for Mr. Clemencich and Mr. Shepard

Make sure to spread the word to get people out to vote. These elections typically have extremely low turnout.

I'm just waiting for my new voter ID card to be mailed, and I'll gladly vote in this election...

Here we go with some of the old VRS spin zone.

You are absolutely right. How dare VRS post a link to an independent and unbiased question and answer comparison between the candidates. Also… some nerve she has to provide details on what CP needs to be able to vote… and a link to Collin County!!! The nerve she has!!! When will it all stop!

I don’t see the spin. She provided a way for people to gather some information to formulate their own opinion and voting decision. She then provided her opinion which she is far from the first person to do that.

Rona points out Allen has a higher tax rate than neighboring districts, but fails to note that Allen delivers quality education for fewer dollars per student than any of the neighboring districts (with lower tax rates) because of gross funding inequities coming out of Austin.

The outcome of any election is not determined by the majority of voters - it is determined by the majority of voters who actually show up to vote.

For those you who belittle the bus barn issue as a short term single issue....I bet you would not think that, if this thing is built across the street from where you live.

You will be living with it for at least a few years. I wonder would you still think of it as a short term issue.

How far would you go to protect your home?

How far would you go to protect your home?

For those you who belittle the bus barn issue as a short term single issue....I bet you would not think that, if this thing is built across the street from where you live.

You will be living with it for at least a few years. I wonder would you still think of it as a short term issue.

I wouldn't elect two unqualified individuals (Zafari and Hurst) who have no reason to run other than to try and protect their neighborhoods. Elected officials must serve the entire district, not just their own neighborhood.

I have talked with current and former council and school board members. All say that when acting as a council member or school board member, they must act for the entire city/district and not one neighborhood.

I have met Mr. Hurst multiple times, he is a very nice guy, but only has one reason for running. To stop the bus barn.

I've tried to communicate with Ms.Zafari and she doesn't seem able to answer any basic questions other than it's her time.

I've watched Mr. Shepard at the school meetings and he does a great job of understanding the issues and makes decisions that benefit the community at large while always thinking of our students.

I've reviewed Mr. Clemencich's history of service and have talked with people who have worked with him. He is fair and makes decisions based on the information available and not on emotion.

Both men (Clemencich and Shepard) have earned our vote and should be elected.

• traveler Said:

At the same time I do notice that Mr. Hurst seems less experienced for running, based on his answers. But then President Obama wasn't that experienced when he ran in the last election and many voted for him because of his passion to make things better.

On a separate but related note, the Allen American had 3 AISD candidate related stories in their paper yesterday and they are all up on the website now. There was an article for Zafari (which clarified several things for me), one for campaign finance reporting, and one for a Political Action Committee or PAC that is now in Allen. I think it is funny that Carl has only spent $34. I wonder what that was at such a low amount. Also, where are all the signs that the candidates are spending money on? Given my travel to the West side is usually limited to Watter’s Creek, the Lowes/Home Depot area of McDermott, and Wal-Mart… I have not noticed any and have not seen any along Bethany or Main. Of course signs will not change my opinion I have I was just wondering where they all are.

Place 2 candidate Carl Clemencich takes the lead in spending with $2,268, most of which was used to finance $1,299 in yard signs. A total of $693 has been used for the printing of postcards, and a total of $178 has been used for inkjet cartridges and paper. Clemencich, who has said he is self-financing his campaign, has not taken any contributions so far in this election cycle.

Clemencich's opponent, Alan Hurst, has raised $40 and spent $34, though his report does not detail how the funds were spent.

I read that in the paper (Allen American) this morning. I have not tried to look at their voting records but it would be interesting to see who is actually voting on a regular basis since they are asking for our vote. I think the questions were fair the paper asked each candidate and at least this time all 4 answered all the questions. You can still see how some were answered more thoroughly than others though. One thing that I picked up on was Zafari's comments on Elementary 17. She was quoted by the Allen American in the April 19th article stating "The maintenance facility that we have [planned], is that really necessary?" she said. "Do we have to build that? Do we have to build the new school? Or can we manage for a few more years so we don't have to incur more debt and increase our taxes?"

