Darin Preis
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Darin Preis is an at-large member of the Columbia Board of Education in Missouri. Preis was first appointed to the board on October 29, 2012, before he was re-elected on April 2, 2013. He previously served on the board from 2005 to 2008.[1] Preis won re-election in the general election on April 7, 2015.
Biography
Darin Preis is a resident of Columbia, Mo. Preis spent 11 years serving with the United States Army Reserve.[2] He earned his B.S. degree in English from Missouri State University in 1994 and his MPA degree from the University of Missouri at Columbia in 2005. Since 2005, he has worked as the executive director of Central Missouri Community Action. Preis also serves as a board member for the Missouri Foundation for Health.[3]
Elections
2015
- See also: Columbia Public Schools elections (2015)
The election in Columbia featured two of the seven seats on the board up for general election on April 7, 2015. Incumbents Christine King and Darin Preis ran for re-election against challenger Derek Wade for the two at-large seats. King and Preis defeated Wade to win re-election.
Results
| Columbia Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 3-year term, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan |  Christine King Incumbent |
42.4% | 8,593 | |
| Nonpartisan | Darin Preis Incumbent |
38% | 7,707 | |
| Nonpartisan | Derek Wade | 19.5% | 3,958 | |
| Total Votes | 20,258 | |||
| Source: Boone County Clerk, "Summary Report," April 16, 2015 | ||||
Funding
Preis reported $6,206.00 in contributions and $2,662.23 in expenditures to the Missouri Ethics Commission, which left his campaign with $4,043.77 on hand and $821.00 in debt as of February 25, 2015.[4]
Endorsements
Preis received an endorsement from the local affiliate of the Missouri National Education Association.[5]
2013
Incumbents Jan Mees and Jim Whitt ran unopposed and won re-election to full three-year terms by default. Preis, who was appointed to the board in 2012, also ran unopposed and won re-election to an unexpired two-year term vacated by former board member Paul Cushing.[6]
Campaign themes
2015
Preis published a list of his priorities on his campaign website:
| “ | I am running for the school board because I am passionate about the interconnectedness of education, health, and economic stability. My professional and personal volunteer activities revolve around themes involving education, health, and economic stability. I have come to believe that these three components of our community and its citizens are integrally connected and form the foundation for our ongoing prosperity and potential.[7] | ” |
| —Darin Preis' campaign website (2015)[8] | ||
Preis stated the following during a candidate screening conducted by the Columbia Missouri National Education Association PAC:
| “ | Could you tell us about your reason for running for a school board position?
Both of my parents are teachers and I have memories of growing up hearing them discuss teaching. I heard their concerns as teachers and their success as teachers. When I began my career I noticed the power of early childhood education. I am a part of the Central Missouri community Action and we work to end poverty. We administer programs that serve children and their families. I originally came on to the board with my own early childhood “agenda” and I have evolved to listen as a board member and learn. Are you finding yourself able to help our community as a whole understand the context and needs of our diverse population? Yes. I feel you have to value people and their experience. Actually that is why I’m here with CMNEA today. Speaking of early childhood, how do we make sure we are using developmentally appropriate practices in kindergarten and not feel the need to push reading and other academics on the young grades? Teachers have to differentiate and it is one of their hardest jobs. It is best to look at developmental stages and group by that ability. Like mixed age grouping or looping. Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers makes this point in many ways. I am familiar with Head Start’s High Scope program in preschool classrooms and developmentally appropriate practices. I am supportive of thinking about youngest ages and how to support best practice. How would teachers communicate issues with you? We have got to let experts be experts and we should listen to them and make decisions. I would be very interested in teacher presentations and communication but I see Dr. Stiepleman and coordinators as the ones to make curriculum recommendations. We do have teacher concerns increasing salary and restoring frozen steps. I don’t know where we stand with salary in relation to other districts. Teachers deserve more salary. The board represents various views and balances priorities. I think the board needs to make salaries a priority. We should pay more. What do you see as a board member’s role with legislators? We should communicate with the legislators more and help them understand what is going on at the local level. I’m at the capital with various reasons with my work position and have that opportunity. The foundation formula has so many weaknesses and variables. So when legislators call for full funding it doesn’t address the issue. Legislators don’t understand the formula. Big districts benefit from it and support it. Teachers are experiencing students an increase in students with mental health issues. What are your thoughts on this issue? This is a huge issue. I am sensitive to it due to my work position. I would like more presentations to the board so we would have more information. I think we can also look at support for students through community resources. Then these strategies and resources can be applied to teachers. How would you see teachers communicating with you? I would want to know of teachers concerns that could lead to board presentations. We do have to honor and represent the community. I do wish there was more time to attend school functions.[7] |
” |
| —Columbia Missouri National Education Association PAC candidate screening (2015)[9] | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Darin Preis Columbia Public Schools. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
- Columbia Public Schools
- Office website
- Campaign website
- Campaign Facebook page
- LinkedIn page
- Twitter page
Footnotes
- ↑ Columbia Daily Tribune, "School board selects Darin Preis for open seat," May 29, 2013
- ↑ Columbia Public Schools, "Darin Preis," accessed February 25, 2015
- ↑ LinkedIn, "Darin Preis," accessed February 25, 2015
- ↑ Missouri Ethics Commission, "Candidates By Election Search," accessed February 24, 2015
- ↑ Missouri NEA, "Local affiliates recommend school board candidates," accessed April 2, 2015
- ↑ Columbia Missourian, "No Columbia School Board election this April," January 23, 2013
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Darin Preis for School Board, "Why I am Running for Re-Election," January 31, 2015
- ↑ CMNEA Political Action, "Columbia Public School Candidate Screening notes," February 2, 2015
| 2015 Columbia Public Schools Elections | |
| Boone County, Missouri | |
| Election date: | April 7, 2015 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, Christine King • Incumbent, Darin Preis • Derek Wade |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
