Candidate Sean Conley

With recent conversations about curriculum, how will you ensure that students will receive a well-rounded education?  I will push for the creation of a tiger team of teachers and administrators to create a plan for improvements. This plan needs to be briefed to the superintendent and the school board in a working group while it is being developed, so corrections and concerns can be addressed during the developmental phase. The end product will have been properly reviewed by the school board during its creation to ensure that it represents the public concerns and desires. I would conduct analysis of this plan through the entire process and identify conscious subjects and bring these up for a vote by the board. I would then vote in a manner that was presented in my platform, which is as a conservative that values cost effective innovation with traditional value instilled to enhance the learning environment while creating students that value future learning opportunities. 

Do you think taxes should be increased in the next three years to fund public schools? If yes, how much?  I do not believe that taxes should be increased to fund public schools. With this said, a deep dive of the fiscal budget for the school district needs to be done, areas for growth and areas for cuts should be identified, then a plan implemented that has feedback loops to maintain the proper balance. This plan should be reviewed quarterly and annually to ensure budget goals are met without any negative impacts on the learning environment.

What are the biggest challenges you think your school district will face in the next 3 years?  I believe that the biggest challenge to the School District of Manatee County is to make our schools safe from lone gunman attacks while still be an inviting environment to learn. The safety of our children, teachers and support staff is paramount and is what I would focus on as the number one priority. The next challenge that I think is a priority is teacher retention and teacher hiring to ensure that the teacher to student ratio is balanced while also ensure quality teachers are kept and hired. The third challenge that I think is a priority is fiscal oversight and the efficient use of the bud