In general, school boards are charged with the responsibility of managing all aspects of local public schools, from hiring superintendents to budgetary issues.

Because of a rule change in 2022, voters may only vote for the school board seat in their district and the at-large seat.

The local school board governs over Wichita Unified School District 259, which serves close to 50,000 students. There are three seats on the school board up for election: District 3, District 4 and an at-large seat, meaning the member can be from any district.

Five out of six responded to The Sunflower. Here are the candidates running for a seat.

Why are you running for your position? 

In reflecting on the current and potential makeup of the Wichita School Board, we must ask ourselves the following. Do our students, school employees, and families see themselves in our school board? Do we feel listened to and supported by our school board? Do our school board members have a genuine understanding of, appreciation for, and willingness to learn the lived experiences and perspectives of the people our school district serves? After asking myself those questions, and after reflecting on the uplifting words of encouragement by my late mother, mentors and mentees on serving my community, I decided to run for District 3 of the USD 259 Board of Education. 

What are your main priorities? 

My main priorities are to (1) ensure student success and school discipline; (2) improve family and community engagement; and (3) strengthen and protect our public schools. 

What do you hope to plan to address those issues? 

I have a bottom-up approach to leadership. It is vital I build meaningful relationships with, defer to rather than dictate, and to recognize and return voice to people who are not in positions of power and authority. I strive for the diverse stakeholders we serve to truly be able to shape decisions, voice concerns, and set priorities for our school district. 

What are your qualifications for your position? 

I am the only District 3 candidate who attended and graduated from Wichita Public Schools. I am the only District 3 candidate whose family is still attending or graduated from Wichita Public Schools. I am the only District 3 candidate who has actually mentored USD 259 students and volunteered in our schools. And I am the only District 3 candidate who has experience working in an educational setting. It should be a red flag when we have individuals running for the Wichita School Board when they have no connection to the people, schools, and communities they’re supposed to serve. 

Why should college students vote for you? 

If I am elected to the Wichita school board, I would be the youngest member of the Wichita school board in its entire history and one of the youngest elected officials in our state. As a student myself, it is not lost on me the importance of mobilizing young adults to vote, to serve their communities, and to run for public office. I could imagine most elected officials are only thinking of the next few years: I’m thinking of the next few decades. The decisions I make, the policies I push for, are with the bigger picture, the long-term future, of our current and future generations in mind. 

What do you think the school board is currently doing right? What would you like to improve? 

I appreciate their growing emphasis on career and technical education (CTE). 

To pick one thing I have not discussed elsewhere, while the school board made the right choice in updating their cell phone policy (personal electronic devices are a major distraction to learning), we (and our society in general) remain ill-prepared in dealing with problematic technology use, the exploitative nature of Big Tech, and the overreliance of digital technology in school curriculum. 

What plans do you have to ensure student and staff safety in schools? 

Too often, we apply band-aid fixes in trying to ensure safety. We have to think of safety more comprehensively in terms of physical safety (environmental design: natural access control and natural surveillance), procedural safety (school policies/procedures in monitoring student behavior and enforcing school discipline), and psychological safety (improving mental health and well-being, improving conflict resolution and coping skills, following up with students and school employees who have been harmed). It is important that our administrators (both building-level and district-level) are a visible presence in our schools and actually hold students accountable for when they violate the student code of conduct. I also support improved access to school-based behavioral health services; more widespread implementation of evidence-based mental health promotion, substance use prevention, and violence prevention programs (including at home and in the community); and more high-quality alternative educational programs and settings. And at a broader level, we must consider how economic inequality and deprivation contribute to violence and crime. 

How would you work to address students’ mental health? 

As a high school student, I started ICTeens in Mind, a youth-led mental health advocacy coalition. We organized mental health awareness campaigns across the school district and lobbied school district officials, community leaders, and elected officials to champion school-based mental health services. After high school, I was recruited by Safe Streets Wichita to help USD 259 students implement projects that promoted mental health and well-being and addressed problematic substance use. In college, I did research on primary care-behavioral health integration for children and adolescents. And as a graduate student, I helped conduct a statewide evaluation of school-based mental health services and am conducting a statewide evaluation of programs and services for drug-endangered children. I am uniquely qualified to ensure our school district more intentionally and effectively addresses the youth mental health crisis. And we cannot address the youth mental health crisis without also addressing the mental health issues our school employees and families are experiencing. 

