1.  What has been your involvement with the community and school district? Describe your leadership and volunteerism in the community. Did you or your children attend school in the district? Have you volunteered in or been employed by the school district?
My wife and I have four children. My oldest son graduated from Ridgeland HS in 2022 and is currently serving in the United States Air Force. I have a daughter that is a senior at Ridgeland HS, another son that is a Freshman at Ridgeland HS, and a 1st grader at Ann Smith Elementary. Our kids are part of the band program, and they are athletes as well. So, if time permits, we may volunteer with some aspects in the school. We are very involved parents with our kids in their school activities and academics. In the community, I serve as a youth minister and Minister of Music. I also serve as a member of the Mississippi Association of Pupil Transportation, and I also serve as a member of the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation (NASDPTS). I also sit on the NASDPTS Security and Law Enforcement Committee with Transportation Safety Administration. I have never worked for the school district, but I work for the Mississippi Department of Education, Office of Safe and Orderly Schools, Division of Pupil Transportation.

2.  Why do you want to serve on your school board?  
I want to serve on the school board because I believe that schools should be a place where every student feels supported and prepared for the future. I have children that attend the Madison County School District. I have friends who are educators at MCS. Any decision made affects my children as well your children. Education matters, but we should focus on the well-being and development of the whole student, whether it is mentally, emotionally, or socially. I can advocate for polices that make schools more equitable and more relevant to the needs of today’s students in that I have experience in writing and implementing policy. Today’s students, parents, and teachers need to be heard, and I want to ensure that we continue to strive to improve the quality of education in our community.

3.  Students from low-income households often need additional resources to achieve academic success. What should your school district do to ensure that all students are successful?
We need to make sure that all students have the necessary tools needed to succeed in the classroom, such as laptops, textbooks, supplies, etc. However, if students have laptops or chrome books, they will need access to the internet. Some parts of the county and/or some students may not have internet access. We need to make wi-fi hotspots available to those students who have that issue. In addition, low income students may need free or reduced meal plans. Some people don’t realize that hunger can have an effect on a student’s academic performance. Not only that, we need to make sure that students who do not have access to transportation to receive a high quality education from our district. After school programs and mental health support can also help students succeed. We need to make sure teachers are trained to be aware of challenges of any student and to adopt strategies to help close the achievement gap. Parental involvement is a must.

4.  What strategies would you support to create a safer school environment?  What can your school district do to address cyberbullying, mental health, and physical safety?
As one who has experience in law enforcement, I would make sure we have certified school resource officers in every school to ensure the safety of our students. Schools will continue to practice safety drills as required by state law. But I also believe that administrators should have training in emergency management so that they can understand the importance of incident command when it comes to school safety. We can also ensure that we have other safety measures in place, such as controlled entry points. But we don’t want the school to look or feel like a prison-environment. To address cyberbullying, students have to be educated on cyberbullying, so there should be antibullying policies in place. Students and teachers should be trained on how to identify and prevent bullying. One of those ways is to promote a positive school environment. Students should have access to counselors, social workers, and other mental health services. This means that the schools need to provide a list for these services to the students or have them posted in a classroom. Communication is a must. For physical safety, we need to make sure that all school facilities and grounds are up to accreditation standards. Schools must contact MEMA to have a threat assessment done to include with the accreditation standards.

5.  What do you see as the most pressing infrastructure needs facing your district?
One of the most pressing infrastructure needs facing the district that I see is adding additional classrooms to all the schools in the growing school zones. Madison County is growing. For instance, one school that I see has many portable classrooms. Portable classrooms can pose a safety hazard to students when it comes to an active shooter. They are not as protective as the classrooms inside of the main building. In addition, if there is a tornado warning, the students will have to leave that portable classroom to go into the main buildings, which means the students will be out in the elements to get to safety.

6.  Mississippi school districts are funded by a mix of federal, state, and local funds. The state contributes to local school districts through the new Mississippi Student Funding Formula (MSFF). The MSFF is intended to fund teacher salaries, retirement and benefits, transportation costs, facility maintenance, utilities, special education, and other programs. What role will you play in advocating for full funding of MSFF for your district?
I will make sure that the funding is used equally across the district for all schools. That includes working with our state representatives to advocate for funding. The funding should be used to make sure that we have enough to keep up with the maintenance cost of our facilities. Being a big advocate for pupil transportation, it is always neglected. I will make sure that the transportation department has enough to ensure we have well-inspected school buses or new buses for our students to get to school because parents rely on bus transportation. Some of the funding should ensure the recruitment and retention of school bus drivers as well in the district in that there is a shortage bus drivers statewide, including Madison County. Therefore, I am passionate about teacher and bus driver salaries and to ensure that we recruit and retain both. We should never forget about our students with special needs. We must definitely ensure that funding meets the needs of our special needs students and to get them to the services that they need. This includes providing transportation to those programs that will provide the help to them. Therefore, I will make sure that students who are on an IEP or 504 plan get the services that they need to be successful in the district. That also includes supporting and funding those educators that work directly with those students to ensure they are properly trained.

7.  Vouchers for private school tuition divert public funds away from public schools and toward unaccountable private schools. Do you agree that tax dollars should be used for only public schools and not for non-public schools? Why or why not?
I truly believe that there shouldn’t be competition between public and private schools. Private schools may offer things that the public school doesn’t. I believe in parent choice; however, public schools are the backbone of our education community and serve all students, especially those from backgrounds that are at a disadvantage. Tax dollars should primarily support the public schools; but, if there are non-public schools who want to use public funding, those non-public schools will need to follow the same accountability standards and state board policies as with public schools and also be held accountable for those funds as with public schools.

8. In Mississippi, academic standards are set by the Mississippi Department of Education and local districts choose curricula from an MDE-approved list. Do you trust educators in your district to teach using their professional judgment and training or should teaching be further regulated by school board policy or law? If you believe teaching should be further regulated, how so?
As a current employee with MDE, I believe teaching should be regulated by school board policy and law. Many policies are developed based on law. The policies are put into place for accountability purposes. Educators who are well into their career and have years of experience use their professional judgment and training in that they know what they can and cannot do. Inexperienced educators will need training compared to veteran educators, so policies should remain in place to make sure everything and everyone is accountable across the board. However, I will support an educator who wants to try something new that can have a tremendous change and make our students successful with their new idea.

9. Mississippi is experiencing a severe teacher shortage. What strategies will you support to recruit and retain high-quality educators?  
Higher salaries is the #1 strategy. We will need to offer competitive wages to attract highly qualified educators. Educators will always get professional development, but there should be opportunities for them to advance in that career (instructional coach, department head, etc.). Educators engage more with their students with a smaller class size, which can boost the academic performance for the students and the grade for the school. Educators need to feel valued and respected, and they need supportive administrators. Principals and administrators who support and back their educators are either what keeps or what makes an educator leave after their contract period. Lack of support from the administrators will make a teacher breach their contract, lose their license, and leave the teaching profession for good just for peace of mind. Parent support of those educators is vital when it comes to our students. School board members listening to teachers and letting them have a voice helps. Showing teachers that you appreciate them helps with retention.