Meet Your Candidates for the Highland Park ISD Place 6 Board of Trustees Race

April 24, 2023 Staff Report 0 Comments

Paul Calce, Blythe Koch, and Alexander Stein will appear on the ballot for the Highland Park ISD Place 6 board of trustees race.

Election Day is May 6 and early voting runs from April 24 until May 2.

See below for the candidate questionnaires they submitted to People Newspapers. Answers have been edited for brevity and clarity.

Paul Calce

Why are you running for school board now?

I believe our educational institutions are our community’s most important asset. Unfortunately, due to recent poor stewardship and mismanagement, HPISD has been in a steady decline. In order to return to prominence, the board requires a new perspective.

I plan to restore traditional academics, eliminate indoctrination, and prioritize teachers over technology in HPISD schools.

Please list your involvement with the district.

Bradfield Dad’s Club, coach of various YMCA teams (basketball, football, baseball)

What are the biggest challenges facing the district in the next 5-10 years and how would you go about solving them?

Returning the district to quality, traditional education and the replacement of educational technology with teacher-led instruction.

The district is evaluating math instruction strategies and curriculum. What’s your take on it, and how, if at all, do you think math instruction in the district could be improved?

Mathematics should return to a tried-and-true curriculum such as Saxon math. The hybrid “not common core – common core” being used now is inferior and must be eliminated. Mathematics should be practiced by hand, with a pencil and paper, not on tablets or computers. This includes test answers being handwritten as well, not computerized, as testing is currently administered.

How do you envision working with the district’s new superintendent as part of the board?

The superintendent answers to the school board as the board represents the people of the district. The superintendent is responsible to implement the educational vision as set forth by the board and I look forward to that employer/employee relationship.

What makes Highland Park ISD unique compared to other public schools in the area?

The parental involvement in the schools is I believe unequaled by any other district. The Park Cities is a wonderful community and it is the people of the community that make HPISD great.

Previous reader-submitted question: What role do you believe the school board should play in selecting, reviewing, or removing books in the HPISD classrooms and libraries. Do you plan to involve yourself in deciding which books teachers can teach or librarians can stock?

Parents, via the school board, (set) the guardrails as to the content and subject matter of the books to which the children will be exposed. The board is responsible for ensuring the superintendent works within the prescribed guidelines.

What’s your take on what HPISD should prioritize during this state legislative session? There has been talk among legislators and bills proposed this session on everything from the state’s public education funding formula to expanding state-funded education savings accounts.

Repealing the “Robin Hood” amendment should always be the number one focus until it is no more. Protect all aspects of independence and local control. Take no federal funds committed to testing. Use local determinants for evaluation. Consider Iowa or Stanford. Use our District of Innovation status to bypass requirements of TEKS not focused on core academics. Do not renew membership in the Texas Association of School Boards (TASB).

Blythe Koch

Why are you running for school board now?

I am running for the HPISD School Board because there is important work to do, and I have the skills and experience to make a positive impact. We need trusted, knowledgeable, and diligent trustees who are willing to dig in, stand up for what is best for our students, and hold our leadership accountable. I have been involved in HPISD in many capacities over the last 11 years, and I have proven both my willingness to advocate for change in a constructive manner and my ability to achieve results. In doing so, I have also earned the trust and respect of many in this community. I am excited to work with our other trustees to continue to bring about the positive changes needed to improve our district.

Please list your involvement with the district.
• Boone PTO President (2020-21 – inaugural year)
• HPISD Facilities Advisory Committee (2014-15)
• HPISD Boundary Rezoning Committee (2019)
• HPHS PTA Scots Challenge Chair-Elect (2022-23)
• Hyer PTA Treasurer (2017-18), Fundraising Chair (2018-19), Facilities Chair (2015-17)
• HPISD Golden Pennies Campaign (2021)
• 5th Elementary PTO Establishment Committee (2019)
• 5th Elementary Design Committee (2016)
• 11 years of other service in cafeterias, school events, and booster clubs
• Graduated in Top Ten students of HPHS Class of 1997

What are the biggest challenges facing the district in the next 5-10 years and how would you go about solving them?

HPISD has excellent schools, but there are also indicators that we have areas in need of improvement.
There is a heavy reliance on outside tutoring to supplement classroom instruction, there are examples
of reduced rigor in our students’ reading and writing assignments, and our student outcomes in math
are below that of similar districts and below our performance in other subjects. As a trustee, I will work
to ensure we set specific expectations and goals around academic rigor and student outcomes, train our
teachers in time-tested instructional practices, adopt an evaluation system that better supports our
teachers, and ensures we are implementing best practices in the classroom, and reduce technology
usage in the classroom to that which is truly purposeful and beneficial for our students. I will work with
the other trustees to hold our superintendent and his staff accountable to achieving these goals and
objectives.

