CountyNewsLIVE.com(Hermann Muenster)

Curtis Thomas has been a student for almost all of his life, and that’s one reason why he thinks he’s a good candidate for a seat on the Gasconade County R-1 School Board. His job as the clinical laboratory director at Hermann Area District Hospital gives him the chance to keep learning almost daily, and his experiences with R-1 students in job shadow programs have shown him that both he and Hermann students are locked in a learning mindset.

Thomas, who first moved to Hermann to work at the hospital about eight years ago, said that serving on the school board would afford him a way to give back to the community. He said he was a “big believer in education” and wants to assist with what he sees as an already superior education system in Hermann.

“Education is important,” Thomas said. “In our area, we’re very lucky. We just need to make sure that we’re teaching these kids--not only basic mathematics and reading; we need to be teaching them life skills and how to be good citizens.”

The lab director said he was a strong high school student and earned scholarships to pursue both theater arts and science, but had to work while earning many of his postsecondary degrees, the most recent of which was a master’s certificate from John Morris University in Liverpool, England. Thomas also gained some teaching experience while teaching at a technical college in Marion, Ohio.

As far as Hermann educators go, Thomas said that a good board member will look to principals and teachers for information about what’s going on in the schools, but he would hesitate to ever make teachers feel as if a board member was telling them how to do their jobs.

“The board is there for direction and informed consent,” Thomas said. “That information has to come from the principals and educators.”

One key piece of information Thomas would hope to see from educators is an organic view of student achievement in the classroom. Although he acknowledges the necessity of test scores, he doesn’t place emphasis on testing and would welcome a holistic view of student success.

“The students’ education has got to be diverse and multi-faceted,” Thomas said. “If it’s not multi-faceted, it’s not education, is it?”

The district, though, could face budget strains in 2010 that could threaten some school programs. Thomas said he’s unsure at this point of how to choose programs to be saved or cut, but that his experience balancing a budget for his hospital department and his local computer company, Gitfinger, will come in handy in understanding budget issues.

Thomas also admitted that there’s much that he’ll have to learn in his service on the board. But what he lacks in school board experience, he hopes to make up with by adding a new perspective.

Part of that perspective comes from his work in the lab at HADH, where he said he often sees teenagers with sexually transmitted infections. “I see it every day,” he said. “We need to do better.”

Thomas sees this as one area where the school can do more to educate Hermann students, and he considers the addition of “age appropriate sex education that includes abstinence” to the school curriculum a major issue in his campaign. He added that any sex education would involve input from students’ parents.

Another major issue for Thomas is what he deems “diversity training” that would encourage Hermann students to understand and embrace different cultures.

Thomas also wanted to address a possible conflict of interest because his partner, Mark Billings, works within the school district as an information technology specialist. He said that he and Mark had several lengthy discussions about the issue and reached an agreement to respect a mutual confidentiality on matters that should be kept secret from the other party. Thomas said he and Mark will share debate on publicly known topics and that he expects those discussions to reinforce their efforts to improve the schools.

For his campaign, Thomas plans to rely on discussion with the community to spread his message. He is setting up a Web site at which Hermann residents can read more about his views and send questions.

Thomas said that he offers something that none of the other three candidates can—the perspective of a relative outsider. “To me, those three people have been involved for a while,” he said. “I bring in a completely different way.”