Improve and Nurture Student Achievement
New Mexico students are at a huge disadvantage on the national stage. Our education system is simply not focusing on student achievement and helping our bright, promising students to excel. By offering more individualized curriculums and extracurricular activities, we can better prepare our students to compete with their peers nationwide.
In addition, we need to make sure that the skills being taught are applicable to the modern world. Technology changes quicker than ever today, and it’s difficult not only for Lovington schools to keep up, but any school and even colleges around the world find their curriculums quickly outdated. However, by teaching critical thinking skills and giving students opportunities to engage with cutting-edge technology to achieve tangible goals, we can better prepare them for the ever-changing world ahead of them.
Support our Teachers
Teachers today struggle on many fronts. Their jobs are highly controlled by bureaucratic red tape. Many don’t have the funding to supply their classrooms with basic supplies for their curriculums. And on top of that, they aren’t able to effectively deal with unruly and problematic students.
It’s important that we empower teachers to do what they do best: teach. We need to free them from the distractions and worries of unnecessary bureaucracy and give them the resources they need to manage their classrooms effectively.
Stand Against Bullying
We’ve all faced bullying before, but today’s kids often put up with a degree of bullying that is unimaginable for older generations. Social media has amplified bullying, and as more and more of our lives are lived online, it becomes impossible to escape the harmful effects of cyberbullying.
I’ve heard from many parents who have expressed that Lovington Schools don’t do enough to protect their children, even when there’s a clear, obvious and persistent problem. School officials might try to brush it off as none of their concern, but bullying directly impacts a student’s ability to learn and feel safe at school. Anti-bullying measures should be one of the highest priorities for our school system to ensure a safe environment for everyone.
Transparency and Accountability
Parents and guardians want to know that the teachers and school administration have their kids’ best interests in mind, but it can be difficult to stay on top of what’s going on especially with full time jobs. I believe it needs to be a priority for the school district to inform the community of its plans and decisions, beyond just discussing them at monthly school board meetings.
We also know that teacher-parent contact is a big factor in a kid’s success, so schools need to prioritize this and make it easy for working parents to check-in and monitor their kids’ progress, as well as for teachers to set aside time around the clock to meet with parents and guardians individually to discuss their kids’ needs.
If elected, I’ll make myself available to the community so anyone can easily reach out about their thoughts or concerns regarding Lovington schools.