Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, October 12, 1995 TAG: 9510120077
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: LISA APPLEGATE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Jack LeDoux believes schools should be concerned about the nationwide drop in literacy rates and should return to teaching basic skills.
Victor Sheppard said rural schools need to receive as many educational opportunities as the Blacksburg area.
Mike Smith thinks improving vocational education will prepare students better for future jobs.
Each is hoping their convictions will attract the most votes in a district where only one-fourth of the roughly 10,000 residents are registered to vote.
District E sits in the northwest corner of the county and includes parts of Blacksburg and the scenic mountain landscapes of McCoy.
It's an area of the county Sheppard knows well. He's lived in the district all his life and has heard the concerns parents have about the quality of education.
People believe much of the county is being left behind when it comes to technology. Prices Fork Elementary - the only school in District E - is connected to the Blacksburg Electronic Village. But the connection runs through a phone line that's often busy.
Just a few miles from Prices Fork, Kipps Elementary connects to BEV through a direct line that provides easy access.
Prices Fork Principal Dollie Cottrill said the goal in the next
few years is to have a computer for every classroom. Kipps already provides that.
Sheppard said students who live in rural areas have difficulty getting to Blacksburg to use the library's computers.
"We're fortunate because we have a computer at home and our kids can hook up to BEV, but a lot of kids come home and they don't have that," he said. "I'm hoping [the School Board] will take a stronger look at county schools to make it easier for kids and their parents."
Sheppard volunteers in the schools and said he takes pride in McCoy's involvement in education. But parents believe their concerns aren't being heard. He wants to be as visible as possible by visiting schools and attending PTA meetings.
"There should be an open-door policy where people feel free to talk to the administration. I'm sure they feel like they're not being heard," he said.
Smith agreed that in some instances there is a disparity among schools. But there are ways a community can change that.
"The wheel that squeaks enough will get the grease," he said, referring to the Riner area, which has just received top priority in the School Board's plan to build four new schools in the next five years.
"There's not enough parental involvement," Smith said. "We need to do like [School Board Vice Chairman] Barry Worth does - talk loudly and start seeing things happen." Worth represents the Riner area.
Smith was endorsed by the Montgomery County Education Association's Political Action Committee, "but they do not own me," he said. "My vote will go for the benefit of District E."
Both Sheppard and Smith agree that Focus 2006 is pointing the schools in the right direction, especially because it involved the community in most decision-making steps.
LeDoux said he has trouble with the School Board's vision statement, which includes a proclamation that "all students will enter school ready to learn."
To him, that's a violation of the parental right to raise their children as they choose.
"It's another example of 'Big Brother' trying to come in," he said.
The candidates agree that the school system's main purpose is to prepare students for future jobs.
For Smith, that includes vocational education for those not headed for college. Smith was a pipe-fitter before becoming union president for the Radford Army Ammunition Plant and said vocational training is just as essential in today's society as computer training.
Teaching basic skills|
LeDoux said the lack of preparation begins at the elementary school level.
In his experience teaching at Tech, he said, "most of my students were so poorly grounded in the fundamentals of education that I had to hold special night meetings to get them up to speed."
LeDoux said he is a proponent of memorization and a phonics-based method of learning how to read. Progressive teaching philosophies that emphasize group interaction and development of critical thinking skills are a waste of time.
"How do you do critical thinking when you haven't learned the facts? It bothers me that education has to be fun," he said. "I don't see anything wrong with memorizing poems or drilling multiplication tables."
LeDoux links the inability to read with behavioral problems such as attention deficit disorder and juvenile delinquency.
"If you have half your kids who can't do the work, they'll be hyper and try to get attention."
He said he would like to see public schools strengthened to the point that alternatives such as voucher or private schools wouldn't be necessary.
Smith, however, says going back isn't necessarily better.
"How good was the 'good old days?'" Smith asked. "We do need to teach basic skills, but if I had been taught today what I was taught then, the chances of me finding a good job would be minute."
LeDoux, who chairs the local chapter of the Christian Coalition, said the family life curriculum needs to emphasize abstinence rather than safe sex.
