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Columbia, Missouri (KMIZ)
ABC 17 News is interviewing each of the seven candidates running for three vacancies on the Columbia Board of Education. At least two of them are new members and he is the only one still in office.
Its incumbent is Chris Horn.
Part of Horn’s campaign is based on continuity on the board. The term of office of the director is his three years.
Horn was one of the board members who supported renewing supervisor Brian Yearwood’s contract, though some abstained, citing the rushed process.
Campaign Finance: Chris Horn’s 40 Day Election Reporthttps://abc17news.b-cdn.net/abc17news.com/2023/03/horn-amended-40-day-before.pdf
Lucas Geisler: Please introduce yourself and why you want this job.
Chris Horn: I am not from Colombia. My parents were in the Air Force, so we moved every four or five years. But I came here at the University of Missouri, got a degree in math, started working, and moved a few times with my first employer, Shelter Insurance. However, back in 2017, my wife and I returned. We have her 3 children. we love it here My wife is her CPS teacher. And you know, that’s a little bit about me. And as you know, I have enjoyed serving on the board. It’s an honor. It was a privilege. It was hard, but it was worth it. Oh yeah I’m back to do it again.
Geisler: How does the school district continue to raise salaries to remain competitive and retain teacher engagement?
Horn: We continue to be really good stewards of the funds that local taxpayers give us.As you know, most of our funds are locally sourced. So in 2016 we passed a levy just for this kind of thing. We have a five-year model that helps us understand where we are going in terms of revenue and expenses.
So when we passed that levy, we told the committee, and the committee said, “Ask what you need now, don’t come back for a while.” We were able to do it even though[court ruling]cut the actual funding by half. Again, his 60%+ of our funding is locally sourced. That’s why it’s important to stick to the 5-year model. This will help you understand when you start losing money or when you have to go back to your community and ask for another due.
Geisler: How can you be sure your district is making headway and improving your state’s ratings, which were relatively low this year?
Horn: So no one wants to be here so that no one wants to see them. And I think what was probably most disturbing to me was that it came as a surprise to more people in our community. It has not served well under a community that has been largely underrepresented. So this was nothing new.
And this, you know, we hear a lot about achievement gaps. This is what we have always tried to close. And, you know, we don’t talk much about opportunities and barriers to opportunity that show gaps in that achievement. I mean we have superintendents who are working on it. can be held accountable to the public for the benefit of
So it’s, it’s really, really exciting. As you know, we gave a presentation today on how to better use data as a diagnostic tool. Not only does this help us understand where we are, but it also helps us communicate where we are to the outside world. And again, no one wants to be here. But we do have a management department and a board of directors focused on ensuring we keep improving.
Geisler: How do you see yourself as a board member who can contribute to the improvement of your district?
Horn: that’s a great question. As a board and as board members, we have specific responsibilities: responsibility for policy setting, financial responsibility for managing long-term plans. they are all true. And I think the more we can focus on our responsibilities, the better we can govern our districts.
The less responsibility we have, the less superintendents, and therefore administrators and educators, can do what we ask them to do. From that perspective, we can lead better. We can set a better example of how to lead…we can get out of being reactive being in a pandemic and from there understand reaction modes. We can, but we have to get ahead of that passive mode and be more proactive. Doing so helps ensure that our policies are appropriate and support the work superintendents and educators are trying to do.
Geisler: Is there anything else you would like voters to know?
I think it’s important to remember that stability and continuity will be very important. As you know, we have a young tenured board and a new superintendent who is doing great things.
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