Stan Jester

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Stan Jester

Prior offices

DeKalb County School District school board District 1

* * *

Report an officeholder change

Education

Bachelor's

University of Texas

Personal

Profession

Software developer

Contact

Personal website

Stan Jester was a member of the DeKalb County School District school board in Georgia, representing District 1. Jester assumed office in 2014. Jester left office in 2020.

Jester ran for re-election to the DeKalb County School District school board to represent District 1 in Georgia. Jester won in the general election on May 24, 2016.

## Contents

* 1 Biography
* 2 Elections
* 2.1 2016
* 2.1.1 Results
* 2.2 2014
* 2.2.1 Results
* 2.2.2 Funding
* 2.2.3 Endorsements
* 3 Campaign themes
* 3.1 2014
* 4 About the district
* 4.1 Demographics
* 5 Recent news
* 6 See also
* 7 External links
* 8 Footnotes

## Biography[edit]

Email editor@ballotpedia.org to notify us of updates to this biography.

Stan Jester resides in DeKalb County, Georgia. Jester earned his bachelor's degree in computer science from the University of Texas. In his career, he has spent more than two decades working in the fields of data analysis and software development.[1][2] His wife, Nancy Jester, formerly served on the DeKalb County Board of Education. She ran unsuccessfully in the Republican primary for Georgia State Superintendent of Schools on May 20, 2014.[3]

## Elections[edit]

### 2016[edit]

See also: DeKalb County School District elections (2016)

Four of the seven seats on the DeKalb County Board of Education were up for general election on May 24, 2016. There was no primary. District 1 incumbent Stan Jester, District 3 incumbent Michael Erwin, District 5 incumbent Vickie Turner, and District 7 incumbent Joyce Morley ran without opposition.[4]

#### Results[edit]

DeKalb County School District,
District 1 General Election, 4-Year Term, 2016

Candidate | Vote % | Votes
Stan Jester Incumbent (unopposed) | 100.00% | 5,525
Total Votes | 5,525
Source: Georgia Secretary of State, "General Primary and Nonpartisan General Election May 24, 2016," accessed December 14, 2016

### 2014[edit]

See also: DeKalb County School District elections (2014)

Stan Jester ran unopposed and won the District 1 seat in the general election on May 20, 2014. Although the District 1 seat normally carries a four-year term, this election was for a two-year term.[5]

#### Results[edit]

DeKalb County School District, District 1 General Election, 2-year term, 2014

Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes
| Nonpartisan  | Stan Jester | 100% | 6,225
Total Votes | 6,225
Source: Georgia Secretary of State, "General Primary/General Nonpartisan/Special Election - May 20, 2014," accessed July 10, 2014

#### Funding[edit]

Jester did not file a campaign finance report with the DeKalb County Department of Voter Registration and Elections.[6]

#### Endorsements[edit]

Jester did not receive any endorsements during the election.

## Campaign themes[edit]

### 2014[edit]

Jester published his platform on his campaign website:

“  | As a member of the DeKalb Board of Education, I will advocate for:

* Decentralizing decision making
* Empowering school councils
* Principals, not central office, hiring the teachers for their school
* Hiring a superintendent that has delivered achievement improvements
* Lowering class sizes
* Restoring a full school calendar
* Reducing the size of the central office
* Improving transparency, particularly in financial reporting[7]

| ”

|
|

—Stan Jester campaign website (2014)[8]

In an interview with 90.1 WABE, Jester answered several questions outlining his campaign themes:

“  | Briefly describe your background. What qualifies you for this position?

I bring over 20 years of experience in technology and data analysis. My professional experience includes developing business intelligence data systems that drive executive decisions, developing software solutions for businesses, and business web/social media solutions and apps. Additionally, I am an active parent volunteer with three children in DeKalb’s schools. I also publish an education blog that reports on the DeKalb school district.

Why should voters choose you? What makes you stand out as a candidate?

As a parent and taxpayer, I am vested in the success of DeKalb’s schools. I am motivated to advocate for transparency, disclosure and pushing money back into the classroom. I am committed to improving DeKalb’s financial circumstances and academic achievement measurements.

