District 5 School Board Candidate Profile: Don Hall

Steven Long asked us to post this, it’s rather long so you’ll need to “click to read more” to see the entire profile.
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District 5 School Board Candidate Profile:

Don Hall, 42
• Married to Kinsy Hall, a nurse at Pelham Hospital
• 3 children from a previous marriage previously attended District 5 schools
• 3 stepchildren currently attending District 5 schools
• District 5 Little league baseball/softball coach
• Currently employed with Reidville Area Fire District as Training Lieutenant
o SC Fire Academy Instructor
o Two-time firefighter of the year with Reidville Area Fire District
o Received certificates from University of Maryland in Leadership, Community Relations, Government Relations, Human Resource Management, Employee/Management relations, Long Term Planning, Training, and Disaster Planning and Risk Management as they pertain to public safety and the fire service.

• Background in construction and sales:
o Previously owned a small business in the construction field
o Previously employed as Regional Sales Rep for a global equipment company and Sales Rep for a multistate construction material company.
 Sales person of the year with EP equipment
 Sales person of the year with Cason Building Supply

On the Issues
Common Core – I am opposed to common core because both students and parents find the teaching techniques used illogical and don’t understand the purpose of it. It offers no improvements to student’s achievements as evidenced by studies showing that states with Common Core aligned standards scored worse on math than states with their own standards. A standard that is drafted by local parents and educators is more suitable than one drafted by bureaucrats in Washington, DC. I am pleased that SC has decided to drop Common Core, but much attention needs to be placed on the new standards in 2016 to ensure that they don’t fall in line with Common Core.

Budgeting – School District 5 recently asked for a tax increase to be able to improve facilities at Byrnes High School. This didn’t sit well with voters in the district, as it seemed to be sprung on them at the last minute. Many questioned the sudden need for a tax increase and asked why prior plans hadn’t been made since the area has been growing for many years and is expected to continue. They didn’t receive the answers that were looking for.
I have to live on a strict budget in my job at the fire department and in my personal life. I have to plan for the future as if I don’t have anybody to bail me out if I get into financial trouble. I believe that when dealing with the taxpayer’s hard earned dollars we must be vigilant to stay within a budget and plan for future expenses accordingly. I acknowledge that the facilities at some of our schools definitely need repairs and more room is needed to facilitate the influx of new students moving into the area. Plans should have been put in place long before now to accommodate these growing pains.
I am a huge supporter of our athletic and arts programs in District 5, but our most valuable resources are our teachers and core subjects. We may need to redesign our current budget in order to improve the outcome of our students. To do this we need to look at factors that contribute to the high cost of certain subject areas to see where we are getting our money’s worth and where we aren’t. We should look at teacher assignments and class sizes. Maybe we need fewer, but larger elective classes and smaller, but more core classes.

If a funding need still exists after all budgeting and management avenues have been exhausted, then we have to take the time to educate the public on what the needs are and why. Mounting a huge campaign to raise taxes on people who don’t understand the need or the timing of a tax increase is not the way public servants should operate. We live in the best area of the county and we have the best schools. I don’t mind supporting those schools as long as we know our money is being invested in the best way possible.

Safety – Safety of our children and staff should be of the utmost importance. We need to have a discussion about following the lead of other states such as Texas, Utah, and Arkansas. These states and more are allowing teachers and faculty with Concealed Carry Permits to carry handguns on campus concealed on their person at all times. Let’s face it, locking doors and hiding under desks isn’t working when we have an active shooter on site. Just as the four Marine recruiters in Chattanooga, our students are nothing more than sitting ducks in a known gun free zone. Utah has been allowing teachers to carry concealed weapons for over ten years without any cases of School shootings, or students overtaking the teacher to take their guns, or any students being accidentally shot.

Rebel Name – The recent attack on our mascot name is just another ploy by the liberal minority to stir controversy and divide us like they are dividing people all across the country. I believe that the majority of people both black and white within District 5 don’t find it offensive or racist in any way. We want to keep the mascot we all know and love. This issue has already been hammered out in 1991 when I was a senior at Byrnes, I fought for it to stay then and I will always fight for it to stay.

In closing I’d like to say. I am a middle class American who loves Jesus Christ and works hard to provide for my family. I believe in less government and less taxes. I believe we should have fought back a long time ago before we lost a lot of our religious liberties in our school system. With that being said, I am glad our students still have the right to lead a public prayer at ball games and such and I am proud that they take advantage of that right at Byrnes High School. I may not be able to get back what we had before but I will fight to defend the rights we still have so that we don’t lose more.
I never planned on entering the political arena. But I feel that change starts on the local level and if I can make a difference then it is my duty to try to do so. After seeking the advice of friends and family whom I love and trust, I decided to run for the District 5 School board.
If you want a conservative voice on the board and you feel like you can support me, I’d appreciate your prayers and your vote on Nov. 3, 2015. Hopefully we can make some great things happen together.

Your Friend and Neighbor,

Don Hall

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