There is currently a teacher shortage in Kansas. How would you go about addressing that? 

To address not just the teacher shortage but classified staff shortage, we need living wages and competitive pay/benefits. We need more sustainable, manageable workloads (including smaller class sizes, adequate planning time, and reduced take-home work). Our school employees must be treated with respect and valued as professionals (instead of being villainized and exploited). They must have meaningful, relevant professional development opportunities and the time to actually implement what they’ve learned. We must reduce the red tape and bureaucracy that undermines their ability to fulfill their main duties. We need to ensure that our school board, district leadership, and building leadership are actively responsive to and supportive/empowering of all school employees. Advocacy priorities I have at a state level for this question include paying student teachers; making it easier for retired educators to be substitute teachers; making it easier for paraprofessionals and substitute teachers to be teachers (while also recognizing the importance of recruitment/retention of high-quality school employees); sales tax holidays for back-to-school shopping and classroom supply tax credits; fully funding public education (including special education); and affordable housing programs/incentives for school employees. 

What curriculum changes would you like to implement? 

Our curriculum changes must ensure we achieve our desired outcomes of improving students’ critical thinking skills, college/career readiness skills, and life skills. I want a curriculum that prioritizes active learning and applied learning. And I want a curriculum that stimulates students’ intellectual curiosity. It’s one thing for students to regurgitate information and for teachers to teach to the test. It’s another thing for students to teach others what they’ve learned; to make connections between what they learn in one class with another class; and to practice and continually refine their knowledge outside of the classroom. Whether through internships/practicums/apprenticeships, service-learning projects, or research and entrepreneurship opportunities, I want our school district to have the unique classes and real-world educational experiences that no other school district in our region nor private/parochial school has. On another note, I oppose censorship, book bans, and the micromanagement of our libraries and classrooms. 

What are concerns that you think should be addressed that occurred after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic?

The issues we’re seeing in our schools have always been there. The challenges we experience in our schools are a reflection of the systemic issues affecting our families, communities, and our society. So many of our students live in poverty. So many of our students are in foster care, live in single-parent homes, or have both parents not home most of the time because they’re working. So many of our students have experienced several, if not multiple, adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). For all of our students, how do we build their resilience? How do we build their sense of hope and community? How can we ensure that with all of the adversities they experience in life, that in our schools, they feel safe, supported, and driven to succeed? 

Why are you running for your position?

Because I care. I care about the well being of the children in our schools. I have heard from many parents who are concerned about their children and I share that concern. They need a safe place to go to school where they can get a solid foundation based on truth and high moral standards. As they become adults they will decide how our country moves forward. We want all of them to be well prepared to launch into a career or college of their choice.

Too many parents feel compelled to pull their kids out of the public school system and home school them or place them in private schools. We’ve got to resolve the reason for this attrition or the public school system will continue lose its marketability.

What are your main priorities? What do you hope to plan to address those issues?

My main priorities are to get student assessment test scores increased, decrease student student  behavioral issues, and be a voice for parents.

Working with parents I want to be their voice on the school board. I believe that as we decrease bad student behaviors which will reduce classroom disruption and thereby increase student test scores on state assessments. Since many parents have concerns I will attend parent teacher conferences, visit parents at their homes, and continue to keep an open dialogue so that I can accurately represent them during school board meetings. At the same time we need to reduce the student behavioral issues of so many students whether its on the bus or in the school. I understand this is nothing new for the USD259 school system but it became worse after the pandemic because many students staying at home decided not to do their homework and some developed bad behaviors and habits. Since then attitudes have improved slightly as many students have gotten back into the routine but teachers tell me that it is still very bad. We need to keep tweaking policies which address behavior, get more teachers on board so as to reduce class size, and make sure we have plenty of staff to assist them with their daily duties. We have some great teachers who are getting stressed out. We need to help them before they quit. Going door to door in my district I have met many teachers who retired early or quit because they weren’t getting respect. Bad behaviors are disruptive to a learning environment. They get in the way of a teachers ability to fulfill their top priority and that is to help students learn. We need a new program in the schools that provides positive reinforcement for good behavior. I feel confident that along with the staff of USD259 we can collaborate to develop a program which will encourage, recognize, and reward the respecting, responsible, and resourceful behavior that everyone appreciates. I believe that the more we shift attention away from bad behavior to good behavior a more positive environment will emerge between students, teachers, and parents which will set the stage for improved test scores. All students are important. We want to enrich the lives of each and every one of them so they can be successful. 

