Dr. Ifeanyi Ufondu set to run for Mansfield Independent School District Board of Trustees – Place 3
By Daphne Charles
In May 2019, Mansfield Independent School District in Mansfield, TX will be electing several new school board members. Running for Place 3 is Dr. Ifeanyi Ufondu vs. Randall Canedy. As a lifelong educator from Los Angeles, CA, Dr. Ufondu wants to bring a fresh and innovative perspective to the board and looks forward to building with community and the district. I posed the question to Dr. Ufondu, “What would you say is the most important issue you would like to tackle in the district and sum it up in a few words?” His response was this…
For our students and district staff, we must harness their strengths and challenge their weaknesses. We as board members, mentors, family and educators must align together and discover their brilliance, on the meandering road to their hopes and dreams. In order to do so, STRONG LEADERSHIP is a must!
– Dr. Ifeanyi Ufondu
The United Educators Association of Texas mailed each candidate a platform questionnaire and asked that they answer candidly. Below is Dr. Ufondu’s questionnaire and he asks that you take the time to read and review and remember him at the polls for MISD BOARD OF TRUSTEES PLACE 3. How will you vote?
United Educators Association School Board Candidate Questionnaire
DR. IFEANYI UFONDU, MISD BOARD OF TRUSTEES PLACE 3 CANDIDATE
1. Please provide any personal background information you would like
to share with the employees of Mansfield ISD.
My name is Dr. Ifeanyi Ufondu aka “Dr. U” and I am running for Place 3 of the Mansfield ISD Board of Trustees. My wife Nicole and I, are Los Angeles, CA natives who relocated to Mansfield, TX in 2005 strictly by design. After discovering our eldest son Neiko had been diagnosed with ADD/ADHD, I researched the nation’s top school districts for kids with learning disabilities and discovered Mansfield ISD was cutting edge and ahead of its time… and the rest is history! I am an Educational Psychologist, lifelong Educator, Special Education Advocate and owner of Beautiful Minds Inc.- Advocacy & Special Needs Solutions. I hold a Baccalaureate and Master’s graduate in Educational Psychology from California State University, Long Beach and a Baccalaureate and Master’s graduate in Higher Education with an emphasis in Curriculum Development from Howard University. As a Ph.D. graduate at the University of London Kings College, my dissertation entitled “The Affect of Mitigating Race, Class and Gender on the Academic Success of the Young, Black Male: A Cross Cultural Ethnography” propelled my career into the arena of Special Education, and what better district to operate in than MISD?
As a former middle school English teacher and high school administrator in the Los Angeles Unified School District, which is the second largest district in the nation with over 600,000 students and over 1,000 schools and 200 independent charter schools, I excelled as a professional leader and mentor. I have also been a presenter of more than forty engagements, at national and international venues including Paris, the United Kingdom and Spain, and have been a guest on numerous radio programs. I have authored more than a dozen academic papers on hegemony, special education, minority education, globalization, and race, class, and gender in the U.S. public school system and abroad. I have served as a member of the International Honour Society at CSULB, Howard University, the Universite de Paris- Saint Denis, and the University of London’s King College.
2. What qualifications do you have that would make you an effective
trustee?
As a successful business owner of Beautiful Minds Inc. – Advocacy & Special Needs Solutions, a firm that represents “AT-RISK” students, parents, and economically disadvantaged communities in accessing the educational system and its resources in order to meet the academic and social needs of individuals with learning disabilities and behavioral disorders.
For the past seventeen years, I have employed over thirty-three employees, and handled a budget exceeding 5 million dollars annually. I am court-qualified as an expert in transition planning, vocational assessments, I.Q. assessments relevant to urban and At-Risk students in education, special education, and school evaluation, as well as other related areas. As the principal of Beautiful Minds Inc.- Advocacy & Special Needs Solutions, I am called upon by school administrators, attorneys and individuals from around the country to represent them. I also provide consultation to school administrators on issues such as special education, behavior management and over-representation of minorities in special education, as well as, to attorneys in cases involving schools and the education of children with learning and developmental disabilities.
