Goals and Philosophy

By Patricia Ann "Pat" Hanrion

Continuity of curriculum and equity among all schools, parent participation, communication, fiscal accountability, health and safety, cost effective construction to keep up with growth are my goals.

I am a registered Republican because I believe government should work for the people, not the people work to support the government. My party represents my conservative values in all issues including, the economy and taxation, protection of our borders, a strong military, immigration reform, social security, personal accountability, and family values.

Lack of continuity of core curriculum across the district was a weakness I wanted to correct when elected in 1993. Before I came to the board, the same classes in different schools were given different credit, and the rigor of courses was inconsistent. I felt it was important to guarantee that a Hart diploma meant the same no matter what school a student attended. I have worked to ensure a uniform curriculum and testing instruments are used across the district so that every student has the same opportunity.

Parental authority and communication was an area of concern when first elected. I have worked to enhance communication to parents regarding student performance and school activities. We now have an information officer who works with the press and sends out a district news letter which includes upcoming events and district accomplishments. We are using the public access TV channel to highlight individuals and events and recently we have purchased PACE, a computer activated communication system where parents can receive current information regarding crisis or emergency notification, important schedule changes, or reemphasis of policy, such as was done recently to stress the diversity policy. I also have made sure that parents are informed of their rights regarding state mandated teachings about sex education, and that they have the right to remove the child from the class, review the presentation materials so if they desire, teach their own family values and religious beliefs within the home.

I am particularly proud of the creation of the Wm. S. Hart High School Foundation which was a way to use the law for the financial advantage of our district. It had never been done, and we broke new ground when we started this organization. It has saved the district thousands of dollars and in addition provided money for new buildings and amenities such as our artifical turf fields, and performing arts centers, at no taxpayer expense.

It has been my goal to have children close to home and have feeder schools; Junior Highs that feed directly to High Schools to keep students and communities together. We are in the final process of building those schools. Another family and financial concern has been the cost of special education and out of district travel for specialized programs. I have worked with the Special Education Department to bring back numerous programs from the county at a savings to the district. Many of these students are now back in our community and close to home.

I would like to continue to pursue the previous stated goals because as the district grows, consistent curriculum, parental communication, as well as keeping up with growth will be important. However if elected for another term I will focus on fiscal accountability. I have seen the student population increase from 7,000 to 20,000 in 10 years. As the district grows the budget will be more difficult to manage and I want to assure dollars stay in the classroom with students and teachers.

Another issue that is growing in importance is campus health and safety. We now have drug dogs on campus. They are a deterrent, and give students permission to say "NO", but other proactive measures can and should take place. Also clean bathrooms with bacterial soap will prevent the transmission of colds and the flu, but having non water based hand washing materials in every classroom would have a huge impact on illness and lost days from school which takes money out of the classroom and students away from learning.

Parents need to be involved in their children's education. It is the greatest critical factor for their success. I want to continue my pursuit to have family friendly schools. Schools should welcome parental involvement, and make sure their participation is meaningful and important. I want to our new parent program implemented on every campus. We have set aside funds to support this important activity and I want to make sure every parent has a chance to get involved with their child's school.

I am running for the office of Board Member because I have the knowledge, experience, and energy to advance our district to the next level of excellence. I am the voice of a mother who represents our conservative community and always considers the impact on the family when making decisions.

I have a high level of expertise in construction issues and have been a watchdog over many of the recent projects; I want to make sure that we stay on target with new construction and modernization so we are ready for our new students and spend construction funds wisely.

My degree in nursing, public and community health, gives me the perspective of health and safety when considering board policy, and the school environment. I want to make sure we are prepared for all students academically, and financially, with seats in classrooms, involved parents, and welcoming safe campuses.