In her candidate profile this morning she is quoted as saying "I would set the new elementary school as a higher priority." To ensure it is in context that was part of her response to a question about the service center.
To me, her placing any priority on the school shows me that she acknowledges that it is needed. If she didn’t think that she would have most likely stuck with her April 19th statement. I don’t see how Elementary 17 is even a talking point for her, especially since Kitty Hawk was just sold to a developer that will build about 229 homes on the site. That is potentially a lot of new kids.

On a side note, if you are running for school board I would hope you would attend the meetings to see how things work. On Monday I noticed Susan, Carl, Jason (of course), and Alan at the meeting. I would say that maybe I missed Rona but since there were only about 6 of us in the seats after the open forum finished and the service center discussion… I don’t see how.

Well if elections are solely based on experience, service and qualifications, John McCain would be the President now. My first post was just my sarcastic comment about the 2008 general election.

Back to the AISD election. I will take my time to read each candidates' answers and see what they want to do. For example, even if both candidates say they want to balance the district spending, how do they do it? Those are the things I look for. But then that's just my way of picking a candidate. And based on the fact that you've talked to Mr. Clemencich and you're more satisfied with what he's told you and his experience, that's a fine choice too. People just have different ways of picking their choice of candidates.

• traveler Said:

This question is completely backwards. The question one should rightly ask of someone running for an at-large position is "How far would you go to take care of the best interests of the entire district?"

As someone who has some experience in the matter, I can tell you that the Board will always look for the win-win but sometimes not everyone gets to be happy. In that case, the Board does what makes the most sense in the big picture and trustees who are sworn to uphold the law and put the interests of the district first better be willing to vote against their own property values - or even their own children.

• javaprincess Said:

Probably the best comment on this thread yet. VRS has always taken the approach that experience and service is the standard to be elgible.

VRS, get off your high horse. You were President in the easiest time in the history of our school district; we had nothing to go but up coming off one of the most troubling leadership style ever. And since, it appears all must kiss your ring to get the blessings to serve.

You throw in much analysis and data that seemingly puts you high on the intellectual pedestal, makes us all with opinions inferior, and all the while you missed opportunities to make a stand against Austin and do more than you could have. Oh, but we do have a nice 60 million dollar stadium. Thanks

I read on another forum that the ISD taxes we pay are the highest legally allowable in Texas, however the current board has set a goal of getting the law changed in order to be able to raise them further. Is this truly the case, please tell me that person was incorrect.

I read on another forum that the ISD taxes we pay are the highest legally allowable in Texas, however the current board has set a goal of getting the law changed in order to be able to raise them further. Is this truly the case, please tell me that person was incorrect.

• mgrayar Said:

AISD's taxes are the highest legally allowed.

Why? Because Ken Paxton, Florence Shapiro, Rick Perry and a host of other Republicans cut the amount of money for public education. Balancing the State budget on students and teachers. The district made cuts and the asked the voters for the increase. It was voter approved.

Did AISD reduce their budget? Yes. Could they have decided to not ask the voters for a tax increase? Yes. But it would have been a horrible experience for my kids.

I don't want my girls in crowded classrooms. My middle child already has 23 in her elementary class. Finding electives that are relevant at the HS level is near impossible because they classes are already full.

If you don't like the school tax rate, start complaining to those running for State Rep or State Senate. They ultimately control the purse strings.

Don't think the new candidates will solve your problem. Zafari can't make a decision. Look at her Facebook www.facebook.com/RonaZafariForAllenSch ools campaign page. She refers everyone to the Allen American article where she supports the new elementary school. But in response to a post, she indicated she is against the school because she wants to reduce the debt.

She can't have it both ways. Either she doesn't think we are smart enough to realize she is taking both sides of the issue or she doesn't have an idea what she could be doing. Either way is dangerous.

• jrob Said:

I would expect that if we are at the legal limit and still unable to sustain our standards, that the goal would be to fix the root problem and not change the tax rate limit.

• mgrayar Said:

Fixing the root problem was addressed by jrob....contact your state-level representatives. The root problem is in Austin. Leadership in Allen is doing the best they can with what they've got. To truly turn things around, our representatives (and governor) need to listen to the people.

