"There does not exist anything more precious to a parent or a community than our children," said George Beckelhymer del Valle, candidate for LISD district 4 trustee. "I know this as well as anyone, for I have two small children and I love them more than I ever thought possible. I am completely focused on providing for them every opportunity possible, especially in education. My platform is a logical, simple, and common sense platform: to research, investigate, and implement whatever it takes or is necessary to provide our children with the best schools possible," he said.
"Most of you are parents, and to you I pledge that the care and attention I place on the education and well-being of my family will carry over to all our children," he said.

Briefly provide an overview of biographical data that includes your educational background, work experience, civic affiliations, and family (your spouse's name, the names of your children).
I am a native Laredoan. I am married to Ana Gabriela Sanchez and we have two children, Daniela Ali and Martin Edward. I attended LISD schools including Nixon High School and graduated from Culver Military Academy in Culver, Indiana. I finished my four-year degree from the University of Texas in Austin in 1989. I own and operate three stores in Laredo, L Bufalo Pawn Stores, which I established in 1995. I've been a member of the Citizens Environmental Advisory Committee for three years and have served as its chair for a year.

Assess the state of the district in terms of board leadership and also in terms of accountability to state educational standards.
Assess the performance of this board.
The leadership of the board does not seem particularly well focused. Meetings go on long into the night and some individuals on the board tend to pontificate. Board meeting time should be spent more effectively tending to the business of the district and the children, parents, educators, and para-professionals that it serves.
I believe that new ideas can make leadership exciting and more effective. I offer my perspective as a young parent, a parent who has heard a number of complaints from parents and teachers about non-standardized hiring policies.
As so many believe, I think there is an over-emphasis on standardized testing and on memorizing for testing. We need to concentrate more acutely on the reading aspect for students in the first and second grades. They won't go on to learn without knowing how to read. I'm fully aware of the tie between scores and funding, but I think as a board that we have to work harder and smarter to make reading the foundation for the education of Laredo's school children.
The board has done a decent job in addressing the basic needs of the school district, but I believe that they have fallen short in some areas such as standardizing their hiring, review, and promotion practices for all school staff. Para-professionals and educators can best tell us where things fall short because they live daily with what they need and are not getting. The chronic shortage of qualified teachers reflects a lack of focus and attention recruiting and to providing competitive compensation packages. We need to offer a package that is slightly better than the state average so that we can recruit and keep more quality teachers. This, of course, would be contingent on the availability of funds. The district should, through a full-time grant writer, make a concerted and aggressive effort for educational grants and implement a strict and intelligent budgetary policy.

What experience do you have in public service?
I have served on the Citizens Environmental Advisory Committee for three years in a voluntary commitment to review and write ordinances for the City of Laredo regarding creeks, waterways, and hazardous materials. I have worked side by side with other committee members to help the city establish environmental policy.

What strengths of character would you bring to the process of overseeing the needs of LISD?
I am a successful independent businessman who has survived and grown by clearly understanding the necessity of adhering to a budget and planning for growth. I will bring to the LISD board my ability to focus on the long-term needs of the district. I also bring the tenacity to aggressively pursue those needs in order to provide our children with the best schools possible. I have the ability to prioritize the issues and the discipline to stick to the issues to make the best and most efficient use of our time as board members.
There are no strings attached to my character, and I have no hidden agendas.

What motivates you to seek this position as LISD trustee?
Quite simply, to see that my children and all the children in the Laredo Independent School District receive the highest quality education possible. Let me make myself clear -- my desire to serve on the board of the Laredo Independent School District isn't just about education. It's about bettering the schools and making them fertile and nurturing places where our children want to be and learn. And to achieve this, common sense dictates that the teachers, administrators, para-professionals, and support staff need to be taken care of with solid and fair compensation practices. We need to ensure that they are properly equipped, appreciated, and respected.

Please state what you believe are three of LISD's greatest priorities in best serving the educational needs of its students.
Campus safety is first and foremost. Without addressing security measures and inspecting schools for weapons and drugs, without emergency contingencies for these issues and other issues including terrorist attacks, nothing else can fall into place. Students can't learn and teachers can't teach in an unsafe environment.
Secondly, I would like to see competitive compensation packages for teachers, administrators, para-professionals, and support staff -- competitive with other career choices, so that we can recruit good candidates.
Thirdly, I think more parental involvement in the educational process is a win-win situation. This would open the lines of communication between teachers and parents and students. Children need parental support to excel.