Ector County Independent School District elections (2015)
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Three seats on the Ector County Independent School District Board of Trustees were up for general election on May 9, 2015.
Two candidates, network technician Arlo Chavira and former board member and municipal judge Carol Gregg, competed for the Position 1 seat since incumbent Luis Galvan did not file for re-election. Gregg was elected to the board. Position 3 incumbent Donna Smith and Position 6 incumbent Ray Beaty both ran unopposed and won their re-election bids by default.[1][2]
Only 190 voters showed up to the polls on May 9, 2015, according to unofficial election results. There were a total of 8,811 possible voters, which brought the district's voter turnout to 2.2 percent in this election.[2]
About the district
Ector County Independent School District is located in Ector County, Texas. The county seat of Ector County is Odessa. Ector County was home to an estimated 149,378 residents in 2013, according to the United States Census Bureau.[3] In the 2011-2012 school year, Ector County Independent School District was the 44th-largest school district in Texas and served 28,533 students.[4]
Demographics
Ector County underperformed in comparison to the rest of Texas in terms of higher education achievement in 2013. The United States Census Bureau found that 13.5 percent of Ector County residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 26.7 percent for Texas as a whole. The median household income in Ector County was $51,466, compared to $51,900 for the state of Texas. The poverty rate in Ector County was 15.9 percent, compared to 17.6 percent for the entire state.[3]
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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 Ector County Board of Trustees consists of seven members elected to four-year terms. While members are elected to specific places on the ballot, they serve the district at-large. There was no primary election, and a general election took place on May 9, 2015. Three seats were on the ballot in May 2015.[6]
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.[7]
Elections
2015
Candidates
Position 1
| Arlo Chavira | Carol Gregg 
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Position 3
| Donna Smith
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Position 6
| Ray Beaty
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Election results
Position 1
| Ector County Independent School District, Position 1 General Election, 4-year term, 2015 |
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| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan |  Carol Gregg |
58.5% | 110 | |
| Nonpartisan | Arlo Chavira | 41.5% | 78 | |
| Total Votes | 188 | |||
| Source: Ector County, Texas, "Official Cumulative Report," June 15, 2015 | ||||
Position 3
Incumbent Donna Smith won re-election without opposition.
Position 6
Incumbent Ray Beaty 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.[8] 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.[7]
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.[9]
What was at stake?
Issues in the election
April 21 candidate forum
Position 1 candidates Carol Gregg and Arlo Chavira participated in a debate hosted by Una Voz Unida at the Salinas Community Center on April 21, 2015. Among the topics discussed were test scores, high dropout rates, sex education and teacher discipline.[10]
On sex education, Gregg said she supports abstinence plus sex education, while Chavira advocated bringing back a parent center and teaching children moral and family values. After improper educator-student relationships surfaced at a district high school, parents voiced concerns over the recent arrests and allegations of sexual assault. Gregg noted that a district training plan and felony penalties for teachers that have unsuitable relationships with students are already in place, and that teachers who are convicted will have to go to prison and register as a sex offender. Chavira argued that the district can always do more, and that community members should reach out to state legislators to punish convicted teachers more severely.[10]
Chuck Isner, a former alternative center teacher, pointed to Ector County having a higher dropout rate than other areas of Texas. Chavira said that building a third high school for at-risk students could be a solution. In this way, students could get more individualized attention from teachers. Gregg agreed that could be an answer, but also pointed to technical education.[10]
While the candidates had their differences, the pair agreed that teachers in the districts should get paid more. Gregg pointed out that the district was at the mercy of school finance and that the district would not likely know how much state funding to allocate towards teacher salaries until the last day of the legislative session. Chavira noted that, in his belief, there was too much pressure put onto teachers to pass state-mandated tests. Both mentioned that they would like to see an increase in the district's teacher planning periods and more cooperativeness among educators.[10]
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for the Ector County Independent School District election in 2015:[7][11]
| 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 Ector County.
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Ector + County + Independent + School + District + Texas"
See also
| Ector County Independent School District | Texas | School Boards |
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External links
- Ector County Independent School District
- Ector County Clerk
- Ector County, Texas
- Texas Secretary of State
Footnotes
- ↑ OA Online, "On final day, no new candidates file for May election," February 28, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 OA Online, "Voters choose new ECISD board member," May 9, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 United States Census Bureau, "Ector County, Texas," accessed February 3, 2015
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed July 31, 2014
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "Ector County," accessed February 3, 2015
- ↑ Ector County Independent School District, "Board of Trustees," February 4, 2015
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 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
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 OA Online, "ECISD candidates debate," April 21, 2015
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "Important 2015 Election Dates," accessed January 20, 2015
| 2015 Ector County Independent School District Elections | |
| Ector County, Texas | |
| Election date: | May 9, 2015 |
| Candidates: | Position 1: Arlo Chavira • Carol Gregg Position 3: Incumbent, Donna Smith |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
