Johannes Laun: Candidate Profile

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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:BioQA Bio City: SchaumburgWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Schaumburg District 54 School Board Age: 54Family: Wife, three childrenOccupation: Forensic Engineer, Fire InvestigatorEducation: MBA - University of Colorado MS Physics - University of IL BS Electrical Engineering - University of ILCivic involvement: -Precinct Captain -Serve in the Children's Ministry at Church -Volunteer foster family with Second City Canine Rescue, Australian Shepherd Rescue Midwest, and Almost Home Foundation.Elected offices held: Candidate did not respond.Questions Answers How satisfied are you that your school district is adequately 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?District 54 has a reputation of being one of the finest school districts in the state. According to one indicator, District 54 ranks among the top 15% of elementary and middle school districts in the state. In specific subject areas, District 54 far exceeds statewide averages on student academic growth in mathematics but exceeds statewide averages on student academic growth in reading to a lesser extent. (Source: IllinoisReportCard.com.) Consequently, as I focus on areas for improvement as we prepare our elementary and middle school students for high school and college, I will look for opportunities to improve performance and achievement in reading.What budgetary issues will your district have to confront during the next four years and what measures do you support to address them? If you believe cuts are necessary, be specific about programs and expenses that should be considered for reduction or elimination. On the income side, do you support any tax increases for local schools? Again, be specific.District 54 has an excellent history of keeping expenses within budget. The biggest issue at this time is the threat of Senate Bill 16 being resurrected; this bill would require significant cuts to the district's budget. Analysis should be conducted that would allow the district to prioritize various costs and programs such that any significant financial event would have the least impact on the students and families. As the average income for the people in the district has not gone up in the recent past, it would not be fair to ask for more money from them. It is important to make sure that the rate of increase in costs for the district is kept in line with income of our district's families. Therefore, at this time, I will not support an increase in taxes.Are you currently employed by or retired from a school district, if so, which one? Is any member of your direct family - spouse, child or child-in-law - employed by the school district where you are seeking a school board seat?No, I am not currently employed by or retired from any school district.As contract talks come up with various school employee groups -- teachers, support staff, etc. -- what posture should the school board take? 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?I believe it is important to recruit and retain the best educators and administrators that our district can attract, and I believe in rewarding good employee performance with appropriate pay and other incentives. As a board member, my approach to these issues will be guided by the principle that the rate of growth in compensation of our district's employees should mirror, but not exceed, the rate of growth in the incomes of our district's residents.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?No, I am not in favor of artificially increasing someone's salary solely to give the person a higher retirement income. A salary is supposed to be related to the value the person provides to the district. Artificially raising the salary just before retirement means that the families of the district will no longer be able to gain the value of the individual's work but will then place an increased burden on the pension system.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?I am looking to provide the District 54 Board a fresh perspective from a business and engineering standpoint and to help maintain the district's financial and educational goals.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.I do not have a current leader that inspires me. Historically, I have looked to George Washington as an inspirational Leader.What's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Honesty was always very highly valued in my family growing up.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?In a "do-over," I would spend more focused time on certain academic areas.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?I have always been fascinated by the sciences. This has lead to a life of work in the fields of Physics, Engineering, and related sciences.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Never give up!