news-record.com

SANDRA ALEXANDER
Birth date: July 26, 1947.
Lives at: 4001 Hickory Tree Lane, Greensboro.
Spouse: Rondal Graham Alexander.
Occupation: Retired university professor; small business owner.
Education: Master's of English from Harvard University; doctorate from University of Pittsburgh.
Web site: www.greensboroscenictour.com

EXPERIENCE
Professor of English and administrator at N.C. A&T for 30 years; president and chief executive officer of Greensboro Scenic Tours for 10 years.

ON THE ISSUES
Academics: Reintroduce cultural arts and physical education; create optional all-male middle schools with male educators.
Construction: Supports school board and district managing construction.
Discipline/safety: Expand the Positive Behavior Support program districtwide.
No Child Left Behind: Says the law is poorly funded and uses excessive testing.
School uniforms: Schools should decide case-by-case.
Transparency: Involve the community more in how school decisions are made.
Transportation: Transport middle and high school students together to save fuel; reduce top speed from 45 mph to 43 mph.

IN HER OWN WORDS
"I am concerned that more is not being done at the primary and elementary level to keep students operating at grade level early on. Improvements in the way schools address the issues of language development and reading readiness should be priority in the GCS system. A structured assessment program aimed at determining when students are lagging behind in those areas should be carefully crafted, and a skills improvement plan should be devised for each student who is functioning below the desired academic level. Both should be used without fail for each student going through the Guilford County Schools."

Full questionnaire

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MICHAEL MCKINNEY
Birth date: Dec. 24, 1963.
Lives at: 4404 Peaceford Glen Drive, High Point.
Spouse: Paula McKinney.
Occupation: Commercial banker.
Education: Business management degree from East Carolina University; political science degree from Winston-Salem State University.
Web site: www.votemichaelmckinney.com

EXPERIENCE
Served on various boards, including Guilford County planning, United Way and Triad Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition (TREBIC). Worked with local and national mentoring organizations.

ON THE ISSUES
Academics: Wants to increase the number of children taking advanced coursework.
Construction: Supports school board and district managing construction.
Discipline/safety: Would support alternative schools and a statewide discipline and safety policy.
No Child Left Behind: Says the law is a hindrance as currently written.
School uniforms: Stance uncertain.
Transparency: The district should publish biannual reports on its financial status, including construction bond expenses.
Transportation: The district should save fuel by combining routes and stops where possible; reduce the number of school activity buses; explore four-day school week.

IN HIS OWN WORDS
"I am concern (sic) that we have fail (sic) realize the Board's responsibility is to provide governance and over sight (sic) to the system. The superintendent should be responsible for academic policies and day-to-day operations and advise the Board of needs and issues. The Board should identify a specific set of goals and objectives for the new superintendent to strive to achieve in a reasonable period of time. Managing Guilford County schools (the third largest in the state) is big business, managing a $600 million dollar budget is big business. The citizens, teachers, students and parents all deserve someone who will be responsive to the task at hand as well as ask hard questions and make touch (sic) decisions. The system is in need of someone who is familiar with and understandings (sic) big budgets with respect to wise business judgments."

Full questionnaire