Comal Independent School District elections (2015)
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Four seats on the Comal Independent School District Board of Trustees were up for general election on May 9, 2015.
The seats of District 1 incumbent Stephen Smith, District 2 incumbent David Drastata and District 5 incumbent Amy Freund were up for election, in addition to a special election for the District 6 seat held by Marty Bartlett.[1] All four incumbents were successful in their re-election bids.[2]
In the District 1 race, Smith faced challenger Denise Cordova. The District 2 race featured Drastata and challenger Cheryl Koury. Challenger Gwen Pain ran against Freund for the District 5 seat. Bartlett was unopposed in the special election for an unexpired one-year term in District 6.[3]
The Comal Board of Trustees also put a $147.4 million bond package to voters in this election, which included $94 million towards the construction of two new middle schools and $21.3 million for technology. Voters approved the bond at a rate of two to one. This bond package comes after a failed attempt in 2013, where the proposed $451 million bond was defeated by voters.[4][5]
About the district
- See also: Comal Independent School District, Texas
Comal Independent School District is located in Comal County, Texas. The county seat of Comal County is New Braunfels. Comal County was home to an estimated 118,480 residents in 2013, according to the United States Census Bureau.[6] Comal Independent School District was the 65th-largest school district in Texas, serving 17,817 students during the 2011-2012 school year.[7]
Demographics
Comal County outperformed the rest of Texas in terms of higher education achievement in 2013. The United States Census Bureau found that 33.3 percent of Comal County residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 26.7 percent for the state as a whole. The median household income in Comal County was $65,839, compared to $51,900 statewide. The poverty rate in Comal County was 10.2 percent, compared to 17.6 percent for the entire state.[6]
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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 Comal Board of Trustees consists of seven members elected by district to three-year terms. There was no primary election, and a general election took place on May 9, 2015. Four seats were on the ballot in May 2015, including a special election for a one-year term.[1]
School board candidates submitted paperwork with the school district secretary by February 27, 2015. 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.[9]
Elections
2015
Candidates
District 1
Stephen Smith 
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Denise Cordova | ||
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District 2
| David Drastata
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Cheryl Koury | ||
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District 5
| Amy Freund
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Gwen Pain | ||
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District 6
| Marty Bartlett
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Election results
District 1
| Comal Independent School District, District 1 General Election, 3-year term, 2015 |
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| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan |  Stephen Smith Incumbent |
82% | 396 | |
| Nonpartisan | Denise Cordova | 18% | 87 | |
| Total Votes | 483 | |||
| Source: Comal Independent School District, "Election Results," accessed May 9, 2015 These election results are not official and will be updated when certified results are available. You can submit certified results by contacting us. | ||||
District 2
| Comal Independent School District, District 2 General Election, 3-year term, 2015 |
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| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan | David Drastata Incumbent |
73.7% | 1,219 | |
| Nonpartisan | Cheryl Koury | 26.3% | 436 | |
| Total Votes | 1,655 | |||
| Source: Comal Independent School District, "Election Results," accessed May 9, 2015 These election results are not official and will be updated when certified results are available. You can submit certified results by contacting us. | ||||
District 5
| Comal Independent School District, District 5 General Election, 3-year term, 2015 |
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| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan | Amy Freund Incumbent |
62.4% | 1,025 | |
| Nonpartisan | Gwen Pain | 37.6% | 618 | |
| Total Votes | 1,643 | |||
| Source: Comal Independent School District, "Election Results," accessed May 9, 2015 These election results are not official and will be updated when certified results are available. You can submit certified results by contacting us. | ||||
District 6
Incumbent Marty Bartlett won re-election without opposition.
Endorsements
No candidate received any official endorsements for his or her campaign during the election.
Campaign finance
No contributions or expenditures were reported as of April 9, 2015, according to the Texas Ethics Commission.[10] The next filing deadline was May 1, 2015.
Texas school board candidates and officeholders must file semiannual reports, which were due on January 15, 2015, and July 15, 2015. In addition, candidates in contested elections were required to file 30-day and 8-day pre-election reports, unless the candidate chose modified reporting.[9]
Candidates in contested elections who did not intend to exceed $500 in contributions or expenditures, excepting filing fees, were eligible for modified reporting. If they exceeded the threshold before the 30th day prior to the election, candidates were required to submit the 30- and 8-day reports. If they exceeded the threshold after the 30th day prior to the election, they were required to file a report within 48 hours of exceeding the threshold and participate in regular reporting for the rest of the election cycle.[11]
Past elections
Information about earlier elections can be found by clicking [show] at the right. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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2014
2013Cody Mueller defeated Rhonda Jahns for the District 7 seat in the May 11, 2013 election. Jason York won an unexpired one-year term in District 3 against Ken Adkins.[12] 2012The board canceled the May 12 election due to all candidates running unopposed. Stephen Smith was elected to District 1, David Drastata was elected to District 2 and Amy Freund was elected to District 5. New board members were sworn in at the June 12, 2012, special board meeting.[13] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
What was at stake?
