VOL 8 No. 15
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FORT BEND FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 15, 2015
P. O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623
Official newspaper of Fort Bend County, Missouri City & Sugar Land
FBISD Position 6 candidates comment on truancy, testing and funding
Heyliger says “all of our children have equitable resources throughout the district. Clemence, a certified auditor says, “ I’m a strong advocate for preparing our students for global competition by promoting foreign language education and striving to attract and retain high quality teachers who reflect and enhance the diversity of our school district.”
By SESHADRI KUMAR In the May 9 Fort Bend ISD election, both the incumbent trustees Grayle James and Jenny Bailey have drawn opponents. Election day is May 9 and early voting begins April 27. Pre-school owner Kathy Li, a five-year resident of Sugar Land has filed for Position 2 on the board, currently held by James, now the board president.
Jackson Jackson, a home and business owner in Fort Bend for more than 20 years, says he will “promote predictable and fiscally sound policies designed to challenge every student in the district through the empowerment of parents and educators with more local control on their campus.”
Fort Bend’s Bird of the Month. American Bitterns winter on the Gulf Coast and migrate
Clemence Bailey Bailey, currently board secretary, says, “I’m seeking reelection for a second term because I want to continue promoting the positive changes occurring in FBISD, which include hiring Dr. Dupre as the new superintendent, approving a pay raise to teachers and staff, conducting staff, parent, and student climate surveys, reducing class sizes in grades K-5, and adopting a policy that allows high school students to continue in a fine arts or sports program without negatively hurting their GPAs. I want to keep the forward momentum go.” Bailey is challenged by Stuart Jackson, Addie Heyliger and JJ Clemence.
Heyliger Heyliger says she is running to become an advocate for educational excellence in Fort Bend County. Currently employed as a Technology Operations Project Manager for CenterPoint Energy and an adjunct professor at Houston Community College,
All the candidates were asked to respond to a few questions to elicit their position on a couple of issues namely truancy and testing. All the candidates were asked the same set of questions and their responses provide an insight into the candidate’s philosophy. Following are the answers given by candidates for Position 6. The response from Position 2 candidates will be published later. Why is the minority population student numbers “disproportionately” high in truancy cases in FBISD? Bailey: According to data provided by the district, the high schools with a higher percentage of truancy complaints also have See FBISD, Page 4
City council candidates Smith and Kemp make their case By BARBARA FULENWIDER Campaigning for two district seats in Missouri City is in full swing with District B incumbent Don Smith being challenged by JaPaula Kemp, an attorney and newcomer to elective office. Kemp said she decided to run for the District B seat on city council because “the constituents are not happy with the current leadership.” Their unhappiness, she said, is about the promises and the failure to do something about improving the Texas Parkway corridor. “They’ve been promising that area will have some type of revitalization and it hasn’t happened,” Kemp said. “Other issues they have are in regard to some of the neighborhoods and particularly streets that need repaving.” She added that residents in District B also “feel like the development in the city is pretty unequal. They want equality in development in the city.”
She said she believes there haven’t been “any plans put in place to put the wheels in motion” for the redevelopment of Texas Parkway. “There needs to be some kind of planning or long-term goals on what needs to happen on Texas Parkway. I don’t think the leadership has taken it seriously. Other council members have asked that this be done. Don (Smith) personally has not advocated for this, is what constituents have told me.” Kemp, who is in private law practice, said she’s running for the District B council seat because she wants to see “equality in development all over the city” and also because “we need to get back to the basics when it comes to city services. We need to make sure everyone is taken care of. People in District B feel like they’ve not been taken care of at all and put on the back burner so to speak.” Also, according to Kemp,
residents in District B “don’t believe city government is being transparent enough. Constituents say things are decided and they don’t know what is going on. They want city government in general to be more transparent.” She said she’s running for a council seat so she can advocate for the residents and be a watchdog over tax dollars. “I want to make sure they are being spent wisely, and if there’s anything we can do for the police, fire and EMS personnel to make sure they are well compensated for doing an excellent job for our city. “I want to let voters know I will work with my colleagues on council and the mayor to make sure there’s a plan in place to revitalize the Texas Parkway corridor, and that the areas in my district will receive much needed repairs, especially the streets that have deteriorated over the years. I will also See COUNCIL, Page 3
through Fort Bend on their way north in the Spring. A bird you will only see in tall grasslands or in reeds, they are normally alone. This well-camouflaged heron may only be heard as they walk slowly and stay under cover in vegetation. But can you hear them! A pumping “oong ka chunk” resonates and almost sounds like an eerie clock or pump. While this American Bittern is “hunkered down”, this 2 to 3 foot tall forager is mostly brown with white stripes. Adults have black stripes as well. They eat a wide variety of foods from crustaceans to grasshoppers. Yes, due to our continuing cool fronts, migration has also been an on and off affair. Photographed on the San Bernard River in February by Margaret Sloan, this bird begs for preservation of tall grasses, wetlands and undeveloped open spaces. See more of pictures of this distinctive bird http://traction.typepad.com/birds.