But for here at home, we need to fill our school board with educated people that understand school finance so that they can help take on Austin, and keep our school district running smoothly until Austin sees reason.

Thank you for your comments, in not sure if you meant them to come accross argumentative, but they came across that way. I fully understand the tax situation and know its cause, however my question was a bit different.

I asked if a known goal of the current AISD board in the coming years is to change the law to be able to raise taxes again? I would expect that if we are at the legal limit and still unable to sustain our standards, that the goal would be to fix the root problem and not change the tax rate limit.

It was a honest question, no lecture necessary.

• mgrayar Said:

That person was incorrect.

http://www.allenamerican.com/articles/2011/11/16/a ...

• vrs Said:

mgrayar - not sure if you saw this earlier post of mine or not.

Simple answer is no - the school district is NOT suing for the privilege of raising the tax rate.

Which of course begs the question, what ARE they suing for? They are suing for adequate funding and a level playing field. The way the process works is that the courts will decide whether the law in its current form is or is not constitutional. The courts will not decide on the manner in which relief is provided - that is up to the legislature.

Outcome #1 - the courts uphold the current law. The legislature will very likely do nothing in that case and school districts will continue to squeeze until the system springs a leak somewhere else (across the board salary cuts, mega classes, etc.) Eventually the schools will then go BACK to court on an adequacy complaint and win.

Outcome #2 - the court declares the current law fails a constitutional test (does not provide adequate funding, is a de facto statewide property tax with no meaningful discretion at the local level, etc.)

If the past predicts the future, sooner or later we will get to outcome number 2 and the legislature will be compelled to make a change in the law. At that point the politicos are in charge and they are free to create any solution they want which relieves whatever condition the court found unconstitutional in the current version.

Therefore, the school district is NOT suing for the right to raise the local tax rate. The school district is suing to get the courts to declare the system broken and to compel the legislature to "do something."

(I highlighted that paragraph because it constitutes the simplest affirmative answer to your question I can frame.)

So then, assuming outcome #2 (i.e. the legislature is compelled to "do something," what might they do?

Anybody's guess. One outcome I know Allen ISD would love to see is for the legislature to let us have our revenue per student calculated based on our 2012 total property wealth - not stay frozen at 2006 total valuation.All this fabulous growth in the city has not made a dime's worth of difference to our school district when calculated as spending per student. That one change would at least put Allen on a level playing field with the neighboring districts.

I guess it could be because I always vote during early voting and don't wait until election day but I have never had other voters in the room when I voted. Hopefully people will turn out this time. I plan to vote Friday afternoon... maybe I will actually see someone else there this time.

Next round of campaign finance reports were due last Friday - 8 days before election.

Jason Shephard is on modified filing so no reports are due unless his expenses go up.

Carl Clemencich listed $785 additional expenditures.

Neither Alan Hurst nor Rona Zafari had filed a report on the deadline.

PENALTIES FOR REPORTING VIOLATIONS
Any citizen may file a criminal complaint with the district attorney, a civil complaint with the Ethics Commission, or a civil action against a candidate or officeholder for violations of title 15. Any penalty stemming from such complaints would be assessed against the candidate or officeholder, not the campaign treasurer.

From last year's audit report:

BOND RATINGS
The credit ratings for the District are “Aa2” by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. and “AA“ by Standard & Poor’s Rating
Services. The Permanent School Fund Bond Guarantee Program had previously been suspended by the State of
Texas in November 2009; however, the program was re-authorized in 2011. The program allows school district’s to
sell bonds with a “AAA” rating.

Another factor regarding bond debt is that it DOES affect the M&O tax rate indirectly. As the district builds new facilities, the costs for additional personel, utilities, upkeep, etc does increase. I hope that the district's finance office does a thorough job of projecting the M&O costs of new facilities, and comparing that cost to the current cost of "doing nothing".

I am an observer of bureauocracies, and I believe that the elected officials & voters must continually challenge the bureauocrats' request for "more". With schools, it becomes emotional, b/c people want the "best" for their children. And, those who challenge any new programs or buildings, can be seen as "stingy" and uncaring.