Issues in the district
2015 bond package
The Comal Board of Trustees approved a bond package worth $147.4 million at its February 2015 meeting, that was put to voters on the May 9, 2015, ballot. Voters, in turn, approved the measure. The package laid out a plan that addressed the district's strategy to tackle increased enrollment, student safety and technology, existing capital projects and new construction. Roughly $94 million of the bond package was allotted for the construction of two new middle schools; two of the district's middle schools, Smithson Valley Middle School and Canyon Middle School, were expected to reach capacity by 2018. According to Superintendent Andrew Kim, "most of our capacity is at our elementary campuses, which is why we are focused on building middle schools only, and only for those that are exceeding their capacity.” The rest of the bond package included $20.1 million for capital projects at existing facilities and $21.3 million for technology.[4]
Defeated 2013 bond
Comal ISD voters rejected a bond proposal worth $451 million put to them in November 2013. The bond would have gone towards constructing six new campuses in the district. The construction of two high schools, two middle schools and two elementary schools would have aimed to benefit the district's growing population, where enrollment is projected to hit 30,000 in 2023. The final vote tally was 6,819 against and 5,922 in favor. District officials cited sticker shock and uncertainty as reasons why the bond was not approved by voters.[5]
Alleged overbilling following 2008 bond
In November 2013, Superintendent Andrew Kim called for an audit of the district's $205 million bond package that was passed by voters in 2008. The audit came after the district's director for facilities and maintenance, Helen Keaton, raised concern over billing in September 2013. Their findings were over $7 million in overpayments to Baird/Williams Construction, the contractor that had completed the work included in the bond. In a February 2014 settlement, Baird/Williams agreed to repay $5.9 million of that sum to the district. Kim was hired in 2012 and began working to overhaul the district's contracting procedures. “We have a responsibility to the taxpayers of Comal ISD to ensure their tax dollars are wisely and effectively managed,” Kim said in a press release. He recommended the district adopt better practices for procuring services, an increased level of transparency and accountability and modifying purchasing policies. He also established an anonymous fraud hotline.[14]
Ballotpedia survey responses
Incumbents Stephen Smith and Marty Bartlett participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 survey of school board candidates. The following sections display their responses to the survey questions.
Top priorities
When asked what his top priorities would be if elected, Bartlett stated:
| “ | Student achievement metrics.[15] | ” |
| —Marty Bartlett (2015)[16] | ||
When asked what his top priorities would be if elected, Smith stated:
| “ | Continuing the incredible improvement in academic performance that we have enjoyed under Superintendent Andrew Kim.[15] | ” |
| —Stephen Smith (2015)[16] | ||
Ranking the issues
The candidates were asked to rank the following issues by importance in the school district, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. This table displays the candidates' rankings from most to least important:
| Issue importance ranking | ||
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| Issue | Bartlett's responses | Smith's responses |
| Expanding arts education | ||
| Expanding career-technical education | ||
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | ||
| Improving college readiness | ||
| Closing the achievement gap | ||
| Improving education for special needs students | ||
| Expanding school choice options | ||
Positions on the issues
The candidates were asked to answer 10 multiple choice and short answer questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. Links to the candidates' responses can be found below.
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for the Comal Independent School District election in 2015:[9][17]
| Deadline | Event |
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| December 29, 2014 | Deadline to post notice of candidate filing deadline |
| January 28, 2015 | First day to file for place on general election ballot |
| February 27, 2015 | Last day to file for place on general election ballot |
| March 4, 2015 | Last day to withdraw from ballot |
| March 10, 2015 | First day to apply for ballot by mail |
| April 9, 2015 | Last day for voter registration with county clerk |
| Campaign finance report due | |
| April 27, 2015 | First day of early voting |
| April 30, 2015 | Last day to apply for ballot by mail |
| May 1, 2015 | Campaign finance report due |
| May 5, 2015 | Last day of early voting |
| May 9, 2015 | Election Day |
| May 20, 2015 | Final day for canvassing of votes |
| July 15, 2015 | Campaign finance report due |
Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: Texas elections, 2015
The election on May 9, 2015, shared the ballot with other municipal elections in Comal County.
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Comal + Independent + School + District + Texas"
See also
| Comal Independent School District | Texas | School Boards |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Comal Independent School District, "Board of Trustees," accessed January 20, 2015
- ↑ Comal Independent School District, "Election Results," accessed May 9, 2015
- ↑ Lauren Dixon, "Email correspondence with Martha Miller, Administrative Support Liaison, Comal ISD," March 6, 2015
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Comal Independent School District, "Comal ISD Board of Trustees Approve $147.4 Million Bond Package," February 27, 2015
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 San Antonio News-Express, "Comal ISD regroups after bond defeat," November 6, 2013
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 United States Census Bureau, "Comal County, Texas," accessed February 11, 2015
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed May 5, 2014
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "Comal County," accessed February 2, 2015
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Texas Ethics Commission, "2015 Filing Schedule for Elections Held on Uniform Election Dates," accessed January 21, 2015
- ↑ Texas Ethics Commission, "Search Campaign Finance Reports," accessed April 10, 2015
- ↑ Texas Ethics Commission, "Campaign Finance Guide for Candidates and Officeholders Who File with Local Filing Authorities," September 1, 2013
- ↑ Comal Independent School District, "Comal ISD News Briefs for April 29, 2013," April 29, 2013
- ↑ Comal Independent School District, "News Briefs for March 9, 2012," March 9, 2012
- ↑ My San Antonio, "Comal ISD agrees to $5.9 million to settle alleged overbilling," February 28, 2014
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2015
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "Important 2015 Election Dates," accessed January 20, 2015