FBISD teams place first and second at State Mathcounts Competition Congratulations to the Mathcounts teams at Quail Valley Middle School and Fort Settlement Middle School on earning 1st and 2nd place, respectively, in the State Mathcounts Competition held recently in Austin. The teams advanced to the state competition after earning the top two spots at the Houston Chapter Competition. Sponsored by the Texas Association of Professional Engineers, the competition gives students an opportunity to compete in complex, high-level,
problem-solving challenges. Students representing 89 Texas schools competed in the competition this year. Team Awards: QVMS Team, 1st Place – Members include: Andrew L., Shree M., Ben W., and Ethan W. FSMS Team, 2nd Place – Members include: Archer W., Eric W., Claire Z. and Akash K. Individual Awards (These students competed one-on-one in the Countdown Round, vying for a spot on the national team.):
Andrew L., QVMS – 1st place Allen Z., QVMS – 2nd place Archer Z., FSMS – 3rd place Eric W., FSMS – 4th place These four students will form the 2015 National Mathcounts team representing Texas. Coaching the team will be Isil Nal (Coach of the 1st place team from QVMS), along with Gwen Curtice from QVMS and Sherri Phlegley from FSMS. The national competition will be held at MIT in Boston, Massachusetts in May, and will be televised.
Blues Blowout Extravaganza There is an event happening April 25, that music lovers around the Greater Houston area, and beyond, call one of the coolest events they have ever attended. This year, Gail Best, Richmond resident, singer/entertainer and local celebrity, will be joining this starstudded blues event. “When we first planned this casual evening, it was just a fun event one of our board members held in his backyard, in the Museum District/Montrose, where he has regular music concerts. Yet, it has become one of our most popular events, drawing people from all over. We call it the BBB, for Blues, Barbecue, and Beer. It is held outdoors, at a private residence, with a built-in backyard stage. The line up of blues singers and the band are exceptional, and it is going to be great,” said Sue Levin, executive director, HGI Counseling Center, a 501(c)(3) non-profit. The blues singers, Levin refers to does in fact include some of the best known, award winning, and international favorites, such as Diunna Green-
Best leaf, Trudy Lynn, Tommy Dardar, and Gail Best. “Gail Best is a popular Fort Bend County singer and entertainer, singing at many events and area night clubs. We are thrilled she will be joining this awesome line-up of blues singers,” Levin said. The band performing also consist of the award winning, well-known musicians such as Evelyn Rubio, saxophonist; Anthony Terry, saxophonist; Mike Patton drummer; Teri Greene, guitarist; Tanya Richardson, bass player; and Barry Seelen on the keyboard.
“The Houston Blues Society has played a major role in lining the best of the best, and we cannot thank them enough. We also hope to see many from Fort Bend joining us, not only because we have an office in Fort Bend, but also to come out and have a fun and relaxing evening, which is just good for the soul,” Levin said. There will be two live auction items, a BB King Signed Guitar and a New Orleans Jazz & Dining and more. Tickets are $30, and include dinner, beer, and entertainment all evening. “The event kicks-off at 6:00 and is scheduled to end at 10:00 p.m., but the last couple of years, there have been jam sessions until all hours of the night, which is great,” Levin said. For Tickets, call 713-5268390 or email: admin@talkhgi. com, or visit the website: www. talkhgi.org. HGI Counseling Center is located at 3316 Mt. Vernon St, Houston, TX 77006 and in Fort Bend County, 10435 Greenbough Drive, Suite 200, Stafford, TX 77477.