The focus remains the same. However, the continuous flux of the Temple school district’s administration has caused concern among community leaders and those involved in economic development, where a strong school system is a high priority.
The district’s latest superintendent, Beto Gonzalez, resigned Mon-day after about a year on the job. He has accepted a position with the Brownsville school district.
Being in a position to tout the achievements of the school district is an issue that’s extremely important for Temple’s future in regard to economic development ef-forts, said Bill Jones III, Temple mayor and ow-ner of Materials Trans-portation Company.
“The issue of having a school district that has had (three) superintendents in four years is a fact we’ll have to deal with,” he said. “It’s a lot of change that the community has to contend with, and it doesn’t re- flect well on the school district or the community as a whole.”
The Temple school district has had many accomplishments, and its programs are superior to any of the school districts in Central Texas, he said.
“We have a great school district and it’s unfortunate that we have this turmoil in our leadership,” Jones said. “We look to our school district - the administration and the trustees - to solve this problem.”
While Temple residents may give input to the elected representatives, he said, it’s the school board member’s job and responsibility to select the superintendent.
“We have to put our faith and confidence in the fact that they will go through the process and select the best candidate for that position, as they did when they selected Mr. Gonzalez,” Jones said.
The community has to trust the process, he said.
Quality of life issues are important to individuals when determining where to live, with schools being a pivotal element in the decision process.
Scott and White is Temple’s largest employer and has about 1,500 new hires for its Temple area operations each year, according to Dr. Alfred Knight, Scott and White president and CEO. Senior executives and physicians hired each year to work locally for Scott and White number 50 to 75.
The school system is one of the major components looked at by Scott and White’s professional couples when deciding where to buy a home and raise their families, Knight said.
“The professional environment for their work we can take care of, (but) the environment for the family is absolutely critical,” he said.
Two elements Knight said he has promoted for years in Temple are a strong school system and a community that offers an attractive living environment.
Temple has made positive strides in those areas, he said, but the focus on improvements need to continue.
“The challenge we have is to get a good superintendent that the community will get behind,” Knight said. “The business community is very eager to be supportive of that initiative, as it has been for the last two superintendents.”
The person selected to lead the school district, he said, has to have the clout to be respected in the community, but also have the expertise and experience to be respected within the school system.
“Those kind of combinations are hard to find, but what we have to offer here is a tremendous opportunity,” Knight said. “The business community is going to be very supportive to get the best candidate.”
A community is only as strong as its educational system, said David Blackburn, Temple city manager.
Current and future economies really depend on education as the critical component in the overall formula that defines the health and quality in any community, and ours is no different, Blackburn said.
“From our primary and secondary schools to our colleges to our professional schools, they all play a major role in economic development,” he said.
“The education of our children is vital to everything that we do … all the children, not just the gifted,” said Lee Peterson, president of the Temple Economic Development Corporation.
The community, he said, has to figure out how to engage the young people who have dropped outso they can become a part of the workforce and part of our society.
Workforce is the most important element in attracting new business to any community and who ever makes up that workforce needs to be educated, Peterson said. Companies are looking for people who can read, spell, take accurate measurements … there are numerous requirements the job seeker has to have mastered, Peterson said.
“The only way manufacturers in the United States have been able to keep up is through technology and mechanization,” he said. “Instead of somebody welding something together they may instead run a machine that welds something. They have to be able to understand computers.”
jgibbs@temple-telegram.com
