PARENTS SHOULD be informed of everything involving their children at school.

I’ve been a teacher with APS since 2008, hold a MA in curriculum and instruction. I teach in the 87120 and have worked at Volcano Vista, Cibola, Tony H., LBJ, Monroe and 11 of the 12 elementary schools in District 2 as a bilingual testing coordinator. I’m very in tune with what’s going on in the district and that enormous amounts of money are being misspent.

As a district and community we have been through a lot together since the pandemic, but now our students are caught in the crossfire literally and in the political sense. APS has had over 21 guns taken on campuses in the past 16 months … Four shootings took place last year at West Mesa. As a result, Volcano Vista has become a refuge for families rightfully avoiding West Mesa, and now VV is the most overpopulated high school in the state.

Zero police are visiting schools daily. That, my city, is a most serious problem. We need to recruit teachers to combat students’ minds, we are missing 800-plus teachers and we need to recruit police. We are missing 30 to 50 (officers) with no plan. I never saw the APS police chief at DA Bregman’s “Guns free zone” announcement on March 29. The APS police chief is a former APD homicide detective and two young teens have died on campuses since 2021.

My wife teaches high school. Everybody has that fear lurking in the back of their heads and I’ll never stop advocating for immediate upgrades in school safety. …People like me are (also) out advocating for things like the Navajo teacher and Spanish teacher at my school to be recognized as bilingual. … I’ve rejected all special interest groups. I ask for all campaign donations to be sent in the form of boxed men’s and women’s basketballs to the athletic directors at Tony Hillerman, LBJ and James Monroe. I’ll coach against them this year and they’re going to need them. We can work with our rivals to better the community.

With a new superintendent on deck, the school board has to find a dynamic leader with safety on their mind and experience in improving literacy. They are walking into the epicenter of corruption in our city and we need a problem solver, not a big promiser who just enjoys the perks and prestige. Our district needs an actual 5-year plan that will target the teacher crisis and safety issues.

Last, I’m against all sexual material in schools not related to an upper level health class. There is no business for it. I’ve taught kindergarten, second grade, fourth grade and parents need to be informed of everything.

No cloak and dagger. I’m a watchdog and I would be most curious to see what pork I can find snooping around the APS $2.3 billion budget. After Sheryl Williams Stapleton, the FBI should just open up a joint field office between 6400 Uptown Blvd., APS HQ, and APS contract negotiators at 530 Jefferson St. NE 87108.

Political graft and greed, all I see.