By James Rincon

Pflag Reporter

Board of Trustees Place 3 candidate Rob Reyes serves as a board member for the Pflugerville Education Foundation, an organization that helps fund PISD programs by reaching out to private industry.

Working with the school district, Reyes has raised support for teacher grants, the Teacher of the Year program, and a program called Kick Start.

“Kick Start motivates students to help them in P.E., but also teaches them karate and self-discipline,” Reyes said.

Reyes earned his bachelor’s degree at the University of Texas – San Antonio before beginning his career in the architectural engineering and construction industry.

Currently he works for a consulting firm that helps public-sector business owners manage construction programs to keep projects on time, on budget and meeting specifications.

He said his interest in the school board position was sparked when a city councilman encouraged him to run.

“I was asked to consider running for the trustee Place 3 position by Victor [Gonzales], who’s a mentor, City Councilman and community leader in our city. He asked me to consider running, and I thought about it, and I consider this a continuation of my community involvement with the district,” Reyes said.

Reyes also serves on the parish council at St. Elizabeth of the Hungry Catholic church and on the Wonders and Worries Ball Committee, which serves children with terminally ill parents through a father-daughter dance.

If elected to the PISD board, Reyes said he would strive to be budget-conscious and would like to ensure that tax dollars are spent in a way that most benefit students.

“I’m concerned that we spend our money in a responsible way on programs within the district that are focused on research-based learning curriculum for classrooms. I would like to look to the private sector and the Education Foundation to fund programs that are not research-based that have value and are necessary for our district – but not necessarily spend our tax dollars on those supplementary but needed programs.

Reyes’ wife is a behavior specialist in the district, and they have a daughter in first-grade and a son who will be in kindergarten next year.

“I have many ties to the district and I am interested in their continued success,” Reyes said. “We recently received services for my son through the special education department’s preschool early childhood development program. He had a speech impediment. He was stuttering quite a bit and we were very concerned. They came out to his preschool and worked with him and I’m happy to say that he does not stutter anymore, and he’s a product of successful early intervention. I have tremendous gratitude for the district for having that program.”

Reyes said one asset he would bring to the board is a keen political awareness.

“I’m interested in responsible spending of our tax dollars, and also aligning the district to receive federal funding,” he said. “Currently the district’s budget receives 3.5 percent of its budget from federal funding and there are some great programs that the Presidential administration is looking at funding. One of them is Rise to the Top – a program that focuses on math and science and college preparedness.”

Reyes said the strength of the board has been its vision and outlook, and thinks the programs in place are on target, from early childhood development to college readiness and preparedness. “Any criticism I would have would be to communicate those success stories to the public. I’d like to enhance communication between the city and the public to make them aware of the great things that are happening and receive their input,” he said “In a nutshell I guess you could say I’m committed to the quality education of young people in our district as well as responsible stewardship of our tax dollars.”

For more information on the Education Foundation visit pflugervilleisd.net/educationfoundation

“We’re having a Gala on April the 20th and the community of Pflugerville is invited to attend. It’s a great way to learn about what’s happening in the district and hear the success stories of the students and teachers,” Reyes said.

jrincon@pflugervillepflag.com