Majors hopes to make a difference for children

Rhonda Simmons / Culpeper Star Exponent
Published: October 19, 2007

For Culpeper native Kym Majors, it's all about the kids.

That's why the 39-year-old mother of two is running for the Catalpa District School Board seat.

And she hopes to win the Nov. 6 election.

"I love kids," she said. "I've prided myself to be able to help kids in any way that I can and when it was presented to me that I can go in and make a different for the kids I was like 'oh sure.' "

In June, incumbent Bobby Jenkins announced that he would not seek re-election.

Majors said she began getting involved working with kids in the community when she started volunteering for her sons' teams.

Her 17-year-old son Kyle and her 13-year-old son Josh both participated in a number of sports, including football and basketball.

"If someone needed something, I said I could do it," she said. "We just wanted our kids to stay on the right path."

In 1999, Majors, a staffing coordinator at Unistaff, began her own all-star cheer/dance program called the Culpeper Blue Angels.

"If it has anything to do with kids, consider it done," she said.

* Why she's running: "I just saw a need and just wanted to make sure it was met," she said.

As a self-proclaimed opinionated, yet open-minded, individual, Majors says she also has "good values."

"If I can make a difference in a child's life, I'll do it," Majors said confidently. "If I can be a voice and I can make a difference then so be it, I'll give it a shot."

Majors and her husband, Tony, have been married for 15 years.
After graduating from Culpeper County High School in 1986, Majors attended classes at Germanna Community College.

But she never received an associate's degree.

"I was so close, but yet so far away," she joked. "I was only a few credits short."

Shortly after that, she began working as a waitress and as the money started to roll in, Majors said she never had the time to go back to school.

"But that will never happen to my kids," she promised. "But when you start making money like that, it's hard to veer off."
Although Majors had plans to attend college, she didn't have the funds to pay for her education.

"It was hard," she said. "My mom didn't have any money and I didn't have any money. I had to go to work as soon as I was old enough."

* On the budget: As far as the hotly debated school system's operating budget, Majors says she needs to conduct more research regarding the figures before she shares her opinion.

Last month, CCPS Superintendent David Cox presented his preliminary proposal to the School Board, a $17 million increase for fiscal year 2009.

"Once I have all of the information in front of me, I can do my homework and I can analyze and present what I feel is the best way to go," she said, earlier this month.

If Majors had to choose between hiring more teachers or raising salaries, she said, she would vote for hiring "more quality teachers."

"Increasing the salaries is not going to make the teacher teach better," said Majors "It's just going to put more money in their pockets."

* Sons' education: "I think the quality of education is the primary focus and should be," she said.

And it looks like Majors is allowing her youngest son, Josh, to obtain a "quality education" elsewhere.

As a personal move, Majors took Josh out of the Culpeper County Public School system earlier this year.

Now, he attends St. Luke's Lutheran School, a private day school on Old Rixeyville Road.

"We took him out because he needed a smaller class setting," she said. "He needed the quality of education that we want instilled in him. He wasn't getting it in the public school system."

Kyle, a senior at CCHS, will complete his last year at the school he's attended for the last several years even though the Majors' wanted to give him the opportunity elsewhere.

"We put our house on the market so that we could move Kyle to another district so he could attend another school," she said. "That was the best alternative for us because Tony works in Charlottesville. But we didn't sell the house in time."

She said that was a drastic move, but "we were willing to do that for Kyle."

"It was his senior year and we wanted to make sure it was the best year for him academically and athletically."

What about socially- Majors said he was "cool" with moving.

"I won't say he doesn't like Culpeper, but he was willing to change enough to see what's on the other side," she said. "He knew it wasn't working here for him."

"He's trying to make the most with what he has," she said.

* On standards of learning: Majors says there's too much emphasis placed on those requirements.

"They're loosing sight of the kids' education overall," she said. "So what if they pass the SOLs. Can they read- Can they write- That's more important."

* On transportation: It's evident that a large majority of students spend more time waiting before and after school.

And because of that, the School Board appointed a Transportation Task Force to examine the current transportation practices, evaluate options to improve travel and wait times.

"Idle time is not good," Majors said. "Extracurricular activities are essential. Just getting them into a program to where they can do their homework versus sitting there just waiting for a bus."

More drivers are needed, but Majors understands that the budget is a tight one.

"We can't afford it," she said. "It's crystal clear."

* On interaction between the School Board and the county supervisors: "Communication is the key," Majors said. "It's the key to marriage, it's the key to raising your kids. You just have to understand where each side is coming from and then come to a happy medium.

"We're not always going to agree," she said. "But we have to agree to disagree."

* On cell phones and dress code: In June, the School Board implemented a stricter cell-phone policy and addressed the current dress code.

"It's good that they're staying on top of that," she said. "But I've been hearing that the teachers use their cell phones just blatantly in front of the students. But yet the students can't have theirs seen at all."

Majors said if you're going to be strict on the students then the teachers must set the example.

As far as her own kids, Majors wants to stay connected.

"It's convenient," she said. "It's a peace of mind for me as a parent. But it's unacceptable for them to be texting in class."
As far as her son, Josh, wearing a uniform at St. Luke's, Majors says he's adjusting.

"It's a shoe thing now," she said with a chuckle.

Rhonda Simmons can be reached at 825-0771 ext. 125 or .