What are your qualifications for your position?

I am a graduate of Kansas State University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering Technology and a Business Degree in Marketing and Management. At 58 years of age and I have lifetime of real world experience working in many fields. I took on my first job when I was in seventh grade delivering newspapers while also helping my father do electrical work and maintenance on rental property. I’ve been a retail store manager, a draftsman, a kitchen designer, and an estimator of building materials for new homes. I’ve been a landlord, a homeowner, a husband, a father, and a grandfather. I’ve served as an usher captain at a church. I’ve built decks, finished out unfinished basements, and I’ve rebuilt car engines and brake systems. I’ve done many things in my life but one of the most important is seeing that my children have become respectful and responsible adults.

Why should college students vote for you?

I represent the candidate with an extensive life of real world experience. I care about the students of USD259. I want to see every one of them succeed. I know they represent the future of our country and we need them to develop into honorable, productive citizens so our country can continue to flourish and be a shining beacon of freedom for the rest of the world. I am ready to serve.

What do you think the school board is currently doing right? What would you like to improve?

I like the new cell phone policy. Understandably, the students don’t like being separated from their cell phones but teachers are finding it to be a blessing because up until its introduction cell phones were a major distraction. The ESSER funds have also been a blessing as they allowed the school board to beef up security, upgrade infrastructure, improve air quality, and introduce new educational programs to help students learn more and learn faster. They brought about the Future Ready Centers for manufacturing and health care for high school students and they reintegrated phonics as a learning system in the elementary schools. These are all great things!

Unfortunately, state assessment test scores are still very low. We desperately need to get them up. With the introduction of the new elementary phonics program by the school board only time will tell if the program will alleviate the issue. It’s looks promising. Learning to read is a critical step in a child’s life. It creates the foundation for them to continue to learn throughout life. Right now 59% of 4th graders are  below grade level, 72% of 10th graders are below grade level, and 70% of all USD259 graduates who want to attend Butler County Community College aren’t ready. They have to take remedial courses before they can even begin 101 courses in the college.

Another very big issue remains and that’s bad student behavior. As I’ve gone door to door in my district it seems like just about every teacher I visited with told me that bad student behavior is a major concern. Just like everyone else, teachers want respect. Many have quit or retired to escape the disrespect. I understand this is a nationwide issue but I feel confident we can take steps to increase morale. I’m suggesting a nice strong morale boosting program.

Student attendance is another major concern and a legitimate reason for low test scores. If we can get morale up, attendance will follow. Once students are attending class and they can hear the lecture teachers will be able to engage with them and test scores should magically increase.

What plans do you have to ensure student and staff safety in schools?

With the realization that it can sometimes take long periods of time for police to respond to calls for help in the schools and the number of calls have been increasing exponentially, we need to strongly consider creating an independent police force just for USD259. 

How would you work to address students’ mental health?

Since this is a public school system and all children are welcome regardless of their status we need to make sure everyone is safe and we meet them at their level of need. Some students will require much more help to elevate their level of education. That’s why we have counselors and others on staff within the administrative services of our school system who can assist these individuals with their specialized needs. We want to be there to support and care for each and every student.

When students act up counselors need to ask why. If we find we are doing something that interferes with their learning process then we may need to fix it. That’s not likely the case but we need to be open minded. After all we are there to serve them.

There is currently a teacher shortage in Kansas. How would you go about addressing that?

Thankfully, the school board recently passed a budget which provides more competitive wages for new teachers beginning next year and it provides funding to hire more counselors. USD259 already has a very substantial benefit package. This is encouraging for those who seek employment as a new teacher. I’m confident it will help bolster new hire recruitment efforts.

One thing we may need to be more concerned about is the retention of veteran teachers. Recently, as I was going door to door canvassing I met a veteran teacher who told me they were feeling a lack of respect because they were not making much more than a new hire and they’re topped out on the pay scale. As a school board member I will be checking to make sure all teachers get a competitive wage, not just new hires. We want to keep veteran teachers on board as long as possible.

Another way to actively pursue more teachers for our schools is to start early and provide extra support for students in the high school who show aptitude and desire to be on the teaching career path.

We should also be encouraging our current para educators and/or substitute teachers to become accredited if they’re not already.

