All candidates for this office were offered a questionnaire by The Parents’ Campaign regarding education issues.

Sid Bondurant      Kevin Horan - WINNER

Work to make Mississippi business friendly. This increases economic development. This cannot be done with an uneducated citizenry.

 

What do you see as the greatest challenge facing Mississippi schools and how will you address it?

The decline of the two-parent family puts small children in an atmosphere where guidance, discipline, and time for reading with a child are absent. We need to gear government programs to supporting traditional families.

 

For Fiscal Year 2012, the MAEP appropriation is underfunded by $237,386,693. Assuming no more than 2% inflation, the formula would likely require about $2,365,180,600 for Fiscal Year 2014 (to be decided in the 2013 Legislative Session), about $392-million more than was appropriated for Fiscal Year 2012. Would you support getting to this full funding level in two legislative sessions? 

I hope we can do this. It is a priority, but it depends on economic recovery and the resulting tax revenue increases.

 

Will you commit to closing by a significant margin the current gap between current funding and full funding of the MAEP for Fiscal Year 2013 (to be decided in the 2012 Legislative Session)? The MAEP is currently underfunded by $237,386,693.

If at all possible. See previous answer.

 

The following issues are very important to the 60,000 members of The Parents’ Campaign. Frequently throughout the year, we get calls and emails regarding these topics, and many of the questions submitted for this questionnaire were about funding for these specific areas.Where do these fit into your funding priorities, and how would you, as a legislator, address them?

 

• National Board Certification Program Stipend/National Board Certified Teachers (NBCT)

This was a promise made and it should be kept.

 

• Vocational Education

See below

 

• Gifted Education

See below

 

• Special Education

See below

 

• Education Enhancement/Teacher Supply Fund (EEF)

See below

 

• Teacher Salaries

See below

 

• Chickasaw Cession Payments

(Regarding these above…) All of these should be decided by School Boards and State Dept. of Education.

 

• The Public Employee Retirement System (PERS)

We cannot break promises made to current employees.

 

How can Mississippi get creative to ensure sufficient revenue to fully fund education and other vital state services?

Make Mississippi more business friendly. Keep our civil justice system fair. Economic development is the key to tax revenue increases.

 

In Mississippi, some local school superintendents are elected rather than being appointed by their boards. Would you support or oppose a phase-out of elected superintendents, moving to appointment as incumbent elected superintendents retire or leave their positions?

Yes

 

What would you do to address Mississippi’s teacher shortage?

Develop programs to use retired military officers/NCOs with college degrees to transition to education.

 

What steps should be taken to improve the quality of teaching in Mississippi?

Support the NBCT program

 

What steps should be taken to improve the overall quality of Mississippi school leaders?

Move to appointed school superintendents

 

Would you support state funding for a statewide non-compulsory early childhood education program? If yes, what is your plan for getting state funding for early education? If no, why are you opposed to state funding for early education?