"'Condom-based, safe-sex curriculums' send a double message to kids. There are certain values we want to be emphasized," he said.
Sheppard and Smith both support the current family life program that, they say, encourages self-esteem and personal choice.
Salaries and budget|
The candidates are also split as to what would benefit teachers the most.
Sheppard said the budget negotiations last spring - in which the Board of Supervisors trimmed $1.89 million off the schools' original budget request - is an example of how the system fails to give schools what it needs most: financial support.
"I don't think the Board of Supervisors appropriated enough money, and the School Board didn't push hard enough to get it," he said. "Schools cannot keep running on a shoestring budget."
For LeDoux, the school system would have all the money it needs if it reduced overhead costs and the number of administrators.
He said teachers have complained to him about the lack of discipline. If there was more control in the classroom, he said, there wouldn't be a need for lower pupil-teacher ratio - the No. 1 goal in Focus 2006.
Smith said one way to improve employee morale in the schools is to increase wages and benefits for all school employees.
"Why do Bland County bus
drivers get benefits when our drivers don't? We need to look into that," he said.
Name: John "Jack" LeDoux
Age: 71
Occupation: Retired Virginia Tech engineering professor
Educational background: B.S., Naval Academy; bachelor's of civil engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; master's in nuclear physics, U.S. Naval Academy
Family: Married to Elizabeth; father of eight grown children
Community ties: Chairman, Montgomery County Christian Coalition; active in Republican Party; oversees construction and maintenance for Tried-Stone Christian Center
Ever attended a School Board meeting? Yes, though not in the past year
Last book read: "Inside American Education" by Thomas Sowell
Campaign method: Talking with friends, church groups
Core beliefs: "We're the only county where the literacy rate is dropping. ... They're allowing calculators in elementary schools which is obscene." Schools, he said, should not be in the business of socialization, but teaching the basic skills to prepare children for the future.
Why is he the best candidate? As a former engineer, LeDoux said he has experience in budget and construction - two issues the board seems to grapple with continually. As a former teacher, he said he's seen the level of preparation students receive before coming to college and knows what areas schools need to improve.
Name: Victor Sheppard
Age 34
Occupation: Utilities operator, Radford Army Ammunition Plant
Educational background: Graduated from Blacksburg High School; licensed in waste-water management
Family: Married to Lori; father of two boys, one at Blacksburg High School and another at Prices Fork Elementary School
Community ties: Parent volunteer for schools; member, PTA
Ever attended a School Board meeting? He has attended the last few meetings
Last book read: The "Goosebumps" series to his 6-year-old. "They're good - he'll read those for hours."
Campaign method: Talking with friends; Lori painted the cover on her Jeep's spare tire with slogans
Core beliefs: Balancing the educational opportunities in county schools; improving communication between parents and the schools
Why is he the best candidate? Sheppard grew up in District E and jokes that between him and his wife, they're related to the whole area. By volunteering at the school and talking to neighbors at the Grange, Sheppard stays visible. "I'm your ear," he tells voters.
Name: Michael Smith
Age: 37
Occupation: President of Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers Union Local 3-495 at the Radford Army Ammunition Plant
Educational background: Graduated from Blacksburg High School; took courses at New River Community College in real estate management
Family: Married to Sherrie; father of a daughter at Blacksburg High School and a son at Prices Fork Elementary School
Community ties: Coach, Little League team; member, PTA; member, Newport Masonic Lodge No. 261
Ever attended a School Board meeting? A few in the last year
Last book read: "Getting Past No," by William Ury
Campaign method: Handing out fliers; door-to-door campaigning: "I bring my son a lot, sometimes my daughter comes, too."
Core beliefs: Providing quality education that prepares students for future jobs; parental involvement; continuing with the initiatives set in Focus 2006.
Why is he the best candidate? Negotiating agreements for a union of more than 900 members gives Smith the experience needed to gain consensus and find solutions. "I bring to the table an open-minded view. I won't take a stand on anything until I hear both sides. Let's see where we can all win."
Memo: ***CORRECTION***