Thomas Dunn
Non-Partisan | Missouri
Candidate Profile
Conservative (Conditional)
BIOGRAPHY
Name
Thomas Dunn
Party
Non-Partisan
Election Year
2023
Election
School Board
Race
Rockwood School District Board of Education – At Large
Incumbent
No
Links
EDUCATION
Bradley University, Peoria, B.S., 1992
WORK & MILITARY
Candidate did not provide
AFFILIATIONS
EHS Aquatics Booster Club, Founder, Rockwood Swim Club
POLITICAL OFFICES HELD
Rockwood School District - Board of Education Director, 2019-2022
POLITICAL OFFICES SOUGHT
Candidate did not provide
Race
SELECTED FINANCIAL SOURCE DOCUMENTS
Statement of Committee Organization (scanned 3/28/2023)
OTHER INFORMATION
QUESTIONNAIRE
RIGHT TO LIFE
Abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, should be a resource for instruction or services in the school.
Strongly Disagree
Human life begins at conception and deserves legal protection at every stage until natural death.
Choose not to answer
This question does not pertain to the role or function of a School Board
ECONOMY
Free enterprise and the right to private property are essential elements of a productive economic system.
Strongly Agree
School districts should be able to use taxpayer money for lobbying the state legislature.
Strongly Disagree
What is your position on government funding of public education from Pre-K through college?
Public education is essential to the growth of society. State and local taxes are already used in the funding of public education, however, the Federal government should only assist minimally through Title or Grant offerings.
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
At school, students should be able to speak freely and civilly about matters of conscience and faith, including Christianity.
Agree
School districts should not discriminate against individuals, organizations or small businesses because of their belief that marriage is only a union of one man and one woman.
Agree
EDUCATION
What is the function of the local school board?
The role of the Board is primarily the business arm of the District. The Board has one employee and does not micromanage the Administration. The Board asks questions, creates policies, and controls how money is spent (once again, not micromanage but approve contracts, legal issues, and some expenditures). The Board also is part of contract negotiations for all personnel that have contracts (teachers, nurses, etc). The Board should be free of outside influences and non-partisan. The Board listens to the concerns of the community (teachers, parents, students, taxpayers) and follows up with administration (if warranted). A Board member should also attend schools and school programs throughout the District (as time permits) to better understand the Strengths and Weaknesses as well as needs first hand. The Board also ensures that the District maintains a path of educational excellence for both our students and teachers.
Who should have the authority to set curriculum and determine resources used in those curricula?
The school district, teachers, and parents should be working together on what is most important: educating the children. Curriculum committees are formed by Administration and invited representative parents to decide what classes and material will be taught. I believe that successful curriculum development is a partnership between all stakeholders, including parents. Parents should be able to access materials that are put in front of students, but we should be hiring top educators and administrators who have the ultimate responsibility to prepare lesson plans that adhere to agreed upon curriculum.
When should parents be restricted from speaking in school board meetings?
During "closed" sessions and Award nights
Please list in order the following priorities in relation to the role of a K-12 public school (omitting any that do not apply): Mathematics, Information Technology, Science, Political Activism, Personal Finances, Gender Identity, Physical Fitness, American History, Critical Race Theory, Language Arts, Art & Music, Vocational Learning, Sexuality, Foreign Language, Social Emotional Learning
Science, Mathmatics, Language Arts, American History, Information Technology, Art & Music, Vocational Learning, Physical Fitness, Foreign Language, Personal Finances
Which more closely matches your view of America's founding principles? A) Liberty and equality. B) Slavery and racism.
LIberty & Equality
What does "equity in education" mean to you?
That every student is provided the tools to succeed in the classroom. It is up to the student to use those tools to its fullest potential.
Written parental consent (opt-in) must be obtained before students are taught courses such as Comprehensive Sex Ed (CSE) or Social Emotional Learning (SEL).
Agree
The loss of local control in education is too high a price to pay in exchange for federal dollars.
Agree
Parents are the ultimate authority in their child’s education and should be able to freely pursue whatever educational options they deem best for their child.
Agree
School boards are accountable to parents and taxpayers.
Neutral
Do you believe students should have access to materials that graphically depict and describe sexual acts?
No
All print and digital material available or presented to students should be easily accessible for public review.
Agree
VALUES
Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
I believe in God and Jesus and always strive to be a better person today than yesterday.
I support allowing public high school students to participate in athletic competition based on the gender with which they identify instead of biological sex.
Strongly Disagree
No school official should be involved in the sexual transitioning of a student, including the use of alternative names and pronouns.
Agree
Therapy to help children turn from unwanted same-sex attraction or gender dysphoria should be banned.
Neutral
No healthcare diagnosis or treatment, whether mental, reproductive, or otherwise, should be given to a child without first receiving written consent from the parent.
Strongly Agree
Who is responsible for teaching sexual education to children, and what is the appropriate age when it should be taught?
A collaboration between parents and school districts. Appropriate age is 6th grade (per Missouri State Law)
If you support the teaching of Sex Ed, please answer the following question: Sexual education should include these topics (list all that apply and add your own, if needed) -- Physical and emotional health outcomes; contraceptive methods; consent; abstinence; sexual orientation and gender identity; human anatomy/the reproductive system; abortion methods and side effects; stages of pregnancy and fetal development; sex acts and pleasures of sex
Not in any particular order: Physical and emotional health outcomes, contraceptive methods, consent, abstinence, human anatomy/the reproductive system, stages of pregnancy & fetal development
Judeo-Christian values established a framework of morality that is necessary for our system of limited government.
Agree
ELECTIONS AND VOTING
People should be able to vote without photo identification.
Strongly Disagree
I also disagree with mail-in ballots (unless in Service oversees, away at University, or temporarily living overseas)
ABOUT YOU
Have you ever been convicted of a felony or been penalized in either civil or criminal court for sexual misconduct? If so, please explain.
No
A candidate's personal moral values are relevant when considering a candidacy for elective office.
Agree
When you consider your views on a wide range of issues from economic and social matters to foreign policy and religious liberty, which of the following best describes you overall?
Conservative
Please provide publicly available information, including interviews and media reports, validating your answer to the previous question (other than your website).
I am on record supporting HJR53 (2021)
Is there anything else you would like voters to know about you?
Not at this time. If voters have a question that is not part of this questionnaire, they can contact me.
2ND AMENDMENT
Teachers who are licensed to carry should be allowed to carry guns at school.
Disagree
I believe the School District should hire trained School Resource Officers (who are armed) for each building in the district. Teachers should focus on academics and safe learning environment.
OTHER IMPORTANT ISSUES
Under what circumstances (if any) should schools be allowed to require vaccinations?
The only vaccinations that should be allowed are MMR & Polio. Those are proven to work.
I support mask mandates.
Strongly Disagree
All official open meetings should be live streamed, recorded, and have transcripts available online for public access.
Agree
All votes should be roll call votes and recorded in meeting minutes.
Agree
