Julia Mazur: 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: InglesideWebsite: http://www.mazur4bighollow.comOffice sought: Big Hollow District 38 School Board (4-year Terms)Age: 41Family: Married with two childrenOccupation: TeacherEducation: Bachelor of Arts in International Business, Illinois State University, 1993; Graduate Studies/Teacher Certification at DePaul University, Chicago 1995Civic involvement: Candidate did not respond.Elected offices held: Big Hollow School District Board of Education, 2009-2013Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: NoCandidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 School Finance. We must ensure we are receiving all available funding from both the state and federal governments and review the district's operattions to maximize efficiencies.Key Issue 2 Student Environment, Achivement, and Opportunities. Maintain the Arts programs and explore programs and opportunities which would facilitate the teaching of 21st century skills and create a safe, nuturing environment for all students.Key Issue 3 Community Involvement. Actively engage all stakeholders of the district, icluding parents and community members, to be part of the decision-making process.Questions Answers What do you think about the shift to the common core standards? How big a role do you think the board of education should play in setting the curriculum for students and what ideas do you have for changes to the current curriculum?I believe the shift to the common core standards will help our students be better prepared and competitive in the global market. I think the board's role is to make sure the curriculum proposed by administration is supporting the district's overall vision. I do believe our district needs to add world languages to our curriculum to further align the curriculum with 21st century skills.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?I believe our district is headed in the right direction with the increased articulation with our local high school and the other feeder schools. I hope we can continue to work with the high school to ensure expectations are clearly defined and supported.What budget issues will your district have to confront and what measures do you support to address them? If you believe cuts are necessary, what programs and expenses should be reduced or eliminated? On the income side, do you support any tax increases?The goal of our district should be to have a balanced budget. We need to evaluate our expenditures and see where we can save money without grossly impacting the students and their environment. I believe some of our contractual expenses could possibly be brought in-house or shared with other local districts. As a tax payer myself, I would like to see no tax increases.As contract talks come up with various school employee groups, do you believe the district should ask for concessions from its employees, expect employee costs to stay about the same as they are now or provide increases in pay or benefits?As any employee would hope that their salary would include a cost of living increase, I believe school employees deserve no less. Yet because of the uncertainty of some issues regarding school funding, I would hope any concessions asked for would be considered however temporary or long-term.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?I would not support a substantial increase in pay to help boost pension benefits because an administrator's salary should reflect his or her ability and qualifications not the timing of his or her retirement