Expansion, funding topics of Jackson board candidates

During a candidate forum Monday night two Jackson school board incumbents said the district might have to look at expansion in the future to avoid overcrowding.

"I think it's just something we keep an eye on," said Cathy Goodman, a six-year board member running for re-election.

Three candidates running for the Jackson school board talked about school issues, including uses for stimulus money, district growth and state budget cuts.

The event, held at the Jackson Middle School library, was sponsored by the Cape Girardeau County Business Women's Organization

The audience of about 10 did not add other questions when given the opportunity at the end of the forum.

Brent Wills, a nine-year board member, said even though district growth has stabilized in the past few years, a new elementary school could ease overcrowding issues.

Goodman said the preschool program has outgrown South Elementary, where overcrowding has become a problem. Goodman and Wills said the construction project at the high school should be finished first.

"We just need to fine tune what we have and watch our budgets," Wills said.

Pat Wissman, the only non-incumbent at the forum, offered a different perspective. He said now is not the time to ask voters for more taxes and the district should use what it already has.

"Instead of dumping tea into the water, it'll be school board members," Wissman said. "And I can't swim well."

In the face of state budget cuts, Goodman said the district would have to be creative and look to the community for support, especially with extra-curricular activity funding. Wills and Goodman said the district has weathered similar circumstances in the past with attrition.

"Our district has been known to do a lot with a little," said Wills, who owns an insurance agency in Jackson.

Goodman, a patient advocate at Southeast Missouri Hospital, said the district should "proceed cautiously" with stimulus money once it is allocated. She said it could be used to alleviate state budget gaps and a decreasing tax base.

Wills and Wissman said the stimulus funds should not be used to expand programs that cannot be sustained.

Wissman is retired from owning a trucking company. As the parent of a child with a physical disability, he said he has learned to advocate for other parents. He said he wants to make school less of a hassle for parents with handicapped children.

Wissman also said the district needs to focus on teaching students more about life skills.

"In real life there is no deferred success," he said. "You succeed or you fail. These kids need to know that."

Wissman is also running for a position on the Cape Special Road District board. The two candidates with the most votes in the April 7 election will assume three-year terms on the board.

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