Mark Summers – District 4 Candidate, Challenger

What is your motivation to become a school board member?

To provide a much-needed voice to the board of trustees to improve student STEM related outcomes for Hays CISD students.

What particular skills or experience qualifies you to serve as a school board member?

I was a mechanical design/analysis engineer/manager for thirty years (1984 - 2014) working in the aerospace, semiconductor equipment, and automated test equipment industries. I have also been an educator at the technical college (ITT-Technical Institute), community college (Austin Community College), and university (Texas State University) levels for fifteen years. I am currently a graduate student at Texas State University, finishing up my second master's degree this upcoming fall semester.

How much time will you be able to give in service as a school board member?

I will work diligently for the next three years as a school board trustee. I finished up all my coursework for my engineering master's degree (thesis defense pending), so I will have more than adequate time to allocate to board business. This will include campus visits to talk with educators/administrators to learn first hand of their needs as they relate to student outcomes.

What are the greatest challenges facing public education in Texas?

Property tax allocation, properly funding STEM programs, encouraging and developing diversity in schools, and teaching students new technologies required for the evolving 21st century economy.

What are the greatest challenges for Hays CISD?

Student population growth, improvements in student outcomes, and increasing STEM program funding in K-12 schools.

What are your ideas to improve the future of Hays CISD? How would they help our students?

Provide teachers/administrators with the infrastructure to provide value-added skills to students such that they can become holistic, productive, tax-paying citizens in the growing high-tech economy.

If elected, you will represent a specific area of Hays CISD. How will you balance the needs of your specific constituents with the needs of the entire school district?

All areas of Hays CISD have common needs. Major differences I envision needing to address on a district-level include those related to income and ethnicity. I plan to balance the needs of these various parts of the district by incorporating diversity and logic into my decision-making process.

Describe YOUR view of your role on the school board and the role of the superintendent. What is the ideal relationship between you and the senior administration of Hays CISD?

To work together to improve student outcomes. I am familiar with the strife between educators, administrators, trustees, and the superintendent over the past several election cycles, and I plan to do all in my power to have these stakeholders work together to improve student outcomes.

What do you believe should be the goal and the role of the teachers and professional organizations in the school district?

To promote student outcomes. To prepare students to enter college or vocational training after graduation from Hays CISD, and for students to be able to enter the work force with life-long learning strategies.

Do you support a constitutional amendment requiring the state to pay at least 50 percent of the cost of maintaining and operating the public school system? Please explain your answer.

I am not familiar enough with state-wide public school funding to offer up a well-informed answer to this question.