So, with the new stadium (hot political issue) and the Bus Barn, I'm not suprised that voters have been given a choice.

Apparently Alan and Rona did file finance reports but Alan had not read what actually needs to be reported. He did not know that expenses paid out of his personal funds needed to be reported. That concerns me from someone saying the district needs to be more financially responsible.

Rona Zafari comment in the Allen American: "The school district is not going to be looked at favorably because we have cashed these bonds," she said. "The banks are not going to loan us more money because of that."

How does she know that banks will not loan the district more money? Seems a stretch to me but I’m not a banker. If they use taxes and state/federal funding to cover day to day expenses and then sell bonds to cover construction costs, how many loans do they take out? Does anyone know? I honestly don't but am interested in finding out.

In response to some online forum commenters pointing out two seemingly differing opinions from Zafari regarding Elementary School No. 17, the candidate said she does believe the school should take precedent over the service center, but both projects should be put on hold until the district's debt has lowered. (emphasis mine)

That is a valid point and is a factor to consider when building new facilities. However, it is not a given that new facilities are more expensive to operate than the old ones. Technology that is out of date or facilities that are inadequate for the needs can be highly expensive and inefficient to operate.

We could only be so lucky if you served...what can we do to get you to run for the Board and save us all?

• rw Said:

Cute humor based on your previous support of the board. Yes, I applaud people who have served but just like other 'elections' people do it for ego or for true service. I won't question the motives of those who served previously but at the same time I don't take lightly those who mock someone running on a single issue (which does summarize the fight against the 'status quo'. It's truly more than a single issue in some cases)

All I'm suggesting is there's a reason why we have issues now and it's not just because of the 'state'. We can be whiners or we can be winners. Winners make the best of what we have. Politicians squeeze what they can and indebt future generations for the sake of today. While we're waiting on 'fix' from the state we're not willing to make 'cuts' or defer projects. We want to live in the 'now' and pay for it later. Some of these projects, knowing full well we were coming into lean times, will add to our M&O. Trust me, later on teachers will get cut and programs will be cut back because we weren't willing to do the right thing. And yes, the stadium was voted in but it could have been delayed.

• AllenConsumer Said:

Please identify the 'winners' you refer to above...

Enough of the whining. Oh, it's the state's fault! Oh, don't dare cut anything from the budget! Hey people, it's the same rules and system that all the other districts are abiding by. Let's focus on solutions.

We're in this mess because our school board let some out-of-town residents complain about the ORIGINAL propoosed location of the school barn (huh? Board was wrong then but right now and people attacking them now are the nuts?) And we have a board quitting in groves because the heat was turning up (starting with the Queen herself) and we are needing people to make TOUGH decisions.

You people complain about some board candidates not filing financial reports on time? What about our Presidential candidates who didn't get their ballots on time for some states (and were left off) or other gaffes?

• AllenConsumer Said:

Who are you calling "out-of-town residents"? I'm a proud Allen resident that lives wholly in the city limits of Allen, pays the exact same taxes you do… assuming you live in Allen, and my daughter attends Allen ISD. I was misidentified by the Allen American in ONE article as a Parker resident but it was corrected later. You most likely didn’t see that since the West side didn’t care about this facility until it was proposed for an industrial area in your neighborhood. All of the sudden the West side is saying they are fighting for ALL of Allen. You really need to learn more about the prior location before shooting your mouth off. The bus barn was going to be built in the City of Parker on a sliver of land that is bordered on three sides by the City of Allen. Yes, there were a handful of Parker residents protesting along side of me but they had just as much right. Just as much right as you and the West side have to protest. Their children attend Allen ISD and they pay Allen ISD taxes.

As far as your rant about the current school board you need to learn some respect. Those individuals volunteer their time to try to better the schools for our kids. Even though I did not vote for Rona or Alan I will show them respect if they are elected for taking on the responsibility. Individuals run as they see necessary. They are not appointed for life. I’m sure the two departing board members have their reasons for leaving as did VRS but it does not mean they are running from anything.

