ROGERS -- Each of three men competing for one School Board seat -- a lawyer, a financial adviser and a retired educator -- said their professional expertise would benefit the board if they are elected.
Mitch Lockhart, Caley Vo and Bob White, all Rogers natives, are running for the at-large, Position 6 seat. Each candidate is making his first run for a public office.
Mitch Lockhart
Age: 48
Residency: Rogers. Has lived in Rogers School District a total of 44 years.
Employment: Financial advisor and certified financial planner with Wells Fargo Advisors.
Education: Bachelor’s degree in financial management from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.
Political Experience: None.
Caley Vo
Age: 37
Residency: Rogers. Has lived in Rogers School District a total of 21 years.
Employment: Civil trial lawyer with Wright Lindsey Jennings law firm in Rogers.
Education: Law degree, University of Arkansas at Little Rock; bachelor of arts in political science, University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.
Political Experience: None.
Bob White
Age: 62
Residency: Rogers. Has lived in Rogers School District a total of 46 years.
Employment: Retired this year as principal of Rogers’ Elmwood Middle School.
Education: Master’s degree in education administration from the University of Houston-Victoria; bachelor’s degree in education from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.
Political Experience: None.
The winner will get a five-year term and replace Byron Black, who decided not to run for re-election this year after 10 years on the board.
The election is Sept. 20. Early voting begins Sept. 13.
White worked as a teacher, coach and administrator for 39 years, 29 of which he spent in the Rogers School District. He retired this summer after 13 years as principal at Elmwood Middle School.
Elmwood, under White's leadership, received the Shannon Wright Award this year. The award is presented annually to an Arkansas school that demonstrates outstanding achievement in implementing the best middle-level school practices.
White's wife, Martha, works as a library aide at Heritage High School. The couple has two sons, both of whom went through Rogers schools.
"I think a good board is made up of varied backgrounds, and there's no one on there in education right now," White said.
White, 62, said he's particularly interested in being a voice for teachers, adding he's the only candidate who understands what teachers go through on a daily basis.
"We need to keep the salaries up to get the best teachers," he said. "You get what you pay for."
He also said he'd like to see more attention paid to both athletics and the fine arts.
"I just want to stay active, stay involved. I just have a passion for Rogers schools," White said.
Lockhart, 48, and his wife, Valerie, have two sons. One is in college, and the other is a junior at Rogers High School. Valerie Lockhart is a teacher at Providence Academy in Rogers.
Lockhart said he's spent thousands of hours involved in various volunteer activities for the district, from being a Watchdog Dad at Bellview Elementary School to working concession stands at athletic events.
He is secretary for the Rogers High School Athletic Booster Club. He's also vice president of the Rogers Public Education Foundation board, which raises and distributes money for academic programs.
Lockhart said he doesn't sign up for something just to have his name attached to it.
"I try to commit to it. I actively participate in whatever it is they're trying to promote," he said.
Competition in the form of charter and private schools is increasing, and the district needs to keep up, he said.
"I think a school that's going to be successful at growing is one that excels at all areas, including academics, athletics and the arts," Lockhart said.
Lockhart, a financial adviser and certified financial planner for Wells Fargo Advisors, said his knowledge of things such as bond portfolios and interest rates would be an asset to the board.
Vo, 37, has worked as an attorney in Rogers for 12 years. He and his wife, Haley, have three children, ages 5, 8 and 10. All attend Janie Darr Elementary School.
Vo said of the three candidates, he's the one who most closely resembles the average parent in the district.
"I'm intimately vested in the district by having kids who will be here for many years. I'm also a lawyer. That is important because one of the main duties of the board is setting rules and policies. I have a skill set for doing that," Vo said.
Vo's main reason for running is he wants to help prepare children for life after school.
"I love watching children grow and succeed. A public education is the cornerstone for that success," he said.
The most important issues to Vo are the budget, teacher retention and student achievement.
"Rogers boasts a great graduation rate, but it's not the same for all groups of students," Vo said. "We've done well with integration of minorities, but the graduation rate among those groups is a lot lower than the district's average. I want to see the gaps continue to be closed, so all students are able to succeed."
Vo said he's never been to a School Board meeting, but he's reviewed the minutes of all the board's meetings this year. Lockhart said he's attended the last two meetings. White has attended between 35 and 40 meetings over the past five years, he said.
NW News on 09/06/2016