• Originally published April 28, 2008 at 1:42 p.m., updated April 28, 2008 at 1:42 p.m.

What are your qualifications and reason for running?

Keeling: I have the time to commit to this type of community service and give it the attention it deserves. I am experienced, trained and dedicated to following through on the bond and the reformation of VISD. I have been an impartial voice for positive progress that benefits all students.

Jaynes: Graduate of Baylor University and the University of Texas Medical Branch. Local businessman for over 30 years and career physician who has delivered over 4,000 babies. Former Chairman of the Board of DeTar Hospital. Member of the Victoria ISD Facilities Committee, 2005-2006. Former Board Chairman: Hope of South Texas.

? What do you believe are the two most pressing matters for VISD and your thoughts to address?

Keeling: How will the district spend your $159 million? It’s my view that we build and repair schools first. I pledge to keep VISD’s primary educational mission as my top priority as we make these choices.

New, smaller schools are exciting, but buildings alone will not fix everything. I will continue to support competitive pay for our teachers and staff. It is time for the board to make decisions on student conduct and dress. Changes are necessary so that the campus staff and the teachers have the tools they need to provide a safe and productive learning environment for our children.

Jaynes:Having put five children through VISD, I want my four grandsons to have the same quality of education and sense of pride that my children enjoyed when they attended public schools. One of the most pressing issues facing VISD today is discipline: We must create a safe learning environment where teachers can teach and students can learn, and uniformly apply school discipline policies across all campuses. Another issue is accountability; as a businessman, I believe that having accountability in the system is vital. Building up a quality school system is the responsibility of everyone in it, beginning with the board.

What can be done to better prepare VISD students for college or entering the workforce?

Keeling: Appropriate and rigorous academics are needed in each of these areas. By 2009, VISD will have a GT/AP program available K-12 at each campus.

In the career and technology area VISD is developing courses with an end of course certification that is a recognized industry standard.

VISD has two new courses, Petro-Chemical Safety and Petro-Chemical Process Technology. The courses will be included in a Tech Prep program that allows students to claim nine hours of college credit. These Process Technology courses will provide a career path for students to find employment in a high demand area within the community.

Jaynes:We must ensure that our students have the skills that they need to succeed in life beyond high school; after all, the students of today are the leaders of tomorrow. We should set high expectations for students, and then provide the tools and knowledge that they need to meet and exceed those expectations. Students should also be made aware of opportunities such as the Pre-SAT and AP courses, and what these can offer. We should also have solid, quality vocational training programs; I constantly hear from local businessmen about the shortage of skilled workers in different trades here in Victoria.

What skills or ideas do you bring to ensure the new/upgraded facilities on the $159 million bond support learning?

Keeling:As a seasoned board member, I have shown that I have the skills and the ability to work with the board and superintendent to bring about positive change that supports learning in our facilities.

I have been involved with the construction plans for the new schools since the beginning. I am concerned about the rising costs of inflation, and concerned about how far bond money will go. I pledge to spend your tax dollars on building new schools and repairing existing facilities first, keeping VISD’s educational mission as my top priority as we make these choices.

Jaynes:As a local businessman for over 30 years and the current president of Victoria Women’s Clinic Associates, I want to use my business skills, experience, and common sense in managing issues like this. We deserve vibrant schools where teachers can teach and students can learn in a safe environment. In medicine, we constantly work to keep pace with the changing times; in a similar way, we cannot educate children the same way that we did 30 years ago. We must ensure that we have appropriate facilities to teach not only the students of today, but also the students of tomorrow.

How would you suggest the district address its dropout and truancy situation?

Keeling:By convincing students that school has value, whether they attend a four year university, a community college, a technical school or enter the workforce after graduation. I support strong academic pathways that lead to each of these destinations.

Debunk the myth that “there is nothing here for me.”

By building a culture in Victoria that expects our students to graduate, become responsible citizens, have the skills to get a job and the ability to pursue their educational dreams beyond VISD. It’s a culture built on trust. Trust that says, “We care and are here to help you be successful.”

Jaynes:I spend a lot of time around kids; having delivered over 4,000 children as a physician, kids are one of the things that I know best. I believe that the majority of students want to learn, and dropouts and truancy are a challenging issue for our schools. We should assemble a task force of educators, board members, law enforcement, judges, and others to create a unified plan that will hold students accountable for attending school, following the rules, and respecting teachers. Students, teachers, and parents must know that rules will be enforced fairly and equally, not just given lip service.

What are your thoughts on separate graduation plans in academics, career and technology, or fine arts?

Keeling: I support strong multiple paths that serve VISD’s diverse student population. Quality career and technology programs lead to jobs for students and address the critical workforce shortage in Texas. I will advocate on behalf of students and employers that will benefit from career and technology education. I will ask that the state legislature reconsider its current position and invest in career and technology education. I am excited about the partnership between VISD and the business community. Working together, we have developed two new courses for this fall. This is a win, win partnership for our students, community and economic development.

Jaynes:In Medical School, we were all required to learn a core curriculum that taught us the basics of medicine, but following that there were different tracks to allow us to train in various medical areas that interested us. This was an excellent system. I believe that all students should be taught the same core curriculum because everyone must know the basics, including the “Three Rs,” and then students should be allowed to branch out and pursue their own interests. Also, any major changes to the curriculum should be made only after receiving meaningful input from parents, teachers, students, and administrators.

? How can overall student, teacher, campus, and district performance best be measured?

Keeling: We can all agree that the TAKS system is not working. There is an alphabet soup of assessments, none of which really measure a student’s academic growth. TAKS, NCLB, and AYP, these all measure something different and tell very little about anything. There are too many assessments and they should be reduced.

Jaynes:In practicing medicine, we are constantly evaluated and our performance is measured and tracked. In measuring performance, we must ensure that our school district is meeting state and federal guidelines, and that we have adequate and accurate record-keeping and reporting systems. We should also encourage input from students, parents, and teachers in evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of our schools. There are many ways to measure success, and we should examine those areas of the school system that will allow us to accurately measure performance. There should also be at least annual performance reviews at the campus and district level.

? What can be done to increase academic rigor - especially in Gifted/Talented and Advanced Placement courses?

Keeling:The Priority Action Team on Student Achievement has recommended G/T offerings for all elementary campuses next year for grades Kindergarten through Second. By 2009, all elementary schools will offer G/T instruction for grades K through Five. Teacher training and implementation of this program is already underway.

To support this work and increased rigor in AP courses, VISD must have teachers that are trained to teach advanced measures and compensate them accordingly. Administration needs to be trained to evaluate accelerated instructional practices to ensure they meet curriculum standards. I support exploring the addition of an International Baccalaureate program.

Jaynes:We must hire and retain quality teachers who can effectively teach courses at these levels, and who are motivated to instill the joy of learning in their students. We should use every tool available to enhance learning, and some of this can be accomplished through modern technology. We must also ensure that parents and students know about AP and G/T programs, along with how they operate, what they offer, and how to access them. We should also examine what similar districts around the state are doing to gain insights into what does and does not work in these areas.

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