David Caviness
David Caviness is a member of the Coppell Independent School District in Texas, representing Place 5. He assumed office in 2017. His current term ends in 2026.
Caviness ran for re-election to the Coppell Independent School District to represent Place 5 in Texas. He won in the general election on May 6, 2023.
Elections
2023
See also: Coppell Independent School District, Texas, elections (2023)
General election
General election for Coppell Independent School District, Place 5
Incumbent David Caviness defeated Julie Waters in the general election for Coppell Independent School District, Place 5 on May 6, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | David Caviness (Nonpartisan) | 54.4 | 3,280 |
| Julie Waters (Nonpartisan) | 45.6 | 2,746 | ||
| Total votes: 6,026 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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2020
See also: Coppell Independent School District, Texas, elections (2020)
General election
General election for Coppell Independent School District, Place 5
Incumbent David Caviness won election in the general election for Coppell Independent School District, Place 5 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | David Caviness (Nonpartisan) | 100.0 | 20,014 |
| Total votes: 20,014 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2017
Two of the seven seats on the Coppell Independent School District board of trustees were up for general election on May 6, 2017. Incumbent Thom Hulme defeated former candidate Ronald Hansen for the Place 4 seat. David Caviness defeated Vara Kuppam for the open Place 5 seat, for which no incumbent filed.[1][2]
Results
| Coppell Independent School District, Place 5 General Election, 3-year term, 2017 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 David Caviness |
66.40% | 2,277 |
| Vara Kuppam | 33.60% | 1,152 |
| Total Votes | 3,429 | |
| Source: Dallas County Elections, "2017 Joint Election," accessed September 20, 2017 | ||
Funding
Caviness reported no contributions or expenditures to the Dallas County Elections Office as of May 1, 2017.[3]
Endorsements
Caviness was endorsed by a number of community members. Click here for a list of his supporters.
Campaign themes
2023
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
David Caviness did not complete Ballotpedia's 2023 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
David Caviness did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2017
Caviness participated in the following survey conducted by The Dallas Morning News. The questions provided by The Dallas Morning News appear bolded, and Caviness' responses follow below.
Why are you running for this office, and why should voters choose you over your opponent(s)?
| “ | I believe the strength of any community directly correlates to the quality of its local schools. As a 12-year resident of Coppell, I care deeply about and am involved in our community that we call home. I have invested considerable time and effort to understand and learn how our district functions. As a father of 3 young children attending Coppell ISD schools, I have a vested interest in seeing that Coppell ISD continues to deliver on providing a great education – that of which we have all become accustomed to - for many years to come.[4] | ” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
If elected, what two issues would you give the most attention and resources?
| “ | Current bond projects and Accountability. As fiduciaries of our local tax dollars, I would devote my attention and resources to ensuring the scope of the current bond projects stay true to the intended purpose and proposal as presented to and approved by the community.
Additionally, I would place an emphasis on ensuring accountability of the school board, administrators, teachers and students to maintaining the high standards within Coppell ISD that our community is accustomed to and deserves.[4] |
” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
For non-incumbent trustees: Have you attended any school board meetings? If so, what have you learned about how a board member can be effective?
| “ | Yes, I have been attending board meetings on a regular basis for the past several years. An effective board member is one who engages the community, listens intently and asks questions impartially.[4] | ” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
As you look around the country, what innovative ideas would you recommend for improving classroom performance?
| “ | Coppell ISD is known for being a leader in implementing innovative ideas. I believe classroom performance is directly correlated to the quality of educators. To that extent, we should evaluate the various approaches and data to determine how to move forward while attracting and retaining the best educators.
One specific idea that has been implemented in an area school, and that I am excited to see utilized in one of our elementary schools, is increasing recess time for elementary children. Studies are showing this as being beneficial in increasing focus while decreasing distractions and behavioral interruptions. The same studies are finding an improvement in classroom performance as a result.[4] |
” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
Given the current funding structure, how does your district meet the academic needs of its low-income students? Are you willing to ask voters to approve a tax increase to create or expand these programs?
| “ | Coppell ISD works diligently to educate ALL students regardless of need. We are fortunate to have support throughout our community for students that don’t have as much by way of material needs. Our schools, in partnership with PTO’s, churches, cities and various civic organizations surround our lower income kids through mentorships and pantry donations to provide basic needs.[4] | ” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
Many districts are exploring creative ways to save money or shift costs to parents and students. What creative measures would you favor or oppose and why?
