Additional Information

Ran unsuccessfully for House District 57 in 2022.

Candidate Survey Responses

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RESPONSES TO THE 2024 ATPE CANDIDATE SURVEY:

1. If elected, what are your top priorities for public education?

I have only two priorities when it comes to public education; redesign/update the existing antiquated system and innovate the curriculum. So, how do we get there? I don’t know, but what I do know is that what exists now is no longer sufficient to prepare anyone for the society of the future.

Texas is huge! No one denies that. But our size also means that we have multiple areas with very dense populations and even more areas with very sparse populations. These two factors present unique and daunting challenges to public education throughout the state. The methods used in one district may not work for another, which is why I believe that education mandates from the state do more harm than good.

I don’t know what an updated or redesigned education system would look like; I am not an educator, I’m only an analyst. But there is one idea that I believe has a great deal of merit. Get government out of the classroom and give schools and school districts the freedom to set their educational curriculum and expectations to meet the needs of the people most directly affected by the institution: the students

2. Voucher programs take many forms (tax credits, scholarships, education savings accounts, etc.) and are either universal or aimed at specific subpopulations (special education students, low-income students, students attending schools with poor A-F accountability ratings, etc.). Would you vote to create a voucher program of any type to pay for students to attend non-public K-12 schools, such as private or home schools?

I would not vote for, nor would I advocate for any type of voucher program to pay for students to attend non-public K-12 schools. Libertarians like me claim that "taxation is theft" meaning that we believe that forcibly taking someone's money and giving it to someone else can NEVER be morally justified, even when (and especially when) it's the government doing the taking and giving.

In the end, school vouchers steal monies allocated to public education and simply give them to private education with no guarantees in the improvement of the student's educational quality or experience. Additionally, private schools can refuse student admission for ANY reason (e.g., academic performance, student behaviors, parents don't make enough money, etc.) and private schools are not required to provide special education services for students with conditions like autism. Parents also give up any parental rights at private schools where there is no accountability or transparency.

I have always opposed a voucher system, and probably always will.

3. In 2023, the Texas Legislature passed House Bill (HB) 3 requiring a number of new school safety measures. However, many believe the Legislature did not adequately increase funding to cover the cost of the mandates in HB 3 or other locally adopted school safety measures. How would you work to make schools safer and ensure such initiatives are properly funded?

School safety is an issue, but from my perspective, it's a secondary one; certainly important, but not as important as properly funding public education to ensure that the students of today become the capable leaders of tomorrow.

Even before HB3 went into effect, school safety experts warned that placing an armed officer at every campus would be difficult to implement amid a law enforcement shortage. So, not only is there a shortage of trained and certified educators, there’s also a shortage of law enforcement personnel? Maybe being an analyst warps my perspective, but I am beginning to see a pattern here.

One possible solution might include hiring veterans, particularly Army and Marine veterans. Most of us already have the requisite security experience, and some of us could probably use a job where that experience would be beneficial. Funding may also pose an issue, but as is pointed out in the next question, the state received a monumental surplus during the 2023 legislative session. Where did THAT money go? Even a small fraction of that surplus, if directed toward public education and school safety, would provide significant additional advantages.

The point is that these are not insurmountable challenges, and if we can remove “government” from the equation, most of them can be easily resolved.

4. Despite a record-breaking surplus of $38 billion during the 2023 legislative session, school funding formulas were not increased to keep pace with inflation since they were last adjusted in 2019. Do you believe Texas public schools should receive additional funding? If so, how should the state pay for it?

Yes, I believe that public schools should receive additional funding, not only to meet the rising costs of the requirements imposed on them by government officials, but also to improve and innovate the entire educational system. But I think that the more important question would be, “where did that money go?”

My (admittedly limited) understanding is that additional funding for several required school and education initiatives is being held hostage by government officials who have a personal private agenda, and that those additional monies will continue to be unavailable until the conditions for that agenda are satisfied. In my opinion, funding for these initiatives is not really the issue: the authoritarian extortion at the expense of public education is the real issue.

5. Texas has faced growing teacher shortages in recent years, with many schools hiring uncertified teachers to fill the gaps. How would you work to ensure Texas public schools have an adequate number of trained and certified teachers?

Here’s a revolutionary idea: how about we pay them more? (Why do I hear an executioner sharpening his axe?)

