation for teacher

programs for students should continue to be leveraged. There are opportunities out there that give

our students choices without extensive cost or infrastructure that I commit to explore.

• Kaminsky - Since I have pledged not to raise taxes we must do the following: 1) Use every political

and legal tool to defeat the “robin hood’ law. Not one dime of our tax dollars should travel to Austin

until we pay for our schools. 2) PISD must “scrub” its budget via a “line by line” review of every

budget item looking for cost savings. 3) PISD must develop an aggressively policy of lowering our

costs across the boards (energy, supplies, etc.) by using a plan similar to the one being used

successfully by Collin College. If we can defeat Robin Hood, reduce our expenses, and lower our

operating cost, we can provide more educational opportunities and lessen the burden on taxpayers.

• Caldwell - If the Texas Legislature does not provide more funding, the Board should work with the

PISD administration to determine the type and timing of cuts, if they are needed. In 34 years in

financial management at JCP Corporate, I have learned that large changes must be thoroughly

planned, evaluated, and tested. PISD has enough cumulative surplus $s to fund two more years of

$19 million deficits, so we have time to prepare.

• Humphrey - I will pledge to govern to use available funds to maximize the positive impact to student

achievement and prioritize funds towards direct student instruction.

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• Harris - I’ve seen that people in Plano tend to have an attitude of wastefulness, like there was an

infinite amount of dollars flowing from ‘the’ money tree. I’d like to see the money spent on plastic

campaign signs spent in the classroom. Added up, it would pay 1 teacher’s salary.

• Solomon - Again, raising taxes should only be done if there is no other way to reach the level of

education to what we need to make our children successful. I suspect that there are still inefficiencies

in PISD that need to be discovered. Those need to be pursued regardless of raising taxes. Having

said that, PISD has the best ratio between the amounts of money spent on instruction related items

($4,869) and the overall amount spent on every child ($7,024): 69.3%. That is not to say that there

are no areas when inefficiencies can be found. At the same time—we need to make sure that we do

not cut programs that create better education, and not bring our teachers to a burnout. We also need

to find alternative ways of funding education, such as partnering with the community and industry

(even when strings are attached).

Q9. How do you plan to improve our children's education, given that the teacher / student ratio is not likely to improve?

• Richards - We must combine the best of time-tested teaching methodologies with the best of new technology-enabled instruction. That means that we must continue to teach our children math facts, times tables, spelling, and grammar, but we must use technology to provide individualized instruction. We have computer-based assessments that we use today that can pinpoint the content areas that a child has already mastered and the areas where more instruction is needed. We need to make better use of self-paced instruction based on these strengths and weaknesses.

• Hooker - The number one influence in improving education for students is parental involvement,

number two is their individual teacher. Solving for scalability of instruction- for individualized

education is an issue we are facing. Using technology without barriers to entry for students is a

possibility. Flipped classroom and project-based learning do offer that capability. I am interested

in the best ideas from teachers, other ISD’s, educational leaders and parents. It will take a

community effort to solve this for our students.

• Kaminsky - I plan to improve our children’s education by ensuring our teachers are the focal point of every board decision. It is the job of the school board and our administrators to ensure our teachers have the tools to educate including the ability to fail those students who have decided not to participate in the educational process. By developing our strategies around teachers, we should be able to mitigate the effect of the increasing student to teacher ratio. Part of strategy should be to direct our teaching resources augmented with proven substitutes to schools with overcrowding issues. Essentially, putting resources where they are needed for ensuring the best education possible.

• Moebius - The board is not responsible for management of the district but approves the finances to procure the tools and offer opportunities that will help the teachers’ succeed in engaging and motivating the student with relevant curriculum. If the teacher develops a student’s love of learning, success has been set in motion. I would support promoting recognition of teachers’ and principals’ best practices and sharing throughout the district by encouraging development of leadership communities for teachers/principals to exchange ideas and to support one another. We need to continue to reach out to our volunteers, chambers and business communities for mentors, job shadowing, and financial contributions to help us continue to offer relevant choices for our students. What is even more crucial than ever is to insist that public education is adequately funded, and ISDs are allowed to deliver educational choices that develop and promote those skills necessary to succeed in life.

• Caldwell - The Board should ask: “What does PISD need to do now to prepare our students for the world in 2018 and 2023? Since we want our graduates to be employed when they enter the work force, area businesses should also be involved in the process.

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Students need goals and options. The AVID (Achievement via Individual Determination) program shows students that college and technical degrees are possible and teaches them organization, leadership, and study skills. We should continue to support and expand AVID. This fall we will have three four-year academies: Health Sciences, STEAM, and a consolidated International Baccalaureate program. Health Sciences is in cooperation with Collin College; graduates can get certificates in five areas. STEAM will use Project Based Learning (PBL). The advantages of PBL were detailed in “The Last Lecture” by Randy Pausch. After these Academies have started, more learning opportunities should emerge.

• Humphrey - During our current process to revise the 5-year strategic plan, I specifically asked to add to the action plan: a review of programs to ascertain that all steps focus on direct student achievement and strategically abandon those that do not. Let’s free up our teachers to maximize their time to direct student instruction. Also, I asked to add to the action plan: provide students with timely feedback of graded assignments, projects, and tests. Our teachers are our greatest resource and are the individuals that work directly with students and have the greatest impact on their success, besides parents. Let’s get parents involved more. I also applaud the Superintendent’s plan to use a systematic matrix to review operations at every campus to determine successes as well as areas that need improvement. The district is acutely aware of financial constraints and is actively working to find every way to improve efficiency.

• Harris - Teachers value having ‘time’ over all else. Time to brainstorm and plan. Time to grade papers and analyze data. Even early release days, without scheduled professional development would help.

• Solomon - I think that a better “grouping” of students by skill level rather than grade level can help a teacher handle a larger group, as well as the ability to move the students faster from one level to the next. This is easier to do in a senior high school, where there are ~1,500 students in a grade level, allowing grouping them better into skill levels and moving them faster from one level to the other. Furthermore, eLearning (where appropriate) could help facilitate more individualized education, while the overall teacher / student is high.

• Bender - Plano ISD has always been known as an innovator, and this cannot change. I am

committed to innovating instruction and providing more real--‐life, relevant, and engaging learning experiences to our students. We have started down this path with the opening of the Academy High School. This school partners students with business mentors and allows students to apply their learning to real situations, and it serves as an idea incubator. We must take what we learn from delivering instruction differently at the Academy High School and scale that change up across our system. I also believe that we must inspire and create a culture of creativity and innovation amongst our staff. Teachers have great ideas. I would like to create new opportunities for them to share these ideas with one another and recognize teachers who take risks and try something new that improves learning.

• Kravit - My goal is to make the ISD financially stable and independent from State fluctuations, at the same time it is time to be creative, reach out to our City and local businesses to form partnerships to invest our ISD. I believe additional private / public partnerships can be created to increase funding. Happy and motivated teachers alone can improve our children’s education, creating a safe and financially stable ISD is a big start.

Q10. What is your approach to improving school safety given the current limits on our funds?

• Richards - I think our current plan to use police officers in our middle schools, as we have done in our high schools and senior highs, is an appropriate plan. We are also working with the police departments within Plano ISD to ensure that the response times to reach our elementary schools are reduced. Finally, we will use bond funds to provide secured entries to all our schools.

• Hooker - A basic responsibility of Plano ISD is to provide a safe learning environment, balanced

with a welcoming atmosphere for parents. Long-term I am a supporter of armed officers at every

campus. Our administration is astute in its selection of the officers who become part of our

schools. It takes time to recruit, train and place the talent, and would be a joint effort with the

Police Department.

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However, the short-term and practical course of protection is to buy time for police response in

the event of a security emergency. Police Chiefs call that “hardening the target”. Regulated,

monitored, controlled entry at our campuses, lockdown and lockout procedures are part of our

holistic security protocol. In our alert system to the Police Department, seconds count. This is an

area where experts absolutely must be engaged with us to craft the strongest plan.

