Place 6 incumbent Trustee Aaron Johnson—who is LISD's longest-serving trustee having been elected in May 2011—announced he would not be seeking re-election.
All seats on the LISD board of trustees are at large, meaning each trustee represents the entire school district, and voters in the school district can cast a ballot in each race.
Early voting will run from Oct. 24-Nov. 4, and Election Day is Nov. 8.
Read Q&As with the Place 6 candidates below. Bell did not return her questionnaire to Community Impact.
Candidates were asked to keep responses under 75 words, answer the questions provided and avoid attacking opponents. Answers may have been edited or cut to adhere to those guidelines, or for style and clarity.
Francesca Romans
Experience:
I am a current LISD parent and volunteer, and spent my career working for Texas public schools in education law.
Occupation:
freelance paralegal
Candidate Website:
https://www.francescaforlisd.com
Why are you running for the Leander ISD board of trustees?
I am running for Place 6 because I am a public education advocate, and I genuinely want to see our schools succeed. I believe public schools are the backbone of our communities and should be treated as such. We need trustees that want to ensure each and every student feels safe and welcome while they are receiving a high-quality education, and that our teachers and staff are valued, respected and trusted.
If elected, what are your goals for Leander ISD?
My main goals are to amplify student and educator voices; to ensure equity of materials, programs and facilities; and to increase community outreach. I want to continue the current board’s work of expanding our offerings of programs and services, and making sure that everyone has access to what they need to be successful. I also want to increase our advocacy at the state level to get our schools the funding they need.
What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve noticed within Leander ISD, and how would you work to address them?
One of the biggest challenges is outreach. Not every LISD family has email or social media. For those residents without children in school, they miss information altogether, such as bond election information. If we want communities to have accurate information, we should be providing it. Trustees should be helping to make sure information is getting sent out in a variety of methods so that we can reach everyone.
Do you support the upcoming voter-approval tax rate election ballot item (Proposition B)? Why or why not?
Yes, I support the VATRE. Proposition B will decrease our overall tax rate, raise revenue needed to avoid a budget shortfall and fund the approved teacher and staff raises. I do not want to see overcrowded classrooms, programs cut and teachers let go. Our public school financing is unfortunately not what it should be from the state, so I appreciate LISD doing what it can to bring in more money for our campuses with [a] VATRE.
How should the district plan for future growth?
LISD has expansive governing documents, such as the Strategic Plan and the first Long-Range Plan in LISD history, and should be using them more to navigate through this growth and change. The governing documents can also be used to help the board ensure that our policies reflect our goals. Committees are already doing excellent work on introducing things like schools of choice and expanding on existing programs so LISD can serve all students.
Sharon Bell
More Information:
Questionnaire not returned
Why are you running for the Leander ISD board of trustees?
Questionnaire not returned
If elected, what are your goals for Leander ISD?
Questionnaire not returned
What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve noticed within Leander ISD, and how would you work to address them?
Questionnaire not returned
Do you support the upcoming voter-approval tax rate election ballot item (Proposition B)? Why or why not?
Questionnaire not returned
How should the district plan for future growth?
Questionnaire not returned
Scott Reese
Experience:
25-plus year career in leadership, training and change management; roles include chief technology officer, managing director, senior vice president, principal consultant, and captain, USMC.
Occupation:
financial manager
Candidate Website:
https://www.scottreeseforkids.com
Why are you running for the Leander ISD board of trustees?
I’m running for school board to ensure every child gets a great education and is protected from controversial indoctrination/[critical race theory], to uphold parent’s rights, support our great teachers and provide public transparency of all district activities and measures.
If elected, what are your goals for Leander ISD?
If elected, my vision is to improve our children’s measurable outcomes in starting their adult lives by giving them improved academics, habits of excellence and quality, and an understanding of their God-given rights and how to practically stand for them. We do this through measurable goals, transparency, accountability, efficiency gains, system improvements, and a focus on academic standards and outcomes with proven instructional material devoid of controversial ideologies.
What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve noticed within Leander ISD, and how would you work to address them?
Challenges: [The] pandemic caused delays in children’s development; growth in controversial ideologies across classrooms and curriculum resources; overloaded demands on teachers; declining education outcomes; [and the] district has fallen away from prior quality systems. Solutions: Get back to the basics; focus on proven curriculum; simplify teacher tasks; refocus on quality systems that measure activity, progress and outcomes; keep parents involved/informed; be forthright about money issues; tell citizens and parents the real deal of what’s happening and why.
Do you support the upcoming voter-approval tax rate election ballot item (Proposition B)? Why or why not?
[The] VATRE is to increase taxes more than legally allowed, which protects taxpayers from rapid tax increases. District leaders didn’t ask for [a] VATRE; they wisely submitted a budget reduction proposal that also provided partial teacher raises. However, the school board insisted on budget increases without funding, knowing if [the] VATRE fails, then teachers get fired. This feels more like a threat to me: raise taxes or teachers get fired. This was completely avoidable and isn’t right.
How should the district plan for future growth?
Carefully and with public involvement. Our demographic changes are resulting in underutilized facilities south and overfull buildings north. It’s expensive to run underutilized facilities, and it’s expensive to build and maintain facilities. Our planning should find creative ways to further utilize existing facilities and balance between the options of transporting students farther away and building new facilities for every area. We should make options and costs clear and simple for the public to understand.
