Defeated in September 22 special election

1. What is your experience with K-12 public schools, personally and/or with your children or family? I was raised in the public school system, and I have been a home school mother to my own children, as this was the path we chose for our family. However, this does not mean that I do not support a parent’s decision to send their child to public or private school. My own extended family continues to send their children to public school, as do many of my friends.

2. Do you agree that the Mississippi Adequate Education Program (MAEP) should be fully funded every year? If yes, what actions will you take to ensure full funding? If no, explain why. The MAEP is the funding mechanism for our state’s public schools. See https://tpcref.org/mississippi-adequate-education-program-maep/ for information. I fully support schools to be funded in order to deliver the best education to our children, and the support systems necessary to do so. I see the increase in the MAS requirements placed on teachers, students and districts as unfunded mandates. With each demand that is placed on the schools, there is a cost involved in that. The MAS system must be re-evaluated. Districts which are administratively heavy in their budgets should have their books re-evaluated for discovery about where funds locally can and should be diverted back into the classroom.

3. What will you do to ensure state revenue that is sufficient to provide all of the services Mississippi’s citizens need to lead productive lives? The first place to start in any household that is struggling to get by and meet necessary obligations is to evaluate what cuts need to be made. The state must also do the same thing. Which bureaucratic organizations can be cut, which jobs are unnecessary and create burdens for people in Mississippi by nature of their regulatory overreach, and where can we re divert those funds to, and even give back to the citizens in the forms of decreased taxes.

4. Will you oppose vouchers that send taxpayer dollars to private schools, religious schools, home schools, or virtual schools? Why or why not? I oppose school vouchers for the simple fact that where state dollars flow, there is also the possibility for government to demand the form of education being taught privately. I would support an education tax credit system, much like New Hampshire, should the state not end the state income tax.

5. Do you agree that all K-12 schools that receive taxpayer dollars, including private voucher schools, should be accountable to taxpayers for the quality of education they provide, using the same accountability measures as public schools? If there are taxpayer dollars going to a school system following a certain child, just those certain children should be held accountable to the testing and other standards that public school children are held to.

6. Public schools serve the vast majority of Mississippi students with disabilities. Do you agree that special education services in public schools should be fully funded every year? (Special education has been underfunded by the state every year since 2008.) If yes, how will you accomplish full funding? If no, explain why. As i read over MAEP and what it covers, and where there is valid evidence presented that special ed is being underfunded, there is certainly a call for consideration to investigate financial allocation toward these services. Please see my other answers above with regard to funding and redirection of funds to accomplish this goal. Where the funds are not available, partnerships with private organizations as resource tools should be considered in local areas.

7. Do you agree that Mississippi should provide high quality early childhood education statewide? Taxpayers do not need to foot the bill for early childhood education. The Montessori system, and others like it, are evidence that children learn best through being allowed to play and explore on their own. Where there are barriers that prevent private organizations from being able to supply these resources, these road blocks should be addressed and removed. The private community will always do a better job at supplying the needs for the young mind than a one-sized-fits-all approach.

8. The nation’s top teachers say that the greatest barriers to school success for K-12 students are family stress, poverty, and learning and psychological problems. What steps do you believe legislators should take to alleviate these obstacles for Mississippi children? Systemic poverty is a very real issue in Mississippi. Legislators must start with having an understanding of what families go through in our state if they want to know how to bring relief to families experiencing these problems. They need to sit with the mental healthcare agencies across this state who serve several hundred of these families, knock on doors and get one-on-one with families suffering through these problems. The leaders in our state are not stopping to listen how laws which are currently in place are preventing people from success. Many feel like it is a crime to be poor in our state, and I can’t blame them for feeling that way. CPS gets called on families trying to survive, children of non-violent incarcerated parents suffer in numerous ways, and families struggle to decide whether to pay their light bill or put food on the table. Some families lack the education to have the awareness how their choices impact their children. But public policy cannot ever solve these problems directly. Policy will never be able to be written to put an end to these scenarios (other than making adjustments to the CPS system and re-evaluating our criminal justice system), but barriers to success can be removed. But if lawmakers at down and listened they might hear how barriers such as licensing laws that prevent people from creating wealth for their selves and an education system that teaches to tests instead of educating with real world skills in mind is impacting the lives of most Mississippi families. These are only a few examples of places to start that would bring relief so Mississippi families can breathe and succeed.

9. Do you support raising teacher salaries at least to the level of our neighboring states and raising pay for teacher assistants? Absolutely!

10. Do you agree that retired educators (and other retired state employees) should be able to draw their retirement while serving in the Legislature? They earned it, yes. The amount of money a legislator makes, aside from those serving in special committee assignments, is pennies in comparison. I have never heard a person tell me they want to run for Mississippi State Office to get rich.

11. Legislators have little or no staff to help them understand the many bills they must consider. Before introducing or supporting a bill that could affect public education, will you commit to seeking input from teachers, principals, superintendents, and parents of public school students in your district? Who will be advising you on education policies? I will most definitely be seeking input from those in my area. Education is best approached from a local perspective, and the needs of my district are not the same of the needs as, say, a district on the Gulf Coast. I do not pretend to know everything, and I realize that a vote – any vote – impacts every single Mississippian, every time. I would like to hold quarterly Town Halls with the educators, school boards, and administration of the school districts in my House District.