Garland Independent School District elections (2014)
2015 →
|
 |
Method of election Elections What was at stake? Key deadlines Additional elections External links |
Garland Independent School District Dallas County, Texas ballot measures Local ballot measures, Texas |
 |
Two seats on the Garland Board of Trustees were up for general election on May 10, 2014. Incumbent Cindy Castañeda narrowly defeated challengers Connie Griffin Boone and Dwight Davis in the Place 4 race. Scott L. Luna won re-election to the Place 5 seat against Lawrence Billy Jones III.
About the district
Garland Independent School District is located in Garland, a city located in Dallas County, Texas. According to the United States Census Bureau, Garland is home to 233,564 residents.[1] Garland Independent School District was the 13th-largest school district in Texas, serving 58,151 students during the 2011-2012 school year.[2]
Demographics
Garland underperformed in comparison to the rest of Texas in terms of higher education achievement in 2010. The United States Census Bureau found that 21.6 percent of Garland residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree compared to 26.3 percent for Texas as a whole. The median household income in Garland was $53,060 compared to $51,563 for the state of Texas. The poverty rate in Garland was 14.7 percent compared to 17.4 percent for the entire state.[1]
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Voter and candidate information
The Garland Board of Trustees consists of seven members elected to three-year terms. Each member is elected to a specific seat but represents the entire district. There was no primary election and a general election took place on May 10, 2014. Two seats will be on the ballot in May 2015 and three seats will be up for election in May 2016.[4]
Candidates for the Board of Trustees submitted paperwork with the school district secretary by February 28, 2014. Each candidate must be at least 18 years old, a registered voter and a resident of the district for at least six months. Members filed two campaign finance reports with the district clerk prior to the election unless they did not receive or spend $500 during the campaign.[5]
Elections
2014
Candidates
Place 4
- Cindy Castañeda
- Incumbent
- Graduate, University of North Texas
- Professor, Eastfield College
- Dwight Davis
- Graduate, Grace College
- Senior program manager, Hewlett-Packard
- Connie Griffin Boone
- Graduate, Richland Community College and Texas A&M University
- Principal, Mesquite Academy
- Former board secretary, 1975-1996
Place 5
- Lawrence Billy Jones III
- Student, University of North Texas
- Board member, Garland Parks and Recreation Board
- Scott L. Luna
- Incumbent
- Graduate, Texas A&M University and University of Tulsa
- Managing partner, Luna & Luna, LLP
Election results
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Cindy Castañeda Incumbent |
39.4% | 1,835 | |
| Nonpartisan | Connie Griffin Boone | 38.9% | 1,812 | |
| Nonpartisan | Dwight Davis | 21.7% | 1,010 | |
| Total Votes | 4,657 | |||
| Source: Dallas County Elections, "Unofficial Cumulative Results," May 10, 2014 | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Scott L. Luna Incumbent |
64% | 3,050 | |
| Nonpartisan | Lawrence Billy Jones III | 36% | 1,714 | |
| Total Votes | 4,764 | |||
| Source: Dallas County Elections, "Unofficial Cumulative Results," May 10, 2014 | ||||
Endorsements
Lawrence Billy Jones III received the endorsement of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility prior to the election.[6]
Campaign finance
Candidates received a total of $27,266.57 and spent a total of $17,418.88 prior to the election, according to the district office.[7]
In the Place 4 race, candidates raised a total of $7,665.00 and spent a total of $5,452.60.
| Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cindy Castañeda | $5,965.00 | $1,706.00 | $4,259.00 |
| Dwight Davis | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Connie Griffin Boone | $1,700.00 | $3,746.60 | -$2,046.60 |
In the Place 5 race, candidates raised a total of $19,601.57 and spent a total of $11,966.28.
| Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lawrence Billy Jones III | $4,650.50 | $2,950.37 | $1,700.13 |
| Scott L. Luna | $14,951.07 | $9,015.91 | $5,935.16 |
Past elections
Information about earlier elections can be found by clicking [show] at the right. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2013
Note: Larry Glick and Linda L. Griffin won seats in Place 1 and Place 3 without opposition. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
What was at stake?