Another big challenge we continue to face is paying our teachers competitively, which directly affects
our ability to recruit and retain the best. Due to the state’s funding and recapture formulas for public
schools, HPISD receives up to $2,000 less per student than nearby districts, which makes it very difficult
to stay competitive on teacher pay. Thanks to the community’s passage of the VATRE (also known as
the “Golden Penny” election) and recent efforts by the Board, HP Education Foundation, PTAs, Dads
Clubs, and others, HPISD has made progress and increased teacher pay by 11% over the last three years,
but we need to do more. We must scrutinize all expenses from top to bottom, seek opportunities for
additional revenue, and partner with our fundraising organizations to ensure that every penny raised for
our schools is used in the best way possible.

The district is evaluating math instruction strategies and curriculum. What’s your take on it, and how, if at all, do you think math instruction in the district could be improved?

We have to be honest in recognizing that what is happening in the classroom right now is not working
for many of our students. On last year’s STAAR test, 22% of our students (3rd grade thru Algebra I) did
not meet grade level in math. Without the outside tutoring that many students receive, those numbers
would likely have been even worse. Some of our peer districts had only 13% of students who didn’t
meet grade level in math, so we can and must do better. We need to ensure our teachers are grounded
in time-tested instructional methods with a renewed emphasis on direct instruction and assessment of
mastery before expecting independent application. We need to support our teachers with ongoing
observation, coaching, and professional development in proven instructional methods. And we need to
better identify and help struggling students. These improvements are needed not only in math but
across all subjects. We must also provide our teachers with the best resources, even if that means
adopting new math textbooks outside of the usual adoption cycle like we did last year for English
Language Arts.

How do you envision working with the district’s new superintendent as part of the board?

I am excited to work with our new superintendent to bring about needed improvements in our schools.
It is the school board’s job to set policy and goals and to hold the superintendent accountable. It is the
superintendent’s job to work with the staff to achieve those goals. Success requires a collaborative
effort, and we will need the teamwork of the board, superintendent, teachers and staff, parents, and
community members.

What makes Highland Park ISD unique compared to other public schools in the area?

Community involvement is one of HPISD’s greatest assets and truly sets us apart from other public
schools in our area. Parents and community members support our schools in many ways, from serving
lunch in our cafeterias, to raising money, to supporting our students’ learning at home. I believe we can
further benefit from our community’s involvement by improving communication and transparency
about curriculum, student learning, school board decisions, finances, strategic goals, and student
outcomes. Parents and community members also have valuable insights, and we can benefit by giving
more opportunities to provide feedback.

What role do you believe the school board should play in selecting, reviewing, or removing books in
the HPISD classrooms and libraries? Do you plan to involve yourself in deciding which books teachers can teach or librarians can stock?

It is a school board’s job to set and enforce policy, which includes policies and criteria surrounding book
selection. The board should ensure its policies are effective and enforceable, align with the vision and
mission of our local district, and protect parental rights. Beyond setting such policies, we should rely on
the professional expertise of our educators to select age-appropriate books which meet the educational
needs of our students. If books chosen do not adhere to district policy, the board should ensure
appropriate actions are taken in accordance with the processes outlined in policy.

I think the number one legislative priority should be increasing funding for public education across the
board. Teachers currently make less than 77 cents on the dollar compared to other college-educated
workers (in the 1990s, they made 92 cents on the dollar). It’s no wonder schools across the country are
struggling to hire and retain great teachers. Worse, Texas spends roughly $3,000 less per student than
the national average and is ranked 39th in the country on education funding. If our legislators care about improving public education for all students, they need to increase funding per student so we all can pay teachers better and reduce student-to-teacher ratios in the classroom. Texas also needs to fix its funding formulas to allow all schools to meet their basic operating budget before sending dollars back to the state for redistribution to other districts. HPISD currently receives up to $2,000 less per student than neighboring districts, so we cannot provide competitive salaries without relying on fundraising to supplement this shortfall.

Alexander Stein

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Alex Stein’s candidate filing paperwork identifies him as a Youtuber/comedian, which may explain the intent of his responses to the questions Park Cities People sent to each candidate. We asked if the following were what the candidate intended to share with readers, and he replied, “Yes.”)

Why are you running for school board now?

I want to implement sharia laws into the school system and prevent any women from going to school in the district.

Please list your involvement with the district.

I was captain of the highland park football team 2005

What are the biggest challenges facing the district in the next five-10 years and how would you go about solving them?

Not enough kids are using fentynal and we need to help the drug running coyotes of Mexico by connecting them to our students.

The district is evaluating math instruction strategies and curriculum. What’s your take on it, and how, if at all, do you think math instruction in the district could be improved?

We need to eliminate all math and focus on making ammunitions and reading the Q’uran

How do you envision working with the district’s new superintendent as part of the board?

I’m going to force the superintendent to walk with Al Queda warriors in Afghanistan so they can learn about the weapons of mass destruction we never found.

What makes Highland Park ISD unique compared to other public schools in the area?

Highland park is a just a bunch of poor people that can barely afford to fill up their gas tanks….I plan to help the people of HP financially

We need more graphic novels and adult theme books in the elementary school libraries…I believe we need to expose our kids to every weird and bizarre lifestyle choice so they can get ideas on hey they want to ruin their own lives

Make sharia law cool again…get the female students out of the classroom and into the kitchen.