What are some of the biggest educational challenges facing the district? How can you, as a board member, address those issues?

The Central Office in DeKalb has not been held accountable for their record of poor fiscal and academic performance. I will advocate for new leadership and regular, public assessments of their performance. For DeKalb to be successful, I believe we must decentralize. I will advocate for the Central Office to transform into a support role with critical HR and finance decisions being exclusively controlled at the local schoolhouse level.

Until recently, DeKalb was on “accredited probation” due mainly to concerns about school board governance. The district recently improved its status to “accredited warned.” But DeKalb still has a long way to go. As a board member, what will you do to ensure the district keeps improving?

The board must monitor the progress of the required actions laid out by SACS.

According to the Georgia School Boards Association, individual board members don’t have the authority to make decisions about the district. That authority lies with the board as a whole. How will you work to ensure the board makes decisions together instead of pursuing individual agendas?

I will work with the board and together we will work with the superintendent. We will ensure the Superintendent, in partnership with their staff, carries out our policies and the policies set by the Georgia Board of Education.[7]

| ”

|
|

—90.1 WABE interview (2014)[9]

In response to a questionnaire conducted by It's For Them - DeKalb, Jester answered several questions outlining his campaign themes:

“  | 1\. What is your understanding of the role of a school board member? In your answer, explain (1) the level of engagement that a board member should have in the affairs and operations of the district and, (2) the relationship between the board and district staff.

The Board of Education is responsible for setting policy for the school district. The superintendent serves as the school board's chief executive officer and, in partnership with their staff, is responsible for the daily operation of the school district. The superintendent reports directly to the school board and is responsible for carrying out its policies, the policies set by the Georgia Board of Education, and ensuring compliance with state and federal education laws.

2\. Explain your views on the current state of transparency of information at DCSD.

Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and the Ga DOE require that the modified accrual basis of accounting be used for governmental fund types. Vendor expenses are a majority of the budget and are being reported on a cash basis. The financial report is a weak suggestion of how money is being spent and doesn't reflect the financial health of the school system.

3\. How would you inspire parents and other stakeholders to have confidence in DeKalb schools?

Improve transparency and push control to the schoolhouse level.

4\. What skills, talents, and personality traits do you believe that you possess that would make you work effectively with the rest of the board to get things done?

My professional experience includes developing business intelligence data systems that drive executive decisions, developing software solutions for businesses, and business web/social media solutions and apps.

5\. How will you enhance the mix of skills and backgrounds on the board and help represent the diversity of the community?

Being a technical professional and education blogger, I bring a new skill set to the board.

6\. What do you see as the opportunities and threats facing the DeKalb school system?

The Central Office in DeKalb has not been held accountable for their record of poor fiscal and academic performance. I will advocate for new leadership and regular, public assessments of their performance.

7\. Describe the achievement gap in this district. What causes it? What can be done?

Education can break the cycle of poverty, yet we place our most vulnerable and at risk children in perpetually failing schools and do nothing to hold the administration accountable for these failures. We need to lower class size and make education relevant by giving the students more options. These options will close the gap and give our students an onramp to the middle class.

8\. The next school board will likely be tasked with selecting a new superintendent. What will you look for in a candidate?

Experience and a proven track record of improving academic achievement of a large and diverse population.

9\. What is your experience with reviewing complicated budgets? How will you approach the district’s budgetary process from a policy perspective?

How will you approach the district's budgetary process from a policy perspective

Having written numerous budget reporting applications, I am well versed in making sense of disparate data. I will advocate to fund the classroom first via 0 based budgeting. All other expenses will have to be justified. I will advocate for disclosure and information relayed in a valuable and reliable manner.

10\. What needs to be done to ensure the district regains full accreditation, without probation, and what is the role of the board in ensuring DCSD remains in excellent standings with SACS?

Monitor the progress of the required actions laid out by SACS.[7]

| ”

|
|

—It's For Them questionnaire (2014)[10]

## About the district[edit]

See also: DeKalb County School District, Georgia

DeKalb County School District is located in DeKalb County, Georgia.

