Besides voting on the school bond issue on Nov. 8, voters in District 429 will also have the opportunity to elect candidates to fill four open school board positions for Austin Public Schools.
The six people running for school board deserve credit for stepping up to the plate. I encourage voters to get to know the candidates. While school board members do not have the responsibility to micro-manage the day-to-day operations of the district, they do have the important roles of oversight, enacting policies that affect all levels of the school district, and working with the superintendent, whom they hire.
In my opinion, the school board should reflect — to the extent possible — various segments of the community and diverse perspectives. Each board member is one of seven, and there should be efforts to build a consensus on issues, but a healthy part of this process is to have constructive disagreement if a member is so inclined.
Please take time to be informed and to vote Nov. 8.
David C. Ruzek
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Austin
