Naseer Khan: Candidate Profile

Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioKey IssuesQA Bio City: AddisonWebsite: http://about.me/naseerkhanOffice sought: Addison District 4 School Board (4-year Terms)Age: 45Family: Married, three childrenOccupation: Consultant - Engineering/ManufacturingEducation: Bachelor of Science - Aeronautical Engineering, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, 1989 (cum laude)Civic involvement: Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society Member Helping Hand for Relief and Development Volunteer Feed My Starving Children VolunteerElected offices held: Candidate did not respond.Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: NoCandidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 To focus further attention on achieving better academic performance based on metrics that have been adopted in the current strategic plan.Key Issue 2 To prioritize making investments in technologies and teaching methods that prepare students for the next stage in education and eventually the real world they will emerge into tomorrow.Key Issue 3 To partner with and leverage all available federal, state and other resources to provide the best education to special needs children ensuring satisfactory outcomes for their long-term well-being.Questions Answers What do you think about the shift to the common core standards? How big a role do you think the board of education should play in setting the curriculum for students and what ideas do you have for changes to the current curriculum?I believe the common core standards prepare students for the world they will encounter when they complete education. The continual assessment process is critical, and the board should review results and be prepared to make changes based on those findings, even if those changes have to be significant and painful.How satisfied are you that your district is preparing students for the next stage in their lives, whether it be from elementary into high school or high school into college or full-time employment? What changes, if any, do you think need to be made?I think ASD4 has done well thus far but there is room for improvement in preparing students for further education. The current strategic plan put in by the board is an excellent step forward, and continued commitment from all board members, new and old, is required to push ahead these improvements.What budget issues will your district have to confront and what measures do you support to address them? If you believe cuts are necessary, what programs and expenses should be reduced or eliminated? On the income side, do you support any tax increases?ASD4 has come through hard times already and had to make some tough choices, some too deep and some not popular. I believe the budgetary situation is better today but still intelligent choices have to be made continually. While I would be initially against tax increases, priority should be on programs most aligned to education over extra-curricular projects.As contract talks come up with various school employee groups, do you believe the district should ask for concessions from its employees, expect employee costs to stay about the same as they are now or provide increases in pay or benefits?Contract negotiation are dependent on a great degree of trust between the board, the employees, and the district citizens. While being good stewards of the district budgets, the board should also keep the long-term welfare of the employees in mind. However, that requires that employees also understand current limitations as they choose their demands. The current economic climate does not allow much increases, but if situation improves back to a robust economy, then it seems reasonable to allow for increases as possible.If your district had a superintendent or other administrator nearing retirement, would you support a substantial increase in his or her pay to help boost pension benefits? Why or why not?I believe pension benefits of educators and administrators are very attractive currently. I would be strongly against any artificial changes to any individual's pay to game the system and allow for higher benefits. This would only jeopardize continued financial health of the system in the real long-term.