DeKalb County School District is located in DeKalb County, Georgia. The county seat of DeKalb County is Decatur. DeKalb County was home to 713,340 residents in 2013, according to the United States Census Bureau.[11] The district was the third-largest school district in the state in the 2013–2014 school year and served 99,388 students.[12]

### Demographics[edit]

DeKalb County outperformed the state of Georgia in terms of higher education achievement in 2012. The United States Census Bureau found that 39.2 percent of DeKalb County residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 27.8 percent for Georgia as a whole. The median household income in DeKalb County was $51,252, compared to $49,604 for the state of Georgia. The poverty rate in DeKalb County was 18.6 percent, compared to 17.4 percent for the entire state.[11]

|  Racial Demographics, 2012[11]

Race  | DeKalb County (%)  | Georgia (%)
White | 37.4 | 62.8
Black or African American | 54.6 | 31.2
American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.6 | 0.5
Asian | 5.5 | 3.5
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander | 0.1 | 0.1
Two or More Races | 2.0 | 1.8
Hispanic or Latino | 9.5 | 9.2

|  Presidential Voting Pattern, DeKalb County[13]

Year  | Democratic Vote  | Republican Vote
2012 | 238,224 | 64,392
2008 | 254,594 | 65,581
2004 | 200,787 | 73,570
2000 | 154,509 | 58,807

Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

## Recent news[edit]

This section links to a Google news search for the term "Stan + Jester + DeKalb + County + School + District"

Stan Jester News Feed

## See also[edit]

* DeKalb County School District, Georgia
* DeKalb County School District elections (2014)
* DeKalb County School District elections (2016)

## External links[edit]

| Suggest a link

|

* Campaign website
* Campaign Facebook page

## Footnotes[edit]

1. ↑ Stan Jester, "Biography," accessed July 15, 2014
2. ↑ It's For Them - DeKalb, "District 1," accessed July 15, 2014
3. ↑ Reporter Newspapers, "Stan Jester to run for DeKalb school board," January 13, 2014
4. ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Qualifying Candidate Information," accessed April 18, 2016
5. ↑ The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "Big slate of candidates for crucial school board election," March 7, 2014
6. ↑ DeKalb County, "Individual Campaign Contribution Disclosure Reports," accessed May 28, 2014
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
8. ↑ Stan Jester, "Platform," accessed July 15, 2014
9. ↑ 90.1 WABE, "DeKalb School Board District 1 Winner- Stan Jester," accessed July 15, 2014
10. ↑ It's For Them - DeKalb, "Candidate Name: Stan Jester," accessed July 15, 2014
11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 United States Census Bureau, "DeKalb County, Georgia," accessed May 8, 2014
12. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed November 16, 2015
13. ↑ Georgia Secretary of State, "Current and Past Election Results," accessed May 8, 2014

2016 DeKalb County School District Elections

DeKalb County, Georgia
Election date:| May 24, 2016
Candidates:| District 1: Incumbent, Stan Jester

District 3: Incumbent, Michael Erwin
District 5: Incumbent, Vickie Turner

District 7: Incumbent, Joyce Morley
Important information:| What was at stake?
2014 DeKalb County School District Elections

DeKalb County, Georgia
Election date:| May 20, 2014
Candidates:| District 1: • Stan Jester

District 2: • Incumbent, Marshall Orson • Don McChesney
District 3: • Incumbent, Michael A. Erwin • Jerrie D. Bason • Jarrod Jordan • Atticus LeBlanc • Willie R. Mosley, Jr.
District 4: • Incumbent, Jim McMahan • Incumbent, Karen Carter • John Oselette • Ella Smith
District 5: • Incumbent, Thad Mayfield • Pia Bhatti • Jesse Cunningham • R. Alexander Fitzhugh • Vickie B. Turner
District 6: • Incumbent, Melvin Johnson • Bridgeman Bolger

District 7: • Incumbent, Joyce Morley • Kim Ault • Lee V. Dukes
Important information:| Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot

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