Two seats on the Hays CISD board of trustees are up for grabs in the May 11 election. Merideth Keller is running unopposed for her District 4 seat, and incumbent Marty Kanetzky is being challenged for her District 5 seat by Debbie Munoz. We asked each candidate three questions.

1. Hays CISD will have a new superintendent soon. What can you do to ensure that the transition is a smooth one and does not impede the district's responsibility to provide a quality education for students?

2. Why should voters choose you?

3. What is the most pressing issue facing the district, and what would you do about it?

Keller:

1. First and foremost, we will hire an excellent superintendent. We've engaged our stakeholders to determine the characteristics of a superintendent that will be the best fit for the district. We will make sure that the selected candidate has proven results and a high level of community regard. The board should provide our new superintendent with the tools needed to learn about Hays CISD as well as be open to the best practices he or she will bring to the table. Quality education will not be impeded during this transition because our students and teachers are engaged, and learning is happening each and every day.

2. I did not draw an opponent for this election. I will continue to be student-centered and provide representation and advocacy for all stakeholders. I will continue to provide trusted leadership while engaging in ongoing dialog. Everyone deserves a seat at the table, and together we will provide the best possible education to the students of Hays CISD.

3. At the end of the day, everything we do should be focused squarely on student learning. Our expectation is that upon graduation our students are college or career ready. In order to accomplish that goal, we must improve our student achievement. I will continue to focus on systemic improvements and processes which will establish whether our curriculum, allocated resources and programs are producing the expected results.

Kanetzky:

1. The selection of our next superintendent is one of the most important decisions I and my fellow board members will make. We need someone who can get the best out of our students, teachers and administrators. During the transition I will seek to provide background and historical information and make the board's goals for our district clear. The transition will mainly be facilitated by our current administrative staff, who are very capable.

2. Voters should choose me because I have been a consistent advocate for raising academic expectations for all our students, accountability at every level, recognizing that learning is not a "one size fits all" experience, making more effective use of technology in our schools, and better stewardship of taxpayer dollars.

3. One of the most pressing needs in our district is to improve academic results for all our students so that they are better prepared to achieve whatever their goal is after high school (job, technical training, or college entrance). To do this, we need to make our institutions more flexible and use technology and information better to individualize the education experience for each student.

Munoz:

1. Clear communication is the key to any successful undertaking. The board should set clear expectations and goals and then hold the superintendent accountable for meeting those expectations and accomplishing those goals. It is vital for the trustees to understand their role as board members and not to micromanage or impede upon the superintendent's duties.

2. I love our community, our schools and most importantly, our kids. As a former resident of District 2 and a current resident of District 5, I understand many of the challenges present on both sides of the highway. As a parent of a recent Lehman graduate and a current Negley fifth-grader, I'm familiar with the current needs of our students.

3. There is no denying the current enrollment figures for both Negley Elementary and Barton Middle School. Barton is over capacity with Wallace and Dahlstrom not too far behind. I have serious concerns about the overcrowding and how it will impact our kids' learning environment, not to mention their safety. We need to be more proactive and utilize demographers on a regular basis to mitigate the risk of overcrowding.