| “ | Shifting costs to parents and students should be an option of last resort. As a board member - and fiduciaries of our tax dollars - we should constantly look for ways to be more efficient in how our resources are spent and utilized.[4] | ” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
The state has adopted an A through F accountability system for district and campuses. Do you favor or oppose this system and why?
| “ | I am opposed to the A-F accountability system. The A-F system in it’s current format is inherently flawed in that it does not rate according to an objective and fair system. Rather, it ranks schools against each other by measures that are complex, not transparent nor useful in identifying areas of improvement. I would support a system that is fair, transparent, meaningful and takes into account what our local community demands of our schools.[4] | ” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
How would you assess the district’s efforts to improve graduation rates and increase the number of students prepared for college? What further improvements would you advocate?
| “ | I believe Coppell ISD does an excellent job in preparing students for graduation. This is evidenced in our district consitantly having above average graduation rates. In preparation for college, I would advocate for increased onsite SAT/ACT preparation.[4] | ” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
What schools in your district have been particularly effective in getting every child up to grade level in reading and math?
| “ | All of our schools do an exceptional job of preparing our students to meet or exceed grade level in reading and math. One program in particular is the Turning Point program at Victory Place. Turning Point provides a non-traditional school setting to students who, for various reasons, have not been able to succeed in the traditional classroom. Turning Point allows students to work at either an accelerated or individualized pace so that they may earn a diploma and be prepared for their next phase in life.[4] | ” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
How would you assess your district’s current school choice efforts, and what changes are needed?
| “ | Coppell ISD provides a variety of educational choices such as IB, Problem Based Learning (PBL), and Dual Language. In addition to non-traditional learning provided at Victory Place. While offering a variety of choices is good, we should take caution not to spread ourselves thin and constantly evaluate each program to determine the merits, effectiveness and return on investment.[4] | ” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
How would you assess your superintendent’s performance?
| “ | Dr. Waldrip is halfway through his third year at Coppell ISD. I feel he has done a great job thus far in his role. He has shown to be engaged with our students and community. My observation has been that he is data driven and analytical, and uses that information to make a well-informed decision. Additionally, he has been able to leverage his depth of knowledge regarding issues facing our district by decisions being considered at the State level, in order to ensure that our district is prepared in advance of what options might be available to address those changes driven from outside of our district.[4] | ” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
Where do you stand on the importance of early-childhood education? Would you support increasing class-size ratios at other grade levels in order to introduce or expand pre-K?
| “ | I am a firm believer in early-childhood education. I would not support increasing class sizes as our district is currently maxed and we should look for ways to increase our efficiencies in staffing and classroom scheduling in order to provide additional services.[4] | ” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
What resources are lacking in schools in your district? How could the district deliver services in the most cost-effective manner?
| “ | Our community as a whole does an excellent job in ensuring our schools have the resources needed. We are fortunate in Coppell to have a unique business environment willing and ready to assist our schools through both financial and intellectual capital. I would continue to advocate for leveraging our business community through our Partners in Excellence program.[4] | ” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
In what ways can your district’s communications with parents be improved? Likewise, how can parental involvement in your district improve?
| “ | Communication is a 2-way street. Our district has does a good job communicating and engaging parents through the use of social media, weekly Informed Newsletters and direct communication from the campus principals and classroom educators. While these are good ways to disseminate information, I feel our district can improve upon creating avenues for the community as whole to create dialogue and provide feedback to the district in a way that is meaningful and productive.
Likewise, parental involvement varies throughout our schools. At my children's school, we have began both a Dad's Club and Grandparent's Club in recent years as a way to engage and attract additional avenues of involvement. As a district, we should continue work towards creating a better sense of community that makes all feel welcome and engaged.[4] |
” |
| —David Caviness (2017)[5] | ||
See also
2023 Elections
External links
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Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Coppell Independent School District, "Board Elections 2017," accessed February 17, 2017
- ↑ Dallas County Elections, "Unofficial Cumulative Results," accessed May 6, 2017These election results are unofficial and will be updated after official vote totals are made available.
- ↑ Dallas County Elections, "Campaign Reporting," accessed May 1, 2017
- ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12 5.13 The Dallas Morning News, "Voter Guide: Coppell ISD, Place 5," accessed April 13, 2017
