Richard Watson, 69, is a former member of Lincoln School Board and is seeking the opportunity to serve on the Board again.
He is challenging the incumbent for the Zone 3 position on Lincoln Board of Education.
He is a graduate of Lincoln High School and a graduate of machinist tech school. Watson served in the U.S Air Force.
A retired farmer, Watson has two grandchildren in Lincoln Consolidated School District. One attends Lincoln High School and the other is at the middle school.
"The quality of their education is important to me," Watson said.
He said the role of a school board member is to work with the rest of the board in order to steer the school in the direction that the community would like it to go. He previously served on Lincoln School Board for nine years.
"There needs to be a good working relationship between the board and the school superintendent," Watson said. "Also, the faculty and community have to feel comfortable coming to the superintendent and board to express their concerns. Keeping the lines of communication is very important."
Watson said Lincoln School District had many accomplishments during his nine years on the School Board. During that time, a new high school was built, a Wellness Center opened, new computers were provided to upper grades and the elementary school was remodeled.
Watson is running for School Board to address two concerns, he said.
One is Lincoln's high teacher turnover rate, and the other is ensuring that graduating seniors and their parents have more access to all types of scholarship information and receive help early enough so that the students and parents can make smart choices.
If elected, he said his goals would include:
1. Minimize the high turnover rate in faculty.
2. Get seniors and their parents involved in the scholarship process earlier.
3. Build an FFA barn and move the greenhouse to the high school campus. The program deserves it.
General News on 09/06/2017