What curriculum changes would you like to implement?

Since the Kansas Department of Education state assessment scores of USD259 students are currently very low compared to the state wide results we need to make sure all students are getting a strong dose of core curriculum courses so they will be prepared to excel on that test. Academic proficiency is essential so as to build a knowledge base towards a successful future. If students need more time to become proficient in the core curriculum subject matter then we need to let them have it. For high achievers, let’s keep them challenged and entertained with great knowledge building and fun courses that are age appropriate.

I understand drivers ed is not being taught in high schools. I would certainly encourage a reintroduction of that course.

What are concerns that you think should be addressed that occurred after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic?

During the pandemic we learned that home schooling had disastrous consequences for the mental health of many students and teachers struggled to maintain a connection with them. Statistics from the pandemic period indicate there was no increase in death rates due to a school remaining open. In the future schools should remain open.  In person schooling provides better accountability. Home schooled student behavior became unruly because many parents couldn’t stay  home with their children.  Students got out of the routine of doing homework and it was hard for them to get back on track.

When it comes to school board options during a pandemic they need to look at data and have their attorneys interpret the law because the school board must follow the law. So to a certain extent their choices are limited. When given the option I would steer towards choices which have substantial evidence of success, including peer reviewed support. Making decisions on the school board is a collaborative event. The members must represent society at large but the opinions of students parents must have the most weight since we are making decisions for their children.

Why are you running for your position? 

To fill a desperately needed BOE position for Wichita Schools. 

What are your main priorities? What do you hope to plan to address those issues? 

• Safe and Secure Schools and Academic excellence. 
• Change the atmosphere of Wichita Public Schools to be much more inviting to students by focusing on motivating students with mentorship and extracurricular activities. 

What are your qualifications for your position? 

• The same as every other elected position, a citizen and registered to vote.
•  My background in Finance and Real Estate and business management and military leadership (enlisted and officer) add to my resume. I have a BBA – Finance-Real Estate and a MBA, both from Wichita State University. 

Why should college students vote for you? 

The role of the BOE is to approve the curriculum, approve the budget, and hear the Superintendent. When the BOE raises taxes, those taxes cause everyone’s rent to go up, mortgages to cost more, and everyone on fixed incomes to have less money for groceries. This year property taxes have increased the largest amount in a single year by the increase in property valuations in over a decade. The budget for the district would have grown just by this alone, and yet the BOE increased the portion of property taxes. The TAX Revenue pie got bigger, a lot bigger, and the BOE is taking an even bigger piece. 

More money doesn’t improve performance in the classroom, it just means more staff got hired, not more teachers, more staff. 

What do you think the school board is currently doing right? What would you like to improve? 

• I think the school board is holding good public meetings. 
• I will put my focus on ensuring the revenues received are being allocated and spent on the programs the money is earmarked for. 
• School Safety and class security is my platform. 

What plans do you have to ensure student and staff safety in schools?

If more Wichita Police Officers (SROs) cannot be allocated to the Wichita Public Schools, I think the public schools should consider doing as Wichita State has done, create their own police force. The School District has a very large budget, one nearly double the size of the entire Sedgwick County and one and a half times the City of Wichita. 

How would you work to address students’ mental health? 

Every Buildings Needs Assessment in the school district is asking for more help with this issue. I believe them and will work to help as many students as possible. Starting with motivating and mentoring. 

There is currently a teacher shortage in Kansas. How would you go about addressing that?

Safety and support of teachers in the classroom. Reward excellence to retain motivated and determined educators. 

What curriculum changes would you like to implement? 

Reading to standard by third grade. Ending advancement to the next grade until the standard is met. Set expectations high and do not give up on any student. 

What are concerns that you think should be addressed that occurred after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic? 

The realization of what the curriculum actually is when what is being taught in the classroom was seen first hand at home.

Why are you running for your position?

I am running for re-election to ensure that we have strong and effective public schools, which is a corner stone of our democracy.

What are your main priorities? What do you hope to plan to address those issues?

I want to maintain our upward growth and graduation rates while also creating more opportunities for our graduates to be future ready. We can do this by offering more after school credit recovery programs, and working with higher education and private businesses in to create dual credit college credits, apprenticeships on the job training through our future, ready centers and certification programs

We can improve student behavior by getting to the route of poor and disruptive behavior. We must use a balance of process approach of appropriate consequences to the behavior and support our staff and understanding, making students understand and accept the consequences of their action through our Restorative practices.

