By NORMA PUCKETTI am a retired teacher who often substitutes in the schools, often at Pinon. I live in the Pinon district, and am a strong supporter of Jim Hall for School Board. I have both professional and personal knowledge of his skills and contributions.
I was still teaching when he was first on the Board and watched as he guided the Board through very contentious discussions about the Sex Education Policy. Whether as board president or member, his professional experience in group facilitation and building consensus greatly assists Board decision making. He always demonstrated his understanding of education policy as well as his awareness of classroom realities (credit his wife Janet, an experienced teacher for much of this).
Second, the Board needs a person with his management experience—he was a contemporaneous Division Leader at LANL with my husband and was respected for his skills, the loyalty of his people, and his hard work. Since then he has been a cabinet member in the State of New Mexico, a business owner, and a member of Boards such as the Medical Center Advisory Board, important skills on a Board responsible for an organization with 700 employees, a $35 million operating budget, and greatly dependent on State policy and politics.
It would be a serious mistake to not vote for Jim Hall Feb. 7. I am voting for him and encourage others who care about the long-term health of our schools to do so as well.
