rrspin.com submitted the following questions for all the candidates:

Residence

706 Holly Road, Roanoke Rapids, NC 27870

Occupation

Owner-Operator Americap Co. Inc.

Children

Three children

Education

Graduate of NC State with a degree in Economics 1992

Civic, church or other community organizations of which you are involved

Member of Rosemary United Methodist Church

Why are running; why do you believe you are qualified to run; what difference can you make or in the case of an incumbent candidate, what difference have you made?

I am running because I believe that I can make a difference.

I have experience on the RRGSD board of education which gives me an understanding of how school systems work together with the county commission.

In addition, I manage a business that employs roughly 50 people.

I am always willing to take on complex issues and deal with them in a timely manner.

I have made a difference in protecting the taxpayers of the county by making sure that we spend their money wisely.

I think the biggest difference that I have made is to get staff to focus on keeping county government as small and as efficient as possible.

Would you support renovations for Weldon High School or do you support construction of a new school? Please explain your reasons on why or why not?

Weldon City Schools has commissioned a study for a recommendation for renovations and I think it is important to see what the architect recommends.

With the small number of students in Weldon High School, I do not believe we can build a new school.

I think renovating the school is the best solution.

Over the past year or so, commissioners and funding of education, particularly in the county school system, have come under fire. Do you believe schools are being adequately funded? Why are or why not? What do we have to do to create top-tier school systems in Halifax County?

The county is responsible for funding school facilities and maintenance of those facilities.

It is the state’s responsibility to fund operations and instruction.

There is overlap where the state has tried to help the county with the overwhelming funding needs with a good example being the lottery funds that are used for facilities.

The county also gives all three school systems an equal allotment on a per student basis using the DPI’s expected ADM number.

I believe all schools would love to have more money but I believe we are funding at a level that we can afford.

As has been stated on multiple occasions, the County Commissioners have zero say in how the schools are operated, that is the role of the school board.

I believe that Halifax County schools are on the correct path.

They have hired a top-tier Superintendent and he is making a difference with bold ideas that are helping and will ultimately make a big difference.

For all school systems to be successful we will need a culture change that supports the student in the home as much as they are supported in the classroom.

We have to get families involved, so I do believe that parental coordinators are incredibly important.

Through my own children I have learned the importance of very good guidance counselors and I think more attention in this area will help.

Critics and candidates that commonly blame the County Commission for the state of education in our schools would be well advised to spend some of their time with communities encouraging family structure and involvement with education in the home.

Their voice and influence would be very effective if they would focus on the correct problem.

What is the role of county commissioners in recruiting economic development? What needs to be done to strike a balance between industrial, commercial and retail development in Halifax County?

Economic development is an important role of the county commission.

Industrial development will drive retail development because people will have jobs and money in their pocket.

Halifax County needs industrial development badly and we have worked very hard to bring it to the county.

We have successfully partnered with the State and Federal government in obtaining grants to drive job growth.

In addition we have partnered with HCC to train and retrain individuals to match the needs and skills that companies need.

We have done a better job with our contracts with potential projects in assuring that if any county money is appropriated we are protected that the company will fulfill their obligations or be responsible for the money that we have dedicated to the project.

As everyone knows, it is very competitive attracting companies to the area.

We are focused on going after companies that fit our area, and not waste time on companies that do not fit our labor pool or current infrastructure.

Do you have any personal financial issues which might make the public perceive you would not be a good steward of the county’s money — foreclosures, liens, bankruptcy filings, things of that nature? If so how do you convince the public they can trust you with taxpayer money?

I am very thankful that I do not have financial problems. Anyone that knows me will tell you that I live a pretty conservative life.

It appears there is a new push to put school merger back on the table for discussion. What are your thoughts on school merger either pro or con? Please elaborate on your beliefs on the matter.

I am very much against school merger! It is not the answer for the education situation in Halifax County.

Please read the piece that I wrote four years ago to understand the cost of Merger in Halifax County.

It would lead to a huge tax increase.

Understand that the numbers will change because the variables have changed a bit, but the results will be the same.

There is a push in the state to break up large districts.

What are some other issues you believe need to be addressed in Halifax County and how would you go about addressing them?

There are many difficult situations in Halifax County.

One of the biggest problems is providing quality water to the outer limits of the county.

We have tried to investigate a new water plant, as well as other infrastructure to address the problem.

In addition, we have many facility needs in our schools.

We just finished having group meetings with all three school districts to better understand the needs and the cost.

Our tax rate is too high and can be addressed by controlling spending and giving tax back to the citizens as we retire debt service. I have pushed hard for that to happen.

We can also reduce that burden by building the tax base and creating retail sales so we receive our portion of the sales tax back from the state in greater amounts.