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Chip Dawson
Chip Dawson was a candidate for the Precinct 5 seat on the Jordan School District school board in Utah. Dawson was defeated in the by-district general election on November 8, 2016.
Dawson participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 school board candidate survey. Click here to read his responses.
Elections
2016
- See also: Jordan School District elections (2016)
Four of the seven seats on the Jordan School District school board were up for general election on November 8, 2016. A primary election was held for the Precinct 5 seat on June 28, 2016. In Precinct 1, Darrell Robinson defeated Robyn Bishop after incumbent Lynn Crane did not run for re-election. Precinct 4 incumbent Kayleen Whitelock lost to challenger Marilyn Richards. Candidate Bryce Dunford defeated Chip Dawson for the Precinct 5 seat after defeating incumbent Richard Osborn in the primary election. Precinct 6 incumbent Janice Voorhies ran unopposed and won re-election to her seat.[1][2]
Results
| Jordan School District, Precinct 5 General Election, 4-year term, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Bryce Dunford |
59.65% | 6,278 |
| Chip Dawson | 40.35% | 4,247 |
| Total Votes | 10,525 | |
| Source: Salt Lake County, Utah, "Official Election Results," accessed December 5, 2016 | ||
| Jordan School District, Precinct 5 Primary Election, 4-year term, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Bryce Dunford |
41.34% | 1,379 |
| Chip Dawson |
30.25% | 1,009 |
| Richard Osborn Incumbent | 28.42% | 948 |
| Total Votes | 3,336 | |
| Source: Salt Lake County, Utah, "Election Results," accessed September 26, 2016 | ||
Funding
Dawson reported $2,220.31 in contributions and $1,682.47 in expenditures to the Office of the Salt Lake County Clerk, which left his campaign with $537.84 on hand as of November 1, 2016.[3]
Campaign themes
2016
Ballotpedia survey responses
Chip Dawson participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 survey of school board candidates. In response to the question "What do you hope to achieve if elected to the school board?" the candidate stated on April 27, 2016:
| “ | Manage growth and need for new schools, attract and retain talented educational professionals, hire an attorney to guide the district on legal matters, ensure that every student is given the tools to succeed every day, provide a balanced curriculum that helps students learn, and look for innovative ways to advance education through technology.[4][5] | ” |
Ranking the issues
The candidate was asked to rank the following issues based on how they should be prioritized by the school board, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. Each ranking could only be used once.
| Education policy |
|---|
 |
Click here to learn more about education policy in Utah. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| “ | While all of these are important, there are several areas where the Jordan School District is performing well.[5] | ” |
| —Chip Dawson (April 27, 2016) | ||
Positions on the issues
The candidate was asked to answer nine questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. The questions are highlighted in blue and followed by the candidate's responses. Some questions provided multiple choices, which are noted after those questions. The candidate was also provided space to elaborate on their answers to the multiple choice questions.
| Should new charter schools be approved in your district? (Not all school boards are empowered to approve charter schools. In those cases, the candidate was directed to answer the question as if the school board were able to do so.) |
|---|
| Yes. There is a role for charter schools that have made a commitment to full transparency of their finances and are providing parents with educational options that best fit their needs. One of the biggest factors in the Jordan School District for parents choosing charter schools over their neighborhood public school has to do with the traditional schedule that many of them use. Jordan School District can and must take steps to move more schools to a more traditional school calendar. |
| Which statement best describes the ideal relationship between the state government and the school board? The state should always defer to school board decisions, defer to school board decisions in most cases, be involved in the district routinely or only intervene in severe cases of misconduct or mismanagement. |
| The state should defer to school board decisions in most cases. |
| Are standardized tests an accurate metric of student achievement? |
| No. Starndardized tests only measure certain parts of a students performance and abilities. |
| What is your stance on the Common Core State Standards Initiative? |
| This is an issue for many, and I understand that. |
| How should the district handle underperforming teachers? Terminate their contract before any damage is done to students, offer additional training options, put them on a probationary period while they seek to improve or set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district? |
| Offer additional training options. Put them on a probationary period while they seek to improve. Set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district. |
| Should teachers receive merit pay? |
| Yes. |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| No. |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| In accordance with the laws put forth by the State School Board, the State of Utah, and with unput from Jordan School District administrators. |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| Teachers Teachers are the key to success. Parent involvement is a key as well. |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Chip Dawson Jordan School District. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Salt Lake County, Utah, "Candidate Filing List," accessed March 18, 2016
- ↑ Salt Lake County, Utah, "Official Election Results," accessed December 5, 2016
- ↑ Salt Lake County Clerk's Office, "Candidate and Office Holders," accessed November 2, 2016
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2016, "Chip Dawson's responses," April 27, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