Retention of teachers is closely related to improving student behavior 30% of our educators are actively planning to leave the profession. Educators have told us they need three things to avoid the shortage of staff. They want more respect from the public with the difficult job they have in front of them do the student behavior. They want a better and more robust mental health program and gear directly toward their profession. Finally, they wanna improve pay and benefits.

What are your qualifications for your position?

I have served on the Wichita Board of Education for the last six years. Two of which were as board president. I have been a school, volunteer and an active member of the district my entire adult life. My commitment to public education in south west & south central Wichita runs deep. 

Why should college students vote for you?

I think we have to pay attention to those who have been active and have had children in the school system for years versus those that just showed up try to enforce a political ideology into the school system. College students are very good at discerning who is genuine and who is in this for just political reasons. I think the college students will see that I have the student success as my number one reason for doing this job. 

What do you think the school board is currently doing right? What would you like to improve?

Students falling behind their basic skills scores make student success and graduation harder for our students. We know that seven second grade reading scores and ninth grade algebra scores are key indicators of success in school. We need identify those early red flags and offer help to students to catch up summer school for early elementary students who are scoring low and reading writing and math is important.

At the middle school level we need to focus on getting students up to an eighth grade math level to prepare them for ninth grade algebra. Not passing ninth grade algebra is also a red flag. We need to double down on our after school credit recovery efforts and continue our investment and mentoring programs. 

What plans do you have to ensure student and staff safety in schools?

The Board of Education must continue to make a School Safety one of our highest priorities in the budgeting process. We need to take a holistic approach to improving behavior. The key is to find the right balance between the handing out at the consequences for improper behavior, with the effort to get to the root of the problem, through our efforts in Restorative practices, which is a way for the students to take responsibility when a behavior is displayed that is counter to a productive school day.

How would you work to address students’ mental health?

We must continue to invest in mental health services. I support increasing the number of school counselors, student behaviorist, social workers and psychologist in our schools. Even after the federal emergency Covid dollars are finished in 2024.

There is currently a teacher shortage in Kansas. How would you go about addressing that?

Teacher retention during my time on the school board has been a great concern of mine. We must continue to improve teacher retention by truly listening and getting teachers input on all subjects regarding student behavior, and what they need in the classroom to succeed.

What curriculum changes would you like to implement?

We’ve made great progress in reading by returning to a more phonics approach. We have some great staff leaders in the area of curriculum. I think we need to make sure that parents are still able to view the curriculum online and the role of the Board of Education members is to address issues that come up about curriculum. Currently our curriculum has been improving math and reading scores, but we need to do even better.

What are concerns that you think should be addressed that occurred after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic?

There are two things that we need to still work post Covid: And that is student behavior and the learning loss that occurred during that two-year pandemic. The learning loss is being addressed a lot through credit recovery programs and a robust summer school program.

The behavior issue still needs to be addressed by including all the stakeholders in improving the student behavior. This year has actually been better than last year, but we still need to do better.

Why are you running for your position?

As a proud Southeast High graduate, former USD 259 teacher, and former elected leader, I am deeply committed to making a meaningful impact on the lives of students and teachers in our district. My experiences have shaped my understanding of education and allowed me to comprehend the unique challenges faced by both students and teachers. My vision is to create a leading school district in Kansas, where board-level accountability ensures consistent standards across all schools, and an action plan that improves student and teacher achievement, behavior, and building performance.

What are your main priorities? What do you hope to plan to address those issues?

1.) Teacher morale. 2.) Challenging classroom and building student behaviors. 3.) The district will lose COVID funding at the end of 2024. Collectively these issues are creating an environment that is challenging for many teachers, building administrators, students, and their families. … I will advocate for teachers, namely, their right to a safe and adequately resourced classroom and valued compensation. Parent engagement is also important to student success. I will work to create an environment that makes academic expectations and disciplinary actions transparent, consistent, and equitable from building to building across the district. USD 259 received more than 264 million dollars in ESSER I, II & III, (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief) funds to directly respond to the impact COVID-19 has had on elementary and secondary schools. The third and final funding cycle is due to be spent by the end of 2024…. I agree with a request made by Superintendent Bielefeld, to perform a cost analysis on key programing to assess the performance of the new and or additionally funded current programs…. The outcome of this analysis and assessments of programs will help to inform decisions surrounding which program(s) or services should be kept, if possible, and what may have to be cut.