3. Before running for the school board, how have you been involved in
the district?
First, as a parent of two children who have attended and graduated from Carol Holt Elementary, Cross Timbers Intermediate, T.A. Howard Middle School, Legacy and Summit H.S. respectively. My wife Nicole and I currently have our youngest son, Jackson, who is a Gifted & Talented student attending Carol Holt Elementary.
Secondly, as a former member of the Cross Timbers Intermediate PTA, where my role and duties where to actively participate in our students daily scholastic and extra-curricular activities on campus.
Finally, as an Educational Psychologist and Special Needs Advocate, I have represented both students and parents of children with developmental and behavioral disorders in cooperation with MISD ARD/IEP committees in order to attain special financial and scholastic accommodations for students and families in need.
4. As a board member, what would you see as the board’s role in
providing competitive salaries and benefits for its employees?
As a board member, I strongly assert that our role collectively is to ensure that district is transparent, responsive to the values, beliefs and priorities of our community, and that we assiduously seek competitive salaries and benefits in order to retain and sustain the talent we employ. I would like to research other successful, comparable districts and ascertain what they have done to provide competitive salary and benefits packages, while pushing our teachers and administrators to strive for greater academic and social success in their schools. As a former teacher and administrator, I know how exciting and rewarding it can be to provide an excellent education and mentorship to students, and most times at the expense of your own family and personal self. I know what it feels like to go above and beyond, professionally, mentally, physically, emotionally and financially for our students, and not feel appreciated by students, staff and parents. I know first hand, that teaching is the most over-worked and underpaid profession, and their responsibility is to shape the minds of our future, all while sacrificing their all… not for monetary profit, rather personal, selfless gain. It is our duty as board members to continuously to support our district employees and show gratitude for their significance.
5. What three issues do you think are the most important facing MISD?
Please explain.
Transparency: The number one issue facing the school board, most school boards, throughout the country is Transparency. As a MISD parent myself, I sense there is no pellucidity in how the board operates, what their goals are, how tax money is being spent within the district, what special committees get funded versus others, etc. As a former teacher, I would always question what side the district boards sat on, or if they actually fought for the concerns of those on the front line. I believe a special, informal monthly dialogue between, not only teachers, administrators, and board members, but also open the meeting up to other district employees such as maintenance, janitorial, athletic, and para-professionals and select student leaders to join in on the discussion.
Technology: In the growing age of technology and social media, as a board, it is our duty to stay ahead of the curve. As we rapidly continue to move away from using pencils and textbooks to Ipads and Smartboards, we must be financially and physically prepared to tackle the continuously changing technology our students and staff need to compete. We must be able to staff IT personnel who can install, monitor and repair said technology. We must not only listen to the needs of our staff, but also adhere to the advice of student leaders on what is technologically new and fresh. I also assert that the district should look into investing in a more advance Wi-Fi system that operates at a faster speed and greater reach with less buffering breaks in active time in order for our students to continue to be academically efficient.
Continued Growth: It is simple! The greater our district success the more our reputation grows. That means more families will want to come and relocate from throughout the state and beyond… just as Nicole and I did in 2005. With approximately 6,000 people moving to Mansfield every year, at least 1/3 will be students in MISD. We have to be prepared to handle the growth and it will be our proven leadership that determines how successful we remain.
6. Please discuss any other issue you feel is relevant to your campaign
for the MISD School Board.
As an Educational Psychologist and Special Needs Advocate, I would like to be the voice of the overlooked parent(s) of a Special Needs child(ren). I would like to shed a light on the unfortunate invisibility that some of our Special Needs students face and make available resources and support they may not know was previously and currently available to them and their families. I would like to be their hope and their difference on this board. Thank you.
