Simon Salinas

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Simon Salinas

Nonpartisan

Elections and appointments

Last election

May 6, 2023

Education

Associate

Collin County Community College, 2022

Personal

Birthplace

Grapevine, Texas

Religion

Islam

Profession

Substitute teacher

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Instagram

Simon Salinas ran for election to the Plano Independent School District school board to represent Place 7 in Texas. He lost in the general election on May 6, 2023.

Salinas completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Simon Salinas was born in Grapevine, Texas. He earned an associate degree from Collin County Community College in 2022. His career experience includes working as a substitute teacher. Salinas was certified as a pharmacy technician. He has been affiliated with the Plano ISD Diversity Advisory Committee, LULAC, Pass the Props Plano ISD, and the Plano ISD PTA.

Elections

2023

See also: Plano Independent School District, Texas, elections (2023)

General election

General election for Plano Independent School District school board Place 7

Katherine Chan Goodwin defeated incumbent Cody Weaver and Simon Salinas in the general election for Plano Independent School District school board Place 7 on May 6, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Katherine Chan Goodwin (Nonpartisan)	47.4	11,195
		Cody Weaver (Nonpartisan)	40.5	9,568
		Simon Salinas (Nonpartisan)	12.1	2,860

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 23,623
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Nancy Schilreff (Nonpartisan)

Campaign themes

2023

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Simon Salinas completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Salinas' responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Hello! I was a Plano ISD student and I witnessed how decisions made by the Plano ISD Board of Trustees affected me, my classmates, and my teachers significantly. I am a recent graduate of PISD, not a politician. We don't have a Trustee on the Board that has attended, taught, and volunteered for PISD. It should be preferred to have a Trustee who has been in the programs themselves and understands the current concerns of the community that they are going to advocate for.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Fiscal Responsibility & Equal Distribution of Funds: I will be responsible with tax dollars and will continue making sure that underserved communities in our district are receiving equal funds.
• Community Connections: As a recent graduate, I am intimately aware of the current concerns of our students and our teachers. We need to meet the community where they are as opposed to expecting the community to come to us.
• Teachers, Staff, and Student Success: The Plano ISD Board needs to continue to support innovative initiatives by the teachers and the Plano ISD Administration that make life more rewarding for teachers like including mental health resources. During COVID, my classmates and I experienced a shift in our learning. I believe now more than ever, we have to design a system that offers more individualized options for student success and growth. Kindergarten readiness and College readiness are important targets that are currently lacking attention in our School District. We must make sure that each student in Plano ISD will be ready to learn at a higher level if he/she chooses to attend college or trade school.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I'm passionate about helping make decisions that personally impact the daily lives of teachers and students. One of the roles the Plano ISD School Board has is approving the school year calendar. Teachers depend on the calendar to make sense and remain consistent with the feedback of surrounding districts. Decisions like those that mean so much to the community are important and I'm running to make sure sufficient community feedback is gathered in every important decision.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

I look up to my grandparents who recently passed away. They understood the importance of education. My grandfather came to this country from Monterrey, Mexico because of the opportunities here. His father told him that before he moved, he would need to obtain a degree at a nearby college. My Grandpa loved to learn, so it was a compromise that he could make. After obtaining a degree, he came to the U.S. and worked as a handyman for apartments, his chosen career. My grandmother lost her mom when she was 12 and started a family at 15, so obtaining her degree was never easy either. My Grandma took night classes and worked through the weekends when she was older to obtain her Bachelor's degree. I'm very proud of the role education played in their lives.

Those stories constantly repeat in my mind as I think of the opportunities our students should have that expand their knowledge. We need to have transferable skills in each course so that students can choose another path and know that they've learned an important skill for life.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

I think it's important for elected officials to have open minds. I started becoming concerned with the partisanship on our school board when I was a student and wanted to see a more inclusive board that heard every argument about something before making a decision. When elected, I will listen to my community and ultimately make my decision based on the feedback I received.

What legacy would you like to leave?

It’s difficult for students and staff to contact school board members whom they rarely see. I’ve been told by staff and students that they’re worried about what repercussions would happen if they had a view different from that school board member when speaking to them. I want to create the trust that the community should have in a school board member. Additionally, I want to make it easier for students to speak to someone their age and teachers to talk to someone who has been in the same classrooms that they have been in.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

Can't Stop- DeBarge

What is the primary job of a school board member in your view?

I believe the primary role of a school board member is to listen. School Board members adopt a budget and set a tax rate, adopt policies and review for effectiveness, and hire/evaluate the superintendent. Another main role is communicating with the community. Every role requires board members to listen.

How would you support the diverse needs of your district’s students, faculty, staff, and community?

Each student, staff, and family is unique. We need to support the diversity of our district by respecting cultures, reaching out to diverse communities, and making sure that we have adequate bilingual programs in place.

How will you build relationships with members of the broader community? Which groups, organizations, stakeholders will you specifically target?

It's important to build relationships with every community. Recently, I've been visiting businesses in Plano ISD to let them know about the election and I want to see more partnerships take place. It's important to remember that business owners and employees have students in Plano ISD.

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

Staci Childs, State Board of Education Member

Collin Teachers and Faculty Association

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Plano Independent School District school board Place 7

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