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It was standing room only in the basement of the Downers Grove Moose Lodge Jan. 8 as six potential candidates for the District 58 Board of Education sounded off.
Those individuals were asked seven questions prepared by an education advocacy group, DG Cares. Their responses were timed, and no questions were taken from the floor.
Members of DG Cares said they reached out to about a dozen people who have shown interest in running for a seat on the board and six joined the forum.
Since participating in the forum, potential candidate Terri McCreedy has pulled her name from the running. The day after the forum, McCreedy said she felt her views about the direction of the school district were well-represented by other potential candidates who participated in the forum.
1. Provide background on yourself.
Cooper: One child at Indian Trail School and one at O’Neill Middle School; business analyst for the Royal Bank of Canada
Devine: One child at Kingsley School and one in preschool; project manager for Robert Bosch; resident since 2001
Funk: Two children at Indian Trail School; employee for General Mills; member of the district’s Financial Advisory Committee; resident for past 16 years
Lester: Father of six children; retired educator of more than 33 years; resident for past 12 years
Lupescu: Mother of twins; part-time attorney, graduate of Downers Grove South High School; resident since 1984
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2. What do you believe makes a good school board member?
Cooper: “A school board member does very much need to be a member of a team. You need the tool kit to understand what you are doing and understand the school system and how it works.”
Devine: Dedication, communication, compromise and focus on the children are important. “You need to be vested in the school district ... (and) have an understanding of the issues.”
Funk: “Keep the children first. We need people who care about our children on the board. Simple as that.”
Lester “True compassion, caring and concern for our kids, the schools, the community. Our board members need to be able to be accountable, have experience and knowledge for how a school system works.”
Lupescu: Communication between the board and the community, and focus on the children and the curriculum are essential. “Make the decision and then act together as a team and support that decision.”
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3. Describe the kind of relationship a board member should have with the community.
Cooper: School Board members are attentive and they listen. “The board member is accountable to the community. We are there to do your bidding.”
Devine: Open lines of communication are important. As a representative for the community, it’s important to recognize the correlation between the state of the district and home values.
Funk: “I’ll make an honest effort to get back to that person with an answer or a comment. If something needs to get done, get to it right away.”
Lester: A member should help the community understand the system. “A board member should have a relationship with the community where they are listening ... It’s great to be a cheerleader for your school.”
Lupescu: Be responsible, accountable and accessible. “If people have questions, make sure you are available to hear those questions.”
It was standing room only in the basement of the Downers Grove Moose Lodge Jan. 8 as six potential candidates for the District 58 Board of Education sounded off.
Those individuals were asked seven questions prepared by an education advocacy group, DG Cares. Their responses were timed, and no questions were taken from the floor.
Members of DG Cares said they reached out to about a dozen people who have shown interest in running for a seat on the board and six joined the forum.
Since participating in the forum, potential candidate Terri McCreedy has pulled her name from the running. The day after the forum, McCreedy said she felt her views about the direction of the school district were well-represented by other potential candidates who participated in the forum.
1. Provide background on yourself.
Cooper: One child at Indian Trail School and one at O’Neill Middle School; business analyst for the Royal Bank of Canada
Devine: One child at Kingsley School and one in preschool; project manager for Robert Bosch; resident since 2001
Funk: Two children at Indian Trail School; employee for General Mills; member of the district’s Financial Advisory Committee; resident for past 16 years
Lester: Father of six children; retired educator of more than 33 years; resident for past 12 years
Lupescu: Mother of twins; part-time attorney, graduate of Downers Grove South High School; resident since 1984
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2. What do you believe makes a good school board member?
Cooper: “A school board member does very much need to be a member of a team. You need the tool kit to understand what you are doing and understand the school system and how it works.”
Devine: Dedication, communication, compromise and focus on the children are important. “You need to be vested in the school district ... (and) have an understanding of the issues.”
Funk: “Keep the children first. We need people who care about our children on the board. Simple as that.”
Lester “True compassion, caring and concern for our kids, the schools, the community. Our board members need to be able to be accountable, have experience and knowledge for how a school system works.”
Lupescu: Communication between the board and the community, and focus on the children and the curriculum are essential. “Make the decision and then act together as a team and support that decision.”
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3. Describe the kind of relationship a board member should have with the community.
Cooper: School Board members are attentive and they listen. “The board member is accountable to the community. We are there to do your bidding.”
Devine: Open lines of communication are important. As a representative for the community, it’s important to recognize the correlation between the state of the district and home values.
Funk: “I’ll make an honest effort to get back to that person with an answer or a comment. If something needs to get done, get to it right away.”
Lester: A member should help the community understand the system. “A board member should have a relationship with the community where they are listening ... It’s great to be a cheerleader for your school.”
Lupescu: Be responsible, accountable and accessible. “If people have questions, make sure you are available to hear those questions.”
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4. What new ideas will you bring to the board?
Cooper: “We are teaching the children for the future. We should seek to keep communication going in two ways and look for ways to expand the curriculum.”
Devine: The district should look at full-day kindergarten, improved communication and enhancing the enrichment program. “Some ideas will be ours, but a lot will come from the district. We need creative ways to solve the financial problems.”
Funk: Look for more grant opportunities. “New ideas are fostered from the community. What does the community really want?”
Lester: Create a foreign language program, and full-day kindergarten. “Character education — it gets away from test scores ... but means understanding what is means to be a solid character in the community.”
Lupescu: Focus on creating a foreign language program and more fitness programs. “I would work on being respectful of one another. There has been a lot of tension on the board these past few years.”
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5. What do you see as a major agenda item for the next school year and how will you address it?
Cooper: Address the roof repair and financing. Filling the superintendent spot is a priority.
Devine: Finding a superintendent is a priority. “I don’t want to be short-sighted about the roofs.”
Funk: “The new board could look at different ways of handling roof replacements. Also, the superintendent replacement is a big step going forward.”
Lester: “The key issue coming up is the superintendent. We, as a board and as a community would need to look and see if we want to do a nationwide search.”
Lupescu: The district needs to focus on the roofs and seek out volunteers from the community for various needs. “We definitely need to identify and find a superintendent through an open search. We need to create a long-term financial plan.”
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6. What do you see as the future of District 58?
Cooper: “We get through our current financial and roofing issues. The board should be focusing on education.”
Devine: “I think the future of the board needs to include common goals in the best interest of our children. Improved test scores. We’re quite a bit lower than average and teachers are paid above-average. I would expect those standardized test scores above average and accountability of the teachers.”
Funk: “I see a successful School Board with most of our problems being fixed, hopefully in a positive way without animosity on the board. I see our district being best in the class. I’m looking to see our property values increase significantly and the children having the best education in Downers Grove.”
Lester: “We have to be realistic about the financial situation. A long-term financial plan is needed ... slimming down program and tax rate increases. Change can cause discomfort ... but what comes from discomfort is people coming together and working it through and coming out stronger than ever.”
Lupescu: “I will see improved opportunity for our children. Improved and better communication on all levels.”
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7. If you become a school board member, how will you balance your life?
Cooper: “We all have spare time. I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t planning to (give something up.)”
Devine: “With any other thing you volunteer for, you have to have passion for it. With passion, you find the time for it.”
Funk: “I’m already actively spending time with the district through the Financial Advisory Committee. I’m prepared to do it because I want to do it.”
Lester: “I’m blessed with time. And rather than those Hawaii trips and golfing, I look forward to doing whatever I can with our school board.”
Lupescu: “You take time for the things you love. This is the best way you can love and support your children.”
*These answers were shortened or paraphrased because of space limitations. To hear the full forum on podcast, visit www.dgcares.org.