The average starting salary for a teacher in Texas (as of Feb 2024) is $36 per hour, or $73,000 per year. For that, we ask them, in addition to their normal classroom teaching duties, to supervise extra-curricular activities and oversee state-mandated standardized testing that enables the school to receive state and federal funding. They coach, teach fire drills, safety procedures, and healthy eating habits. Many are certified in first aid, food sanitation, and CPR (which requires annual retesting - often at their own expense - to maintain that certification). They spend an additional ten to twenty hours per month meeting (or in some cases, not meeting) with parents who, in many cases, are so remarkably unconcerned with their child's actual progress than they are about WHAT is being taught in schools that they feel justified in berating the teacher for the school's supposed shortcomings.

Now, in addition to all of this, let's also include both armed policing and psychological evaluations. How many of us know - or can perform - half of these tasks, and yet we make more than the mere pittance - dare I say "slave wages" - that our teachers make for the work that we ask of them? Is it any wonder that half of our state's teachers are quitting the profession within five years?

Never mind "who's going to protect our children?" Who's going to teach them?

6. Inadequate compensation hampers the recruitment and retention of high-quality educators. Do you support a state-funded across-the-board pay raise for all Texas educators?

No, I would not support an across-the-board pay raise for all Texas educators, but I would support a progressive pay scale system that rewards high-quality educators. Most corporations have such systems in place where periodic (typically annual) supervisory evaluations are performed and where bonuses and pay-raises are negotiated. I see no reason why this method would be prohibitive for educators. As for inadequate compensation, see the answer for question 5.

7. The high cost of health insurance available to educators is a significant factor decreasing their take-home pay. How would you address the challenge of rising health care costs facing Texas educators and ensure access to affordable health care?

Healthcare is not really an education issue, but this definitely is an issue worthy of response. There are a number of factors that have contributed to rising healthcare costs, including insurance administrative expenses, medical professional salaries, and even profit-driven healthcare centers.

I would introduce or support legislation that removes systemic barriers between doctors and their patients that are required by insurance companies. It is my opinion that this simple action would significantly reduce the exorbitant costs currently affecting the healthcare industry overall. That said, I would also advocate for school districts (like companies or corporations) to negotiate in good faith with healthcare providers to establish their own program offerings to their employees.

8. What do you feel is the proper role of standardized testing in the Texas public education system? For instance, should student test scores be used as a metric in determining teacher pay, school accountability ratings, evaluating teachers, measuring student progress, etc.?

It seems to me that standardized testing serves one purpose, and one purpose alone: to determine whether the student can take a standardized test. Some students who excel in a classroom will never perform well on a standardized test, just as some students who perform well on standardized tests do not necessarily perform well in a classroom (I am guilty of the latter).

The use of standardized testing metrics to evaluate any of the areas named in the question is a political 'sword of Damocles' used by government entities to cleave off the occupational head of anyone who does not perform to a level that has been predetermined by politicians, not educators. Student progress should be the sole purview of the student's parents and teachers. Just as it is with any other profession, teacher performance and pay should be based on professional evaluations performed by the school administrator. School accountability ratings are simply a political tool that have absolutely nothing to do with education and should be eliminated altogether.

Just as no two students are the same, the use of such metrics for what are essentially political evaluations erodes public confidence in the education process, turning schools that use these methods into testing preparation centers instead of actual learning centers, and eroding anything that would qualify as a well-rounded education.

9. In your opinion, what is the proper balance between accommodating an individual parent’s or student’s wishes and the taxpaying community’s interest in directing and maintaining an optimal educational environment for the student population as a whole?

When you think about it, predictability and conformity are programmed into (and expected from) machines. But in today's world, it is the unique, the unexpected, and the unpredictable that leads the way into the future. Innovation, creativity, ingenuity, mold-breaking - these are what we should be cultivating in our educational opportunities, and this is what will set Texas ahead of the rest of the country if we - you and I - have the fortitude to enable it. But to do this, educators and creators of educational materials must be innovative, ingenious, and non-conformist.

Here's what I propose: I want the government to get out of the way of actual education experts, innovators, and creators. I want those people to bring us new, different, and better platforms, methods, tools, and materials for learning. I want students to have a safe, appropriate, peaceful, non-coercive educational environment in which to develop relationships with their peers and develop skills for life-long learning. I also believe that Texas should allow more "real world" education opportunities such as earlier job training opportunities, flexible start times for schools, more extensive use of mobile information and computer devices, and alternative learning mediums. Asking students to take just one online class per semester reduces real costs by millions of dollars.

Choice in education for both parents and students is essential to improving education performance and reducing the burden on the state budget and overworked educators. But more importantly, I want today's students - tomorrow's leaders - to be quantifiably smarter than we are today. It's my belief that in taking these steps, we will begin the larger journey that will allow Texas's students to lead us, and possibly the country, into the future.

