We know we'll need some additional schools. It doesn't happen quickly.

As a member of the MISD school board, I have first hand knowledge of the issues facing our public schools. Last year Ellis County spent $33 million on gambling. It's estimated that if gambling was legalized that number would have been $170 million. I think that money should be spent locally. There are many costs to gambling, including the moral and social costs. Don't let him sell us on gambling.

We're weaving our way through a timeline so we don't interfere with the schools. We try to maintain good working relations with the town and the schools.

Many feel we have too many lawyers already. ... In my view, new programs, new campuses and new schools should be primarily driven by demands of the marketplace and not by the demands of a potential student body.

We were supporting schools that were not doing well at all. This has helped a great deal. We are committed to educating these students, and we must have fiscal stability and viability to do so.

With student centers, many schools want a building that gives the campus a presence. That's the draw. In those cases, a school might sacrifice some of the program inside — maybe reduce the seating from 700 to 600.