Adam Ragan wants to advocate for school stakeholders as a member of the Tucson Unified School District Governing Board.
If elected, this ninth year English instructor would serve as an “anchor (to) the board’s decisions in respect for the people who make a school a school: students and their families, teachers, and staff.”
Furthermore, he would work to:
- Create and focus attention on the district’s Strategic Plan.
- Change the perceptions and mindset of the community.
- Increase district enrollment.
- Promote overdue building maintenance and renovations.
- Help the district adjust to the new realities of schooling due to COVID 19.
- Ensure the budget is spent in the proper way.
Mr. Ragan graciously took the time to discuss his candidacy for the Tucson School Board.
The questions and his responses are below.
- What are your qualifications to serve on the board?
- “I am a practitioner that lends itself perfectly to the job.”
- “Senior English and Dual Enrollment at Sunnyside for the last three years. I am a ninth-year teacher.”
- “I have been a public education advocate for my whole life ranging from the budget committee to the curriculum committee to working on the override to working with other school board candidates.”
- “Worked and been a voice for the community on other issues and advised potential policy options.”
- Please tell us three reasons you are running for the school board?
- “For the 45,000 students. They are the number one reason why I am running and why I am in education. I want to make sure they get the best education so they can have the best college, career, and community experience.”
- “Strategic Planning: This district has been off its plan for the last couple of years and we need to refocus. A child born today is going to graduate in 2038. The decisions we make today will impact us at midcentury.”
- “I would like to change the perception of TUSD. If you want your future to look different, you have to make changes in the present. The negative perception of the district impacts the classroom and we need to change that so we can be trusted, and student success can be further achieved.
- How would you rate the current school board you are running to become part of and please explain why?
“The Board has a history of being dramatic and full of palace intrigue. In the last few months, with the addition of Mr. Burke, the board has shifted focus and is more focused on the work in front of them. We are losing three members (including Mr. Burke) so the potential of more drama and palace intrigue is great if new members aren’t focused on calm and the students’ needs are not put first. I pledge to the community that I will work with the two board members continuing, Ms. Counts and Ms. Grijalva, as well as the two other board members, elected this November. I am not running to be a rubber stamp nor am I running to create drama. I expect there to be discussions in which we agree and in which we disagree. But what makes me different is that I can have tough conversations without problems. I pledge to the community that my voice will always serve the students and our TUSD families. It’s important Tucson elects the right candidates for the job.”
- In your opinion, what are the three most important education issues schools and all stakeholders in the district face?
- “Declining enrollment: Every time we lose a student, we lose the funding for that student. And we lose an important chance to educate that child. Tucson Unified faces declining enrollment year after year. I believe we must turn this trend around or the future looks bleak. So this is an economic issue, to be sure, but it’s also an issue of when a child isn’t in our classrooms, we can’t guarantee they are learning. And that kid’s peers aren’t benefitting from having them around to learn from and grow with. TUSD has to get to work on enrollment.”
- “Deferred maintenance: We have about $500 million dollars in deferred maintenance in fixing and repairing buildings like air conditioning systems. It is a failure of how the state funds the education system, but it is up to the board to restore trust with the community to win the next bond.”
- “Response to COVID and moving forward: August 2020 will not look like August 2019 or any other start to the school year. COVID has changed the way we are going to operate for the foreseeable future. The district must ensure student safety while providing stellar education. This is probably the single greatest challenge we are facing.”
- What are your views on the implementation of the district reopening in the fall?
“Last night’s (June 16, 2020) conversation was interesting, but I still need to hear about curriculum next week before I can say whether I think TUSD is getting the reopening right or not. There are still a lot of unknowns out there and those (like the surge in the state) could still trip this up. I have great fear for my students and my colleagues. I do not know one teacher who does not want to go back to their kids, but we do not want students to get sick or get sick ourselves. I am renewed that the district is focused on COVID and I am aware that this will be the big issue the new board faces when they come to the office. COVID is not going anywhere and we will all have to focus on it.”
- To what extent should your school district ensure all students have access to high broadband and a laptop/tablet for virtual learning should the fall opening be delayed?
“I 100 percent believe we should do this. This is a fundamental human right.”
- In your opinion, please advise at least one way your school district should make up for any of the lost learning time of this last academic quarter.
“Going into a new year, we have to realize that education can’t be ‘maintain & improve’ status for grades. We are teaching new content when the year starts. So, how do I assess my students for prior knowledge? Having lost the last quarter is not insurmountable to overcome. So it’s not so much making up for lost content instruction as it is making sure that students are ready to proceed forward with the new content in whichever modality is permitted. We also can prepare for the long haul by ensuring our students have access to support services to navigate the COVID world we’re in. I also have long held that the district should listen to teachers and their solutions to catch their students up. They know the kids in their classrooms and what it’s going to take to get beyond the closures of last year. Let’s listen to them.”
- Is there anything not covered in the first seven questions that you would like the reader to know?
“I believe Tucson wants and needs a professional teacher with leadership skills who is pledging to work on their behalf and the students’. Tucson Unified can achieve great things when we all work together to ensure student success. Tucson Unified needs a voice of compassion and strength to stand up to the powers that be and boldly challenge the district to do better. I am the candidate for that. I’d ask that the voters consider the future they want for the district and to trust in me to bring that future to reality.”
For more information on Mr. Ragan and his candidacy, please click on his webpage here and his Facebook Page here.
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