10. Do you believe the Teacher Retirement System (TRS) should be maintained as a traditional defined-benefit pension plan for all future, current, and retired educators, or do you support converting TRS to a defined-contribution structure that is more like a 401(k) plan, in which future benefits are not guaranteed?

As an outsider to both the education and securities industries, I have very little information on this issue, but I know others who are far more adept. Based on their recommendations, I would advocate for maintenance of the current TRS system as opposed to converting it. My admittedly limited understanding of this system suggests that any educator who has paid into this system would be better off retaining it than they would be after the suggested conversion, especially given their lower salaries (as compared to other professions).

11. State law allows educators and other public employees to voluntarily choose to join professional associations such as ATPE and have membership dues deducted from their paychecks at no cost to taxpayers. Do you support or oppose letting all public employees continue to exercise this right?

Is this really a question that should be posed to a politician? Why would I care? As far as I am concerned, these types of issues fall under the teacher/school administrator relationship where politicians like me should have absolutely zero input, especially if participation in these associations is voluntary. It is my belief that the employer and the employee should be able to negotiate these items between themselves without interference from any other third party.


RESPONSES TO THE 2022 ATPE CANDIDATE SURVEY:

1. If elected, what will be your top priorities for public education?

My top priorities for public education would be to provide more educational options for both parents and students, particularly in urban or rural areas. To enable this, I would work toward a drastic reduction in school and/or property taxes that would allow residents to redirect those funds into the chosen education option, be it a private school, a charter school, or a home school. I would also work toward eliminating any sort of school tax for residents who do not have school-aged students in the home, such as younger families and empty nesters. These residents should not be forced to pay taxes to fund a service into which they have no voice and no options.

2. What are your recommendations for funding public education, including securing the necessary revenue to sustain the improvements made by House Bill 3 in 2019? Do you believe additional funding is needed?

Personally, I do not recommend additional funding toward public education. Instead, I would work toward reducing the local tax burden that is earmarked specifically for local public schools and allow the residents to choose whether to continue funding their local public school or use those funds toward tuition at a private or charter school, or materials for a home school.

3. How would you address the challenge of rising health care costs facing Texas educators and ensure that active and retired educators have access to affordable health care?

Healthcare is not an educational issue. Rising costs in healthcare are a combination of governmental over-regulation and a general lack of care and medication pricing transparency on the part of providers. I would support legislation that removes systemic barriers between doctors and their patients. It is my thought that this simple action will reduce the exorbitant costs currently affecting the healthcare industry overall.

4. Do you believe the Teacher Retirement System (TRS) should be maintained as a traditional defined benefit pension plan for all future, current, and retired educators, or do you support converting TRS to a defined contribution plan that is more like a 401(k) plan, in which future benefits are not guaranteed?

As an outsider to the education and securities industries, I have very little information on this issue but I know others who are far more adept. Based on their recommendations, I would advocate for maintenance of the current TRS system as opposed to converting it. My admittedly limited understanding of this system suggests that any educator who has paid into this system would be better off by retaining it than they would be after the suggested conversion, especially given their comparatively low salaries (as compared to other professions).

5. What do you feel is the proper role of standardized testing in the Texas public education system? For instance, should student test scores be used for teacher pay, school accountability ratings, evaluating teachers, measuring student progress, etc.?

It seems to me that standardized testing serves one purpose, and one purpose alone: to determine whether the student has the ability to take a standardized test. Some students who excel in a classroom environment will never perform well on a standardized test, just as some students who perform well on standardized tests do not necessarily perform as expected in a classroom environment. The use of standardized testing metrics to evaluate any of the areas named in the question is a political "sword of Damocles" used by government entities as a tool to cleave off the occupational head of anyone who does not perform to a level that has been predetermined by politicians, not educators. Student progress should be the sole purview of the student's parents and teachers. Just as it is with any other profession, teacher performance and pay should be based on professional evaluations performed by the school administrator. School accountability ratings are simply a political tool that have absolutely nothing to do with education and should be eliminated altogether. Just as no two students are the same, the use of such metrics for what are essentially political evaluations erodes public confidence in the education process, turning schools that use these methods into testing preparation centers instead of actual learning centers, and eroding anything that would actually qualify as a well-rounded education.

6. Would you vote to create any type of voucher, tax credit, scholarship, education savings account, or other program aimed at paying for students, including any subpopulation of students, to attend non-public K-12 schools, such as private or home schools?

