Arisleyda Taylor: Candidate Profile

Back to Elgin-Area Unit 46 School Board 4-year terms

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: StreamwoodWebsite: Arisleydataylor4schoolboard.comOffice sought: Elgin-Area Unit 46 School Board 4-year terms Age: 29Family: Marry to James Taylor together we have 2 kids in the district one in 3rd grade and other kindergarten both on dual language two-ways program.Occupation: Import SpecialistEducation: Candidate did not respond.Civic involvement: Candidate did not respond.Elected offