Parent Post

I read the synopsis of the board meeting. I find it interesting that many of the candidates agree "sports are an important part of school"...while that may be true, it isn't a complete thought. I'm terribly disappointed that there isn't the same amount of concern for funding for things that spur creativity as well as alternative ways to teach students. Art, Dance, and Music are also vital subjects and can be taught collaboratively with the core subjects (such as Math and English). Many students do not play sports because they do not care for them or they may have physical limitation. Why isn't there money set aside for the arts in education?

Our Reply

I couldn’t agree with you more. Athletics is an important part but so are the Fine Arts. To John Robertson’s credit he did include the fine arts when talking about extra-curricular activities. The truth is there is no right answer to the question that you pose. Because depending on who you ask their answer will be different.

I would just like for someone to answer why we have started the last four school years without enough textbooks? I feel that all extra-curricular activities are important but before I worry about the funding for them, can’t we properly fund the scholastic side of our children’s education. Has anybody really sat down and analyzed where the money is going? How many textbooks can you buy for the price of a smartboard? How much money are we going to have to spend every year to maintain all of the technology we are putting in the school? Now I am not saying technology is a bad thing but is it a necessary thing? How many textbooks do you think the Superintendent’s car allowance would have bought?

I once worked for a very smart man who said, “If you are not making the company money or saving the company money, then what value are you to the company?” Now let’s put that in terms of the school district. If the money being spent doesn’t directly go to educating our children, then what value does the expenditures have for our children?

Over the next few days we will be posting articles on the curriculum, sports and the fine arts. Maybe when were done the individuals running for the board will have a better understanding of how the patrons feel.

January 31, 2007

The School Board Forum was held last night and overall went off without a hitch. The night began with Clay Christenson making a joke about how the questions were handled. It was cute but I am still not buying it. We also need to correct that Marc Anderson is not a donor but is actually a Foundation trustee. The president of the foundation sees nothing wrong with having a spouse of an administrator as a trustee. What may be even worse is that, to our knowledge, he doesn’t even live in the district. The president also urges that everybody continue to be "Positive". Translation- agree with me or keep your mouth shut. Back to the forum.

The questions asked dealt with curriculum, athletics, extracurricular activities, school nurses, and student performance when graduating. There were 14 question asked of the candidates. Each candidate was given a minute and an half to answer each question which was plenty of time.

This is our synopsis of each individual candidate:

Greg Biggs
He stressed the importance of reviewing the curriculum and making sure we have the right administrators for the job. He was direct and to the point with his answers. Overall he seemed to be the candidate that said the most about what he expected and what we could expect of him. He was the only candidate that hinted at holding people accountable. Believes in sports but if he had to decide between paying for a good teacher or paying for a good coach, he would rather pay for the teacher.

John Robertson
He supports athletics and the Fine Arts, believes we should support the current administration. He didn’t really bring anything to the table in what he would do. All of his answers seemed generic.

Gerald Buckles
He stressed the importance of communication, understands the value of sports, believes in the current administration. He stuck to the message of communication and even shared some of his ideas. He mentioned exploring the possibilities of instituting a ROTC program. The best statement of the night belongs to him when he said “It is not of question of can Deer Creek do, we know we can. It is a question of will we do it.”

Bryan McPhail
He supports finding different ways of teaching students, believes in the current administration. There were several questions expressing concern about weak areas in our curriculum and that college bound students have not been adequately prepared. His response was to talk extensively about how the student test score averages have been high. It was as if he were saying “Problem? What problem?” He did mention at looking at some alternative ways of educating the students, admitting that this would increase our cost but failed to address how new programs would be monitored to ensure students learned what they needed to know.

General Points
It was very disappointing that none of the candidates were aware of the fact that another school year started without there being enough textbooks for every student. It was also very disappointing that none of the candidates talked about restoring accountability back to the district.

Did any of these candidates stand out as a team player who would have the strength to step back from the "crowd", see the big picture, and be able to start to swing the school system back on track? It's the deciding question that each one of us that have to ask our selves when casting our ballot.

Overall it was a good night. I appreciate the DCSF putting on the event and I appreciate the candidates taking the time as well. These were our opinions of the candidates tonight. We strongly recommend that, if you have the chance, to contact each of the candidates and talk to them. Decide for yourself who is the right candidate. No matter who is the right candidate for you please get out and cast your vote on February 13th.

January 8, 2007

The DCSF will be hosting and moderating the School Board Candidate Forum.

DATE:      January 30, 2007
TIME:     7:00pm
PLACE: DC High School Auditorium.

MODERATOR: Clay Christensen, DCSF Secretary

NOTE:                Submit your questions in advance. Clay will select only from questions submitted in advance. During the live forum only questions submitted in advanced will be used. During the forum, no questions will be taken from the audience.

Everyone now is your time to submit potential questions to Clay Christensen.

Submit your questions >>

December 12, 2006

The following candidates have put their names in for the upcoming Board Election:

• John Robertson, Oklahoma City
• Greg Biggs, Edmond
• Gerald Buckles, Edmond
• Bryan McPhail, Edmond

The primary elections are scheduled for February 13 and runoff elections will be April 3 if necessary.

We've asked each candidate for a copy of their bio and picture. As soon as we get that information, we will post it here.