FINANCES ARE MAJOR CONCERN; BOND ISSUE BECOMES ISSUE AMONG CAPE CANDIDATES

Three of the four candidates for the Cape Girardeau Board of Education support two school-funding measures on Tuesday's ballot. They say the fourth candidate should take a stand, not sit on the fence.

One of the candidates who support the measures, incumbent John Campbell, said those running for the school board should not duck the issue.

"I think the public has a right to know where you stand," he said. "You can't play both sides of the street."

But the undecided candidate banker Steven Wright said Wednesday he's still undecided on the measures.

"There are still questions that are unanswered," said Wright. "At this time I am neither for or against it."

A proposed $25 million bond issue and a hike in the building fund levy would allow the district to build an elementary school and a middle school, construct an addition to Jefferson Elementary School, reinforce existing buildings to better withstand a major earthquake, upgrade electrical systems and air condition the buildings.

In addition to the school measures, voters Tuesday will choose from among the four candidates for three, three-year terms on the school board.

Besides Wright and Campbell, those running are Jack Sterrett, an associate professor of marketing at Southeast Missouri State University, and incumbent Kathy Swan.

Both Wright and Sterrett are first-time candidates for public office.

Wright, who has two children attending the Cape Girardeau public schools, expressed reservations about the funding measures. In particular, he said he's concerned about how the elementary school district boundaries would be redrawn and whether students would be bused.

"I believe parents have a right to know where their children will be attending school," he said.

In addition, Wright said the public has not been shown any actual plans for the new buildings. "We should be able to see blueprints, diagrams and drawings if we are going to foot the bill," he said.

Wright also said he wants to know more about the district's plans to close the aging May Greene and Washington elementary schools and the seventh-grade-only L.J. Schultz School.

In a prepared statement recently, Wright raised questions about possible changes in state funding for education and the expectation of increased federal taxes.

"I insist on giving our children the best education possible, but until the entire mix of local, state and federal taxes becomes clear, I think we should be cautious," he said.

Wright gave no indication Wednesday if or when he would make a decision on the ballot measures, or whether such a decision would be made public.

Campbell, Swan and Sterrett have come out solidly for the bond issue and levy hike.

Sterrett said the funding measures are needed to upgrade school facilities in the district. He compared the condition of existing schools to "sitting on a time bomb."

"I think anyone at this point can't overlook the safety concerns the schools present," said Sterrett.

Campbell, a certified public accountant who is seeking his second term on the board, said he doesn't believe future redistricting should be a factor in the public's decision on building two new schools.

"I don't think that's a valid concern because I can't imagine anyone objecting to having their child go to a new school," he said.

"We are still going to maintain a neighborhood school concept; we are not going to be busing them all over town," said Campbell.

In fact, he said the district is currently busing some elementary school students across town because of overcrowded classrooms.

Construction of a new elementary school and a middle school should alleviate that problem and actually reduce the need for such busing, Campbell said.

Swan, who was elected to the board last April for a one-year term, is now seeking election to a three-year term. She said the funding measures benefit both students and the community.

"Not only is it a financial investment in our future, but it is a quality of life investment in our future," said Swan.

She said the school district has no choice but to turn to the local community to finance construction of new schools and improvements to existing school buildings.

Sterrett said he favors establishing a public relations program and a foundation that would raise private funds for the school system.

The school district, he said, needs to do a better job of marketing itself year-round, not just at election time.

"They need to tell their story better. There are a lot of success stories and the public really needs to know," Sterrett said in January when he filed for office. He said he believes his marketing skills could be beneficial to the district.

Sterrett said a foundation would allow the district to raise needed private funds. "We have to have some way of helping ourselves."

He said he also would like to see more parental and community involvement in the school district.

Campbell said he believes some progress has been made in that area since the hiring of Neyland Clark as superintendent.

Campbell said that three years ago when he was elected the district was "stagnant."

That's changed, he said. Last year the school board was forced to make budget cuts of $1.2 million. "It was painful to make the cuts, but we have a balanced budget."

Campbell said, "We've started working on a five-year financial plan and I would like to see that completed."

Swan said she wants to work to strengthen business and school partnerships and provide marketable skills for students who are not college bound.

She said she favors implementing a health-issues curriculum that would focus on such things as substance-abuse prevention, teenage pregnancy prevention and AIDS education.

Swan and her husband own Johnson Communications in Cape Girardeau. She said it's important to look at the school system from a business standpoint.

"A school district is very much like running a business as far as the management of employees and expected outcomes," she said.

"Where it is very different is the revenue side," said Swan. "We are at the mercy of government regulations and taxes."

Wright, a vice president at Mercantile Bank, described himself as a "concerned parent." His wife, Kathy, teaches at Cape Girardeau Central High School.

"I am concerned about the quality of education for the kids. I am concerned about the drug problem. I am concerned about the dropout rate and I am concerned about teacher and student morale."

Wright suggested that the school board needs to consider not only "brick-and-mortar" issues, but teacher salaries.

"I have a lot of questions about a lot of different things," said Wright.