Sub-district 4 is the only seat at Three Rivers College facing a contested election Tuesday, April 5. The candidates are Darren Garrison, the current treasurer and Sub-district 4 representative, and Joyce Rehkop. Their district encompasses the Wayne County area.
Age: 54
Spouse: Lori Garrison
Children: Kyra Garrison (27), Krysten Garrison (21)
Occupation: Circuit Clerk of Wayne County, 1994-present.
Education: associate’s degree in business from Three Rivers College, bachelor’s degree in accounting from Lyon College
Current affiliations: Piedmont Rotary Club, Harvest Baptist Church in Piedmont.
Terms on board: Two
Why are you running for the board?
Number one, I enjoy being on the board. I feel that I try to be a good voice and representative for the voters in my district as well as the students from my district that go there. So I just wanted to continue in that service. I think we’ve got a good administration, and extremely well-working board, and I just wanted to continue to be a part of that.
What characteristics make you a good board member?
I think I’m reasonable. I think I’m calm. I think I’m thoughtful. I don’t make decisions based on raw emotion, I like to think through things. I think (those are) the traits of a good board member — you don’t want somebody that’s just going to fly off the handle and make decisions off the cuff. I think you need to listen to all sides, evaluate positions and make a decision based on that.
What do you hope to accomplish?
I want to accomplish TRC providing a quality education for a competitive price. I want to educate our students, whatever age they may be, traditional or nontraditional, and, hopefully, help them to become a productive member of society in whatever field they decide to go in. I think TRC is the foundation for that student in their career. I guess what I want to accomplish is just putting out a good product, that being the students with a quality education or degree.
Are there any recent actions you agree or disagree with?
I think that as a board, you have to respect obviously everybody’s decisions. You argue or you express those opinions and positions, but I think after the board votes, then the majority position then becomes that of all the board members, in my opinion.
What do you see as the biggest challenges facing the district and how would you address them?
(In) my experience on the board, the funding and budgetary issues are always the biggest challenges each year when we sit down trying to work on the budget. I think we have to continue to try and improve our processes, get better and more efficient at our processes, which hopefully will cut costs.
I think our current administration and board has an extremely conservative budgeting mindset. I think that’s how we budget. So hopefully between budgeting conservatively and try to improve our processes to get more efficient, I think that will help with the funding and the budgetary issues.
Our administration have always looked for funding from grant opportunities, building relationships with local industry and businesses to help partner in workforce training, and things like that. I think building those relationships out in the community could possibly help cut cost in training areas or things like that. So, I think that’s probably our biggest challenges, and that’s basically how I think we should work to fix it.
Age: 62
Children: Augustus Rehkop Turnbeaugh (24)
Occupation: Retired professor in agriculture, Three Rivers College
Education: bachelor’s degree in agriculture, master’s degrees in animal science and education
Current affiliations: Missouri Farm Bureau, Madison County Fair Board
Why are you running for the board?
After teaching in agriculture and forestry at Three Rivers (College) for 26 years, my unique perspective as a teacher and mother allows me to understand the issues Wayne County students experience in pursuing their education.
What characteristics would make you a good board member?
As an educator, I was a very hands on person in teaching my students and helping them accomplish their professional goals. As a board member, I will also be very hands on; not just seen at a once per month meeting. I will want to know what TRC students think and what the board can do to improve their educational experience.
What do you hope to accomplish?
Of course, my primary focus will be the students of Wayne County... This county has issues with accessibility. There is no TRC center open to the public during normal business hours. In addition, the lack of affordable high-speed internet and poor cellular service puts Wayne County students at a disadvantage; and Wayne County students commute as much as 100 miles per round trip to the college so course scheduling needs to address this issue. (These are) just some of the areas I will be focusing on if elected.
Are there any recent actions you disagree with?
I am not going to second guess decisions previously made. My focus will be on future actions and I will approach each in a positive, thoughtful manner.
What do you see as the biggest challenges facing the district, and how would you address them?
In my opinion, with the information I currently have, I see the biggest challenge facing the district is the declining enrollment. The high school population is declining and our sister institutions are competing for the same students. We must do a better job of selling TRC to the school districts, the parents and the students. Another short-term problem is the rising cost of fuel. If a student can’t afford gas, they can’t make it to class. Hopefully, this situation will be temporary, otherwise accommodations are going to have to be made.
Posting a comment requires free registration:
Menu
