‘It’s vital that we have the perspective of parents of currents’: Dr. Taylor Tidmore shares vision if elected to AISD School Board
BIG COUNTRY, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) — In this week’s Big Country Politics, Dr. Taylor Tidmore, a candidate for Place 1 on the Abilene Independent School District’s school board, discusses his experience in the district and shares his plans if elected.
Tidmore was born and raised in Amarillo, Texas, and moved to Abilene in 1995 to attend Abilene Christian Univerity.
“That’s where I met my wife Heather. She was raised in Abilene. She’s a product of AISD. She went to Taylor, Lincoln, and Abilene High. After college, we got married. We spent four years in Dallas doing medical school there. Then, we spent five years at the University of Missouri, where I completed my otolaryngology residency,” Tidmore shared. “We moved back to Abilene in 2008. We’ve been happy to call Abilene home since that time, and I’ve been practicing medicine here since 2008. We have four kids. Our oldest daughter is a sophomore at the University of Oklahoma. We have two sons who are currently a freshman and a junior at Abilene High. Our youngest daughter is a sixth grader at Craig Middle School, so we’ve had kids in the district for 14-plus years. We’re going to continue to have kids in the district while our youngest graduates in 2030.”
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Tidmore specializes in Otolaryngology, a medical specialty focused on the diagnosis and treatment of disorders of the ears, nose, and throat, at Hendrick Health.
He shared that he has a very positive view of AISD, watching his kids grow through their time in the district and beyond.
“I have a really positive view of the education experience at AISD. While there’s always room for improvement, I felt like AISD often gets a bad rap a little bit, kind of about the experience they offer. I know my oldest daughter was very well prepared at Abilene High. She’s in her second year at OU, and she’s thriving academically and socially. The district really prepared her well,” Tidmore said.
He added that while the district may have an image issue from time to time, he believes AISD offers the best education in the area.
“I think the district, at times, has a little bit of an image problem. I think sometimes the perception of the district by some in our community is inaccurate. I believe AISD offers the best educational opportunity in our area. I don’t think any of the other districts in our area can compete with the number of dual credit honors classes and AP courses that our schools offer, I don’t think any of the other districts can offer or have facilities like The Lift or can offer experiences like the Holland Medical High School or the McMurry fifth grade magnet program,” Tidmore said. “There’s always room for improvement, but as I’ve been meeting with administrators and teachers within the district over the last few weeks, I’m just really impressed by their expertise, their passion for teaching, their love for kids. My own kids have had a really great experience within the district overall, and I’m just really thankful for the teachers and administrators that we’ve gotten to interact with over the last 14 years.”
Tidmore is running against incumbent Derek Hood and candidate Aileen Bunting for place 1. He shared that he is seeking to continue his involvement in AISD and has been very active in the community.
“We’ve been involved at the Thomas Elementary PTO, and the Craig Middle School PTO and are currently really involved with the Abilene High Band Booster program. It’s been a really fun thing to be a part of. We’ve attended hundreds of meet-the-teacher events and back-to-school nights, band events, choir concerts, and sporting events. For me, serving on the school board is just sort of a continuation of that involvement that I felt like we’ve been doing already for the last 14 years, and then just sort of view it as my attempt to kind of get back to a district that’s been really good to my family and my kids.,” Tidmore shared. “I’m not running with some huge agenda; I don’t have a list of 10 things that I have issues with within the district that I’m going to go and address. But I do feel like parent involvement is really key to the district’s success and that involvement needs to start at the level of the board. I think we really need the perspective of current parents represented on the board at this time. We’ve had kids in the district for the last 14 years; we’re going to be there for another six-plus years; I just really felt like the time was right for me to run.”
Like other candidates, he emphasized that parental involvement is important at the board level.
“I really appreciate our current school board’s service and wisdom. It does concern me a little bit that no one on the board currently has students in the district. I think the environment our kids go to school in is much different than it was four or five years ago, pre-COVID, much less 10 years ago,” Tidmore said. “I feel it’s really important to have the perspective of some current parents of current students on the board. Parent involvement is so key to the success of the district. I want a district that works well for students who thrive in a traditional classroom setting. I want those kids to continue to be pushed to excel. But I want a district that also works well for students who maybe struggle a little bit more in that classic classroom setting so that those kids have the opportunity to excel as well. And I just really want to ensure that AISD is a district where every student has a chance to succeed.”
Tidmore believes that education is facing several challenges, including behavior, absenteeism, and test scores. One of the main concerns he has heard from administrators and parents is teacher morale.
“There are a lot of challenges right now in public education, whether that’s absenteeism, behavior, or low test scores. But I think one thing that was a little surprising to me that I keep hearing over and over again is teacher morale. Teacher morale within the district has not been great in the last few years. It seems maybe in the last few years that, communication, collaboration, and sort of asking questions within the district have not really been encouraged; I think there’s always been a little bit of a sense of fear to question practices or policies that are put into place,” Tidmore shared. “I hope that as the current board has the opportunity to hire a new superintendent, they’re going to make it a priority to find a superintendent who really values open communication and collaboration with our teachers. I think, like most districts in the state, AISD is facing a lot of challenges right now. I think it’s going to take open communication with teachers and some creative problem-solving to really overcome those challenges. I really hope to find a new superintendent who’s willing to make those connections and to make communicating with teachers a priority; I think that’s going to be really important.”
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Abilene ISD is one of 22 districts in Texas that participate in the System of Great Schools program. This program aims to understand performance issues and help improve the district from the outside.
“I’ve had a lot of experience as a parent in the district. I will admit that education is not my area of expertise, so I’ve been trying to have a lot of conversations with the people within the district over the last few weeks; one of the people I’ve had the chance to talk to is a lady by the name of Karen Munez. She’s a long-tenure district employee, but she’s currently in charge of a System of Great Schools program at AISD. While so much of our school’s resources and funding is dictated by the state, I think it’s really important for the district to find creative ways, like the System of Great Schools, to make sure our students continue to have just an improved educational opportunity available to them,” Tidmore expressed.
School vouchers have become a talking point in Texas. Tidmore shared that while setting politics aside; he believes it could be determinantal for schools like AISD.
“The latest report I saw said that the state would spend $2 billion in the first year of the program. In a state where we’re 45th in per-student spending and our 45th. Per student spending in the country, where our teachers make on average, six to $8,000, less than the national average, I would much rather see that money be pulled into those areas, you know, and rather than pulling money from low-performing schools and encouraging people to leave those schools, let’s pour that money into those schools,” Tidmore said. “In so many of our districts, students are low-income. So even if they get a $10,000 voucher, they’re probably still not going to be able to afford to go to a private school. Even if they come up with the funds, there’s no guarantee that a private school is going to offer them enrollment. I have a real fear that vouchers would be bad for AISD and for a lot of our surrounding rural communities.”
Tidmore is running against incumbent Derek Hood and candidate Aileen Bunting for place 1. This is his message to the Abilene community:
“I think parent involvement is key to the success of our district and that involvement needs to start at the level of the board. While I appreciate our current board service, I think it’s vital that we have the perspective of parents of current students represented on the board as well. My wife and I, we love AISD. We love public schools. We have the deepest respect for our teachers and administrators and I want to do whatever I can to make them feel supported. I want to make sure our teachers and our students have the resources and support to succeed and perform at the highest level. A strong Abilene needs a strong AISD. I’m passionate about Abilene, about AISD, about our students, and our teachers, and I’m going to work hard to listen to ask questions and do what I can to make sure that Abilene and AISD continue to improve.”
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