The County Clerk must be an exceptional leader and manager.  It is not a clerical job.  The recent explosive growth of the county has posed many challenges for the office, including tremendous increases in workload and threats such as property theft, cyberattacks and ransomware.  What may have worked for a small, rural county will not work for a growing urban one. The County Clerk must be versed in up-to-date management practices that create efficiencies and accountability.  The job also requires a sophisticated understanding of contemporary human resources strategies to ensure a workforce that is well prepared and motivated and has the resources needed to perform well.

Most people’s eyes glaze over when they hear what the County Clerk does.  It isn’t a sexy job.  I don’t make laws or establish county policies.  Mostly, my staff does administrative work behind the scenes, recording important historical facts about our county.  Nevertheless, there are several important things I’m doing that could affect you or your loved ones directly.  I . . .

• Protect you from identity theft and real estate theft;

• Intervene in possible instances of sexual trafficking;

• Save you taxes by improving efficiencies in the office;

• Provide better customer service, making it possible for you to do business with my office remotely at your convenience;

• Save you hefty credit card fees by accepting cash payments in our offices;

• Treat you helpfully and with sensitivity in potentially difficult situations, such as filing for probate, determinations of paternity, or amendments of gender on birth certificates;

• Help keep you safe from COVID and other diseases when fulfilling jury duty; and

• Preserve important historical records that are excellent resources for scholarly research on our culture.

• Experience running Office of County Clerk;

• Many years of experience as senior executive at leading international management consulting firms; and

• MBA and PhD

• Protection of your records from identity or property theft;

• Top-rate customer service, including the ability to do business with my office at any time from any location that has good WiFi;

• Accessibility to records on file for all residents (and others) including people with disabilities;

• Ensure 24/7 remote access to most records;

• Develop mobile service for those who cannot come into the office and do not have Internet access;

• Creation of innovations and efficiencies that save tax dollars and enhance quality; and

• Modernization, including digitizing of all records.

• Modernization of Commissioners Court streaming system to include live captioning, potential for translation of transcripts into any language, and remote participation by members of the public;

• Implementing updated queuing system to create efficiencies and enhance customer service;

• Implementing fraud alert system to protect property records;

• Preservation and back-up of fragile, valuable historical documents, including old wills;

• Digitization of all records to simplify access and ensure preservation;

• Implementing automated indexing to increase efficiency and accuracy in recording documents;

• Organizational restructuring to improve efficiencies and performance;

• Establishment of rigorous procurement and contract management procedures that ensure accountability to taxpayers;

• Exemplary performance that has earned the office recognition from the State Department of Health and Human Services, Vital Statistics Division; and

• Protection of staff and public from COVID during its peak.

I was dismayed to learn in 2018 that there are no qualifications required for the job of County Clerk other than being 18 years or older, a resident of the county, and free of felony convictions.  I find that shocking.  It is a vitally important job.  The County Clerk maintains some of your most important records, including the deeds to your property and your vital records (births, deaths, marriages).  Millions of dollars pass through the office.  It shouldn’t be in the hands of a novice.  I saw the job as an opportunity to contribute to my community doing what I do best.  So, I filed to run.  I’m running now to complete the job I started.