What does the presidential candidates have to do with a school board election? Rules are rules. There are rules for how to make campaign signs. There are rules on campaign finance. They cannot pick and choose which to follow.

I have no doubt that you will have some witty or attacking comeback since you feel like such a big person posting under a SCREENNAME.

• Jeremy Said:

I would roll out a red carpet for this post.

Well-said!

Ye speak too soon! The out-of-town residents were in Parker. They opposed the ORIGINAL WELL-THOUGHT out plan for the bus barn. They won over the board. Happy now? That's who I was talking about.

I don't see much respect for Obama. His position higher than our School Board? Since when is attacking their status-quo-do-nothing attitudes a sign of disrespect? Enough of the hero bit. That kind of crap is what landed us in all of this mess.

Jeremy, where's your last name? We all operate under 'screen names'. Chill. Until you hold your board members to a higher standard (voter apathy is HORRIBLE in our town) we'll stay messed up.

• AllenConsumer Said:

I’ll try to word this a little differently so that you can understand. My name is Jeremy Hayes. I was the person who organized the opposition to the original location. I am a resident of the city of Allen. [… break to let this soak in…] The residents in Parker, the few there were, worked with me to successfully have it moved. Their children go to Allen ISD schools, they pay Allen ISD taxes, and the location was actually in the City of Parker. [… break to let this soak in…] I guess you can you can say that those “out of town residents” were protesting against the bus barn located in their town.

What on earth does this have to do with Obama now? Let’s try to stay on track regarding the School Board election and not throw out the first random thought that crosses your mind. The disrespectful part is how you keep calling VRS “The Queen” and saying everyone must kiss her ring as well as saying the departing board members are running away from tough decisions.

Just in case you didn’t catch what I previously alluded to… my screen name is my name. So no… we don’t all operate under screen names. Just those who like to throw out rude comments that they don’t want traced back to them. Any comment I make… people know who is saying it.

By the way… do you really think that they original location was actually well thought out? I’m assuming by well thought out you mean not near your home.

Also… I’ve shared my name… what is your name? Or will you remain anonymous to keep making nonsensical and rude posts?

• Jeremy Said:

So of course you like the new location. The new barn doesn't affect me one bit you accuse others of being motivated by that one issue and that's the same reason why you got involved. And now your sarcasm? You said we should treat those with respect who 'give up their time to serve'. Obama served. Carter served. We've had bad school board members and superintendents serve. It's disrespectful to complain about them?

We own the Chase Oaks Golf course. That was brilliant on behalf of the City. Yes, we almost had the barn in Parker, too. Brilliant work but we bowed out to pressure from out-of-town residents. Apparently the board thought it was the right choice SINCE that's where they planned on it being. That's the point. They can't make up their minds sometimes. I wouldn't want them as a CEO of a company I own. That's what board members are, CEO's. Enough of the sarcasm. You got your barn moved and now mock those who fight the same one you fought. Shameful.

And Jeremiah, I would never share my name on a board. Too many crazies out there. I'm surprised you've gotten away with a lot of the personal attacks. I'm not a school board member (body of members) or celebrity and the legal system and the rules of this forum protect us from such (attacks).

• AllenConsumer Said:

Just from observation, I would say you came on a little stronger than necessary to begin with on this subject. Yet, you are pointing fingers at someone who has not stated anything with a manner of attacking. Where is what you claim to be an attack against you?

Also, you said you would never share your name on a board. "Too many crazies out there." Since Jeremy gave his name as Jeremy Hayes, where did you get Jeremiah from? Who's the crazy one now since you addressed him differently than he initially stated?

I'm glad the election is over. Now, we can look forward to Allen progressing according to how voters responded...

Common courtesy is to call a person by the name they use rather than a variation that you choose. Please.

• cp Said:

Why do you guys continue and when I use 'examples' you attack yet again? I USED his real name because that's how the tax records list him; an example of why I don't like giving people personal information. (and he attacks by calling me a 'crazy' for using a great example?)

You ask how I was attacked? He said I was 'hiding' behind a screen name, belittling most of the people who post on here (without their real names).

Let's move on, the majority spoke. Next subject.