What are your qualifications for your position?

I am a graduate of Wichita Public Schools, my children and grandchildren graduated from Wichita Public Schools, and I have great grandchildren attending Wichita Public Schools. I am WPS Proud. I am a former teacher who taught at Mayberry Middle School and Southeast High School. I am a former policy maker at the local level and state level which helps me to better understand budgets and the funding streams that fund our district that serves over 46,000 students. Lastly I care about providing the very best resources, educational instruction and real life enhancing opportunities to every student in our 81 buildings and programs.

Why should college students vote for you?

College students should vote for me because I have every student’s best interests at heart. I am not running on a personal agenda. I will work to create innovative policies that prepare students for success socially, civically, and economically. 

What do you think the school board is currently doing right? What would you like to improve?
When attending the board meetings recently, I have been pleased to see the USD 259 School Board members working collectively as a board and cooperatively with Superintendent Bielefeld to support a budget that supports continuing to focus on improving the percentage of students that are reading on grade level by third grade, increasing the percentage of students that graduate, offering more opportunities for CTE’s and focus on increasing salaries for incoming teachers. I will work to bring more community members and family members into our buildings with the intent of helping to reduce some of the fights and aggressive behaviors being exhibited.  I will also prioritize recruiting and hiring more veteran teachers, support staff and administrators that look like our student demographics. And I will advocate for the Legislature to fully fund Special education and for the district to appropriately use the at risk funding earmarked for our district.

What plans do you have to ensure student and staff safety in schools?

Our district is doing its job to aggressively implement a comprehensive plan to keep students and staff safe in all buildings. However, there has been a noticeable increase in aggressive and or violent behaviors being demonstrated, and this is unacceptable.… I believe parent and community engagement and involvement in our schools can have a positive impact. 

How would you work to address students’ mental health?

Effective mental health programs are important. The district offers several programs that are designed to support students’ mental and emotional health…. However, there are issues with capacity, which is, the number of students that can access and utilize the services offered, which has created a waiting list. Some students and families need these mental health services sooner than later.  

There is currently a teacher shortage in Kansas. How would you go about addressing that?

Our district took a major step to help with recruiting and retaining qualified teachers when they increased the base pay for new teachers.  We also need to consider a plan to increase the step pay scale for current teachers.  Understanding that most of our students are students of color. Eighty percent of our students qualify for free and reduced lunches, which demonstrates possible economic needs.  I will advocate for our district to become laser focused and recruit more teachers who reflect our students, recruit more experienced teachers and lastly, consider growing the Teacher Apprenticeship Program, making it accessible to more than the current Para-Educator.  Each of these recommendations when implemented have been shown to improve retention as well as a students’ academic and disciplinary behavior.

What curriculum changes would you like to implement?

I support looking at expanding Spanish Heritage Learner and Dual Language curricula across the district. I believe the Spanish Heritage Learner program will help students to gain knowledge in both languages. This program is specifically designed for students who have a familial, or community connection to Spanish and can benefit educational and civically!  

What are concerns that you think should be addressed that occurred after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic?

We know that chronic absenteeism directly affects our students, their families and our district’s ability to reach optimum success! Students who are chronically absent between grades 8 – 12 are more likely to drop out. Students who are chronically absent between pre-K and Kindergarten are less likely to be reading on grade level by third grade. And students who are chronically absent are more likely to engage in risky behaviors and show increased risk for suicidal behavior, depression, and anxiety. 

Davis did not respond to The Sunflower’s attempts to contact him.

Davis ran as a USD 259 school board candidate in 2021. Davis was one of four Republican candidates who ran in 2021 for the nonpartisan school board; he was the only one to not win a seat.

When running in 2021, Davis proposed experimenting on students by separating masked and unmasked students and studying who does and does not get COVID-19, according to The Wichita Eagle. 

In a blog post on his campaign website on June 22, Davis said The Eagle “falsely claimed” that he proposed the experiment and misrepresented his point. 

Davis’ platform is based on four goals: student achievement, protecting student safety by having students “exhibiting dangerous behavior” be “properly attended to,” giving Wichita teachers professional development and pay, and providing parents and the community with “greater local choice, communication and clarity.”

Davis did not respond to The Eagle or The Beacon when the news organizations reached out to 2023 school board candidates.