BOE Candidate Profile - League of Women Voters

The League of Women Voters has compiled a "voter's guide." My full responses are here:

· What personal and professional experiences have prepared you for serving on the Board?
When my youngest child started kindergarten (now in 5th grade), I became an active volunteer in their schools, from organizing coupon book sales to running the Auten Road Intermediate School “teachers vs. Harlem Wizards” basketball fundraiser. Through my children’s activities, I have first-hand experience in how the district works from elementary school through the high school.

I’m an engineer by training and I mention this not so you think I’m so smart or anything like that. It’s because I want to share how I think. Engineers are trained to write down all their assumptions before presenting a solution. And more importantly, to recognize the solution is only as good as the assumptions. This is one of the reasons I was against the March 2019 referendum – I felt there were too many assumptions of things that had to happen perfectly to achieve success, but what if things didn’t fall into place? Who would be accountable? The district would be in even worse shape than the jobs lost with the April 2019 school budget. I will elaborate more on my Facebook page and blog. Please note, the responses to the League of Women Voters questions are character limited.

· What do you consider the most important challenges facing the school district at this time? How would you address these challenges?
I’ve talked to a lot of people over the years and my takeaway is that the community supports its public schools but they want to know the funds are well spent. That applies to everyone, from those who don’t have kids, to parents with school-age children, to those whose kids are grown, to senior citizens. People are drawn to a community because of its strong school system, but they are also mindful of the tax implications.

Right now, there is a lot of anger and distrust toward the BOE. As I see it, part of the problem is “the curse of knowledge.” Board members get information and debate in committee. When we come to a public meeting, whatever we’re discussing, of course, it’s “obvious” to us because we’ve already seen it many times, so we don’t explain it well and the community thinks we’re hiding something.

Building trust is the first step in repairing the board’s relationship with students, parents, teachers, staff and the community. Without a foundation of trust, it will be difficult for the BOE to effectively address the big items ahead, including settling the HEA contract, the superintendent search, the 2020-2021 budget, and infrastructure issues.

I would build trust through better listening and communication. Everyone has good ideas for the BOE, but it’s not easy to share those ideas unless you 1) know one of us personally, 2) feel comfortable speaking at a public meeting or 3) feel comfortable emailing us with your name. Continued in last question below.

· What are the most important factors for student success, and how will you, as a school board member, ensure that those factors are addressed?
I think the most important factors for student success include mental wellness, parental involvement and BOE expectations. Achieving this comes in different ways. First, it’s through caring teachers who know and connect with their students so that students develop their best selves. This is why it’s important to settle the HEA contract so the staff know the BOE recognizes certainty is important and cares about their wellness. Happy teachers = happy students.

Second, it’s having a strong support network in place, such as guidance counselors at every school and student assistance counselors (SAC) at the high school. I was part of the board that advocated for each elementary school to have its own guidance counselor and also to add an additional SAC at HHS.

Third, it’s engaging parents as partners in the education process because schools and teachers cannot do it alone. There is so much information available to parents, but everyone is busy and thinks, “Not my kid,” and that their family doesn’t “need” help. I strongly believe that everyone can use additional help, tips, and support. And I believe the BOE could set the expectation that every parent attend at least one “parenting” seminar (drugs, anxiety, learning differences, etc.) in their child’s K-12 journey. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.

All children can learn and every child has something they can do; it’s the board’s job to figure out how to make this happen.

· How will you communicate with parents and others concerned with education? How do you plan to respond to concerns?
Continued from the “most important challenges” question above … since my point was about trust and communication.

My idea is to have an anonymous, online feedback form (similar to the budget feedback form) that is always on where anyone can share their ideas. Because I think the community has a lot of great ideas and I think the staff have even more specific ideas that could improve this district if the BOE listened. And if you give us your email address, we’d let you know we received your idea. To jumpstart the conversation, I’d ask three optional questions about the school district. 1) What do you like most? 2) What do you like least? 3) What would you change if you could?

I think it’s also important to meet the community where they are, whether it’s receiving feedback at Back to School Night or responding to Facebook discussions with facts. It’s important for the BOE to recognize the community’s frustrations. I try to be accessible and receptive to constructive criticism.