Issues in the district
Investigation of worker visa program
Administrators reported discrepancies in the district's worker visa program to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on February 12, 2014.[8] This program helps bilingual foreign teachers receive H1-B visas that last up to six years. The district employed 260 teachers who hold H1-B visas during the 2013-2014 school year. A small group of teachers faced deportation due to the expiration of their visas. Testimony during a February 25 board meeting revealed that participants felt that the district did not go far enough to help with green card applications.[9] Teachers also testified that they paid for program costs. Federal law requires employers to pay the application costs and fees associated with H1-B visas. The Department of Homeland Security was conducting a full investigation of the program.[10]
An internal investigation conducted by district attorney Harry Jones found that former human resources director Victor Leos and former assistant superintendent Gary Reeves mishandled worker visas for foreign teachers. Leos was found to have taken excessive fees from visa applicants. He also enriched relatives by recommending foreign teachers rent rooms from his step son and handle residency paperwork through his step daughter's law firm. Reeves was on administrative leave for ignoring early warning signs of Leos' behavior. The investigation found emails addressed to Reeves dating back to February 2013 that highlighted abuses by Leos.[11]
Candidate views on worker visa issue
Each candidate responded to the worker visa issue in pre-election interviews with the Rowlett Lakeshore Times:
Cindy Castañeda
| “ |
The Garland ISD Board and Superintendent are working together to discuss, explore and attempt every legal option that is available to us to help the teachers that are affected. However, immigration law is complex and nothing is either certain or guaranteed to those who apply for permanent residency or citizenship. Having exhausted our legal options, we have conducted outreach to our elected officials at the state and national level to ask for their assistance and intervention on behalf of the teachers. |
” |
| —Rowlett Lakeshore Times, (2014) | ||
Dwight Davis
| “ |
The district needs to support those teachers and help them any way that they can in accordance with the law. |
” |
| —Rowlett Lakeshore Times, (2014) | ||
Connie Griffin Boone
| “ |
The teachers in GISD involved in the H-1B visas situation and in danger of being deported is really a sad situation. I believe we, as a district, need to do everything we can to help them. If we promised them from the beginning we would help them to obtain citizenship then that is what we need to do. We need to stand by them and give the support and guidance needed. They obviously have done a great job. Other faculty members that are fighting for them assure us that they are quality teachers, and have done a great job of teaching our students while being here. |
” |
| —Rowlett Lakeshore Times, (2014) | ||
Lawrence Billy Jones III
| “ |
This is an issue legally that congress has to address. This board has no authority over this but we can request congressional assistance. |
” |
| —Rowlett Lakeshore Times, (2014) | ||
Scott L. Luna
| “ |
I am not at liberty to discuss this issue since it is currently under investigation, but rest assured that I am doing everything I can possibly do personally to help these teachers. |
” |
| —Rowlett Lakeshore Times, (2014) | ||
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for the Garland Independent School District election in 2014:[5]
| Deadline | Event |
|---|---|
| January 29, 2014 | First day to file paperwork for ballot placement |
| February 28, 2014 | Last day to file paperwork for ballot placement |
| March 5, 2014 | Last day to withdraw from ballot |
| April 10, 2014 | Due date for first campaign finance report |
| April 10, 2014 | Last day for voter registration with county clerk |
| May 1, 2014 | Last day to request mailed ballot from county clerk |
| May 2, 2014 | Due date for second campaign finance report |
| May 10, 2014 | Election day |
| May 21, 2014 | Final day for canvassing of votes |
| July 15, 2014 | Last campaign finance report for election |
Additional elections on the ballot
The Board of Trustees election shared the ballot with the race for the District 5 seat on the Garland City Council.[15]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Garland + Independent + School + District"
See also
- Texas
- Garland Independent School District, Texas
- Texas school board elections, 2014
- List of school board elections in 2014
- School board elections, 2014
- Dallas County, Texas ballot measures
- Local ballot measures, Texas
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 United States Census Bureau, "Garland, Texas," accessed February 27, 2014
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed May 2, 2014
- ↑ Dallas County Elections, "Historical Election Results," accessed February 27, 2014
- ↑ Garland Independent School District, "GISD Board of Trustees," accessed March 19, 2014
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Texas Secretary of State, "May 10, 2014 Election Law Calendar," accessed March 18, 2014
- ↑ Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, "Endorsements," accessed May 8, 2014
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through e-mail from Debbie Goodson on April 25, 2014.
- ↑ North Dallas Gazette, "Garland ISD discloses self-reporting to Homeland Security regarding H-1B Visa info," February 13, 2014
- ↑ WFAA, "Garland ISD teachers say they face deportation," February 25, 2014
- ↑ Dallas Observer, "The Feds' Investigation Into Garland ISD's Visa Problems Could Cost the District Serious Cash," February 27, 2014
- ↑ WFAA, "Investigators detail corruption in Garland ISD foreign teacher program," April 8, 2014
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Rowlett Lakeshore Times, "Garland ISD Place 4 Board of Trustees candidates answer questions on the district," April 17, 2014
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Rowlett Lakeshore Times, "Garland ISD Place 5 Board of Trustees candidates answer questions on the district," April 24, 2014
- ↑ City of Garland, "Elections," accessed March 19, 2014
| 2014 Garland Independent School District Elections | |
| Garland, Texas | |
| Election date: | May 10, 2014 |
| Candidates: | Place 4: • Cindy Castañeda • Dwight Davis • Connie Griffin Boone Place 5: • Lawrence Billy Jones III • Scott L. Luna |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