In no way would I support armed teachers, ever.

• Kaminsky - School safety is my number one priority. No parent should have to wonder if their

child will make it home safely from school. I firmly believe all PISD employees must be

committed to defending students from harm. This includes training/arming some of our teachers,

front-office staff, and administrators with non-lethal defense devices. This would provide an extra

layer of security in our schools at a minimal cost. In addition to a trained staff, I would like to see

roving police patrols periodically walking the halls of every school in this district. And finally, it is

the responsibility of every citizen of Plano to observe and report any suspicious behavior in and

around our schools.

• Moebius - PISD recently had a security review performed by an outside group receiving very

high marks with no noted weaknesses. Superintendent Richard Matkin, Director of PISD Security

Joe Parks and key employees have been meeting with Plano’s City Manager Bruce Glasscock

and Chief of Police Greg Rushin as well as Cities of Murphy and Richardson. With the City of

Plano being rated by Forbes the #1 safest city in the US and working together with the PISD area

cities including financing considerations, I have confidence in the recommendations these leaders

will bring forward. I do not have a problem with police officers at our campuses. Students as well

as adults know that police protect us and have our safety as their number one concern. Earlier in

the session, legislators were discussing providing funds specifically for safety. I have already

observed changes in protocol on our campuses.

• Caldwell - I believe each school should have trained, armed security, either Police or private.

We must both educate and protect our children.

The exact nature and cost of this protection is still under discussion. The original, annual cost

was $2.7 million, or about $50 per child. Incremental improvements can also be made. For

example, Plano police need to prepare duty reports before they return to the station. If they park

at a school to do their paperwork, there is no extra expense, and more security.

• Humphrey - I support the process our administrative team is currently undertaking: definitely

seeking the advice of local law enforcement and finding ways to partner with the district, in

addition to the great partnership that is currently in place. We are seeking the advice of security

professionals, both inside our district and from outside. We are considering cost-effective ways to

reinforce and protect points of entry, such as bulletproof glass coatings and installing peepholes

in solid doors (e.g., band hall, PE, kitchen), as well as defining campus perimeters. If funding is

available, I support returning the Security Liaison Officer program to the middle schools. The

administration is actively researching all possibilities and will make a recommendation from

management at an upcoming board meeting. The safety and security of our students and staff is

our number one priority in order to provide an excellent education to all students while efficiently

utilizing financial resources.

• Harris - Split up the campus remodeling projects between several companies, offering the most

competitive bids, with the quickest turn-around to complete. Investigate student interest in a

police magnet program, to attract high school students interested in law enforcement careers.

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• Solomon - We need to start with answering the real question: how do we protect our children in

school. We should use experts to consult with, and not pretend that we are the experts. Once

potential solutions are presented, with their value and cost—that would be the time to choose

between them, and decide how to fund them. We can approach the state for funding (there are

state-wide programs for school security being discussed), ask parents to participate in funding, or

find other community resources willing to participate in funding. I don’t think that, in general, we

are deliberate enough in tapping into community help to fund special projects. An example is

Texas Instruments’ help in funding the PBL Academy. It is easier to ask for money for a specific

(and important) purpose, than to ask for money (or raise taxes) “in general”.

• Bender - We already have capital funds available to harden the front entries of our schools in

order to slow an intruder down. The district is planning to install bulletproof glass over the

summer and reconfigure entrances such that each school visitor must enter the office before they

can enter the school building. I would like to have a community conversation regarding the value

that they place on increasing the physical presence of police officers on campus. An increase in

one part of the annual operating budget often means a decrease in another part of the budget.

We need to know how community members value these trade--‐offs. It seems that our city

partners are willing to share in this cost. Let’s have a Town Hall discussion about this topic when

we have all of the information assembled from the various member cities.

• Kravit - I would urge our administration to reach out to subject matter experts, find the most cost

effective but safest ways to insure the safety of our students, teachers and administrators.