Nancy DiCanio: Candidate Profile

Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioKey IssuesQA Bio City: Glendale HeightsWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Queen Bee Elementary D16Age: Candidate did not respond.Family: Two sons, one now living in Woodstock; one deceasedOccupation: Office Administrator for an international consulting engineering/scientific firmEducation: stopped just short of attaining M.A.T. - National Louis UB.A. - Psychology - U of IL at ChicagoCivic involvement: Vice President, Queen Bee School Dist. 16 - Glendale HtsSecretary, Ollman Townhome Owners' AssociationElected offices held: Member, Board of Education, Queen Bee District 16Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: noCandidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 Working with new Business Manager and Superintendent to ensure fiscal stability for our school district during this very difficult economic climate while maintaining educational excellence.Key Issue 2 Fully implementing the district's recently developed Strategic Plan to benefit all students, staff ,and community.Key Issue 3 Development of new and improved ways to reach students and parents who speak English as their second language to better engage them in the school community.Questions Answers How satisfied are you that your district is preparing students for the next stage in their lives, whether it be from elementary into high school or high school into college or full-time employment? What changes, if any, do you think need to be made?Meeting the needs of a growing number of non English speaking families and seeing an increase of students qualifying for the free lunch program, means our district must be constantly evolving - evaluating programs and training staff in new teaching methods. I am satisfied that the District's new Strategic Plan and leadership should make this evaluation more efficient and immediate.What budget issues will the district have to confront? What measures do you support to address them? If cuts are needed, be specific about programs and expenses that should be reduced or eliminated. Do you support any tax increases for local schools?To date, the District has cut over two million dollars from an already tight budget. I believe those cuts and a continuing policy of frugality will safeguard the programs and staff we currently have and will avoid further cuts. District 16 has a history of innovation and providing more with less money than its neighbors.Is experience as a teacher or support from a union valuable because it suggests educational insights or detrimental because it creates pro-teacher bias? Please clarify whether you have such experience or would accept union support.Experience both as a teacher and as a parent helps me understand what does happen and what should happen in a classroom to spark a child's lifelong interest in learning. Most teachers value their connection to that learning and want students to succeed. Unions seem to have a tendency to be biased toward preservation of membership rather than preservation of a standard of excellence.As contract talks come up with various employee groups, what posture should the board take? Do you believe the district should ask for concessions, expect employee costs to stay about the same as they are now or provide increases in pay or benefits?District 16 has been very fortunate to have their staff agree to a pay freeze. The District has an obligation to the community to continue to work with all employee groups during all future negotiations to provide the pay and benefits necessary to attract and hold excellent staff while staying within necessary financial constraints.If your district had a superintendent or other administrator nearing retirement, would you support a substantial increase in his or her pay to help boost pension benefits? Why or why not?Yes, if the Superintendent has done an excellent job for the district and the community.