I would not vote for, nor would I advocate for any type of program listed in the question because it's morally wrong to steal. The promise of such programs has been that it improves the quality of public education through competition and provides an equity of opportunity between disparate socio-economic students. Unfortunately, that promise has failed to materialize even where such programs are currently in use. Studies have shown that, for both parents and students, a student's peer groups matter far more than their education quality. My own experience as a student confirms this. Libertarians claim that "taxation is theft" meaning that forcibly taking someone's money and simply giving it to someone else can never be morally justified, even when it's the government doing the taking and giving. In the end, programs such as those listed in the question simply steal monies allocated to public education and give them away to other institutions.

7. State law allows educators and other public employees to voluntarily choose to join professional associations such as ATPE and have membership dues deducted from their paychecks at no cost to taxpayers. Do you support or oppose letting all public employees continue to exercise this right?

It is my belief that the employee and the employer should be able to negotiate these items between themselves without interference from any other third party.

8. What role, if any, should charter schools have in the public education system, and do you feel the number of charter schools operating in Texas should be reduced or expanded?

My opinion of charter schools within the public education system is that they provide valuable additional options to serve the educational needs of students. If parents realize that their student's needs remain unmet by traditional public schools, the option of attending a charter school that may better serve that unmet need should be explored. Since I currently have no information regarding the count of public schools compared with charter schools (and what their charters outline) within my district, it would be hypocritical of me to provide an opinion as to whether the count of charter schools should be reduced or expanded.

9. How much freedom should school districts have to make decisions during disease outbreaks, such as requiring face coverings and immunizations or transitioning to remote instruction?

I would suggest that district administrations can issue guidelines and/or recommendations, but nothing more. Any decision regarding issues such as face coverings and immunizations specific to a disease outbreak should remain with the individual school administration. That body is closer to an issue that would affect its faculty and student bodies and could also more easily coordinate with the student's parents to assist with a risk assessment. The determination of whether a student should transition to remote instruction or continue to attend classes under such a risk should remain with the students' parents and (depending on their age) the students themselves.

10. What do you believe is the proper role of virtual education within the public education system? Do you believe full-time virtual education should be expanded, and if so, under what circumstances?

I am not in any position to determine the propriety of any form of instruction within the existing public education system. I would suggest that virtual instruction be considered as one of many possibilities available to students and parents, but its availability and whether such instruction is valuable enough to be expanded should be the determination of the school(s) that offer it.

11. What do you feel should be the state’s role (versus the role of school districts or individual educators) in decisions about public school curriculum and instructional materials?

The role of the state should be restricted to providing guidance and general oversight. Decisions regarding public school curricula and materials should remain the sole purview of the individual school administration and its educators in conjunction with parents. In my opinion, they are far better qualified to assess the needs of their students.

12. The COVID-19 pandemic and additional instructional support needed to remediate students’ learning losses have placed additional strain on public schools’ staffing needs. How would you work to ensure classrooms are appropriately staffed, teachers’ workloads are manageable, and planning time is not sacrificed amid these challenges?

The work that I would do begins with promoting a greater number of options regarding choices in education to include private schools, charter schools, trade schools (at the high school level), and home schools. It is my belief that having a greater number of options in education will diffuse crowding in public school classrooms, ensure that teacher workloads remain manageable, and that lesson planning time is not sacrificed.

Additional Comments from Candidate on Survey

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COMMENTS SUBMITTED IN RESPONSE TO THE 2024 ATPE CANDIDATE SURVEY:

There is a commonly held political axiom (especially during election years) that politicians of every stripe will use "education" as a political talking point. These talking points consistently make promises to parents and communities about providing what the politician believes to be the "best for the children", as well as what they will do (and how they will do it). Regardless of whatever name is given to these proposed educational programs, there is always some political marionette who is arrogant enough to claim that they know exactly how to meet the educational needs of every child in the district/state/country to secure your vote. And yes, that includes me.

There is another political axiom that states "education is critical to success". Recently, politicians of a specific ilk have tried to expand that axiom to claim that "a well-educated citizenry is essential to the success of our state." Personally, I rather agree with the sentiments inferred by these axiomatic statements, but here's the rub (and there's really no way to get around it): I question whether politicians (as a group or as individuals) are really the best qualified people to determine what "well-educated" is, or how to measure the "success" that is so frequently mentioned as the end goal. Seriously, how many politicians are or were educators? Despite many of us claiming to have advanced academic credentials, most of us probably couldn't spell "cat" if you spotted us the first three letters (which is probably why we got into politics in the first place). So, take anything that I have said here with a grain of salt because educators, not politicians, are the key to the future, and we should be taking our cues from you.