Kile Brown
Occupation: head of IoT business development—North America; IDEMIA America
Relevant experience: 12 years of military and corporate leadership experience, 10 years of nonprofit governance, 17 years of innovative change management and strategic planning, three years of executive recruiting/staffing, parent of three Lake Highlands High School graduates
[email protected]
www.kile4risd.com
Rachel McGowan
Occupation: account executive
Relevant experience: I’ve served on the PTA since 2007, when my 20-year-old was in second grade. I’m on the RISD PTA Council Board and serving as the DEI chair. I’m also serving at the local level at Forest Meadow Junior High as the DEI chair. I am a new member (this upcoming year) of the Dallas Junior Women’s League and Young Men’s Service League. I’m most proud of recent efforts working with a group of moms in my neighborhood to get the Stults Road PTA up and going.
214-403-4215
www.rachelforrisd.com
Jan Stell
Occupation: Realtor
Relevant experience: Master’s in education from Austin College. I taught in RISD at both Skyview and Brentfield as well as in Plano ISD and Spring ISD. I served on the board of the Lake Highlands YMCA, helping locate the land, to hire the architect, to work on the building concept as well as fundraising for the new facility. I participated in Leadership Dallas. Our son attended RISD schools K-12. I was a prison fellowship volunteer and have traveled to Guatemala with Habitat for Humanity.
[email protected]
@JanFacebookpage
www.janforrisd.com
Why are you running for office?
Brown: I am running to bring focus to the education of our children and to the support of our teachers. My slogan, “Kids First; Teachers Always” brings this home. Preparing kids for the future is our mission. Our teachers are the day-to-day champions in achieving success in this endeavor.
McGowan: I started elementary school at Stults Road Elementary and graduated from Lake Highlands High School in ‘96, and my biggest “why” is wanting to give back to the community that has done so much for me and my family. My personal experience in this community, my ability to build strong relationships and trust quickly, and my business background will make me a strong trustee. If elected, I hope to bring the conversation in the boardroom back to student outcomes.
Stell: My motivation for running for RISD school board is based on my desire to help all students to reach their fullest potential. We need to empower our teachers and staff with the tools they need to help each student. We have a great opportunity with funds provided to our district to aid the “loss of learning.” We want the results to be measurable for all of our students to have a strong foundation on which to build.
If elected, what would be your top priorities?
Brown: First priority is to hire the best superintendent for Richardson ISD. Next, work with the new superintendent to focus on shoring up key academic shortcomings. Third, again with our new superintendent, empower a professional work environment of excellence for our teachers focused on retention, appreciation and career development. Fourth, better communicate student successes more broadly to the community. And last, get to work building a collaborative community effort to support our struggling students who are struggling most.
McGowan: RISD students: allocating budgetary resources to ensure more academic and social counselors in schools to support social and emotional health as well as college and career readiness. RISD teachers and employees: managing the budget to give retention bonuses to staff, more training on district initiatives, and stronger benefits and health care to our employees and teachers. RISD trustees: as trustees we must work together to build trust and have strong communication.
Stell: If elected, I would personally call on our community to partner with us for extra help, tutoring and support. There are ways we can support our teachers, giving them the help and encouragement they need. Let’s survey them! We need to listen to them, our parents and the taxpayers. Transparency is the key.
What are the biggest challenges facing Richardson ISD? How do you plan to address these issues?
Brown: We must first focus on educating and equipping our students for success in a challenging world. Support for, and the retention of, our teachers who create an environment of excellence for our children is paramount. Third, we must raise the at-level reading performance of our third graders to at least a B (80% from less than 50%).
McGowan: Some of our challenges are the following: teacher and counselor shortage, superintendent search, achievement gap and the fight against equity. RISD teachers and employees—managing the budget to give retention bonuses to staff, more training on district initiatives, and stronger benefits and health care to our employees and teachers.
Stell: Richardson ISD has a great history. We need to refocus our energies on the basics of the three RRRs, reading, writing and arithmetic along with social studies, science and technology. The district then would have a strong foundation of knowledge for each student to build upon for their success. One of the board’s stated 2024 goals is for third graders to go from the 'at meets level' of 47% to increase to 60%. We must use all of our resources and our energy to make that happen. We want and certainly need those improvements that are stated so we can increase our graduation rate as the ultimate goal!
Where to vote
Voters in Dallas County can cast ballots at any countywide polling location during early voting and on election day. For a complete list of polling locations, visit www.dallascountyvotes.org.
Dates to know
- April 25: First day of early voting
- April 26: Last day to apply for ballot by mail (received, not postmarked)
- May 3: Last day of early voting
- May 7: Election day
- May 7: Last day to receive ballot by mail (or May 9 if carrier envelope is postmarked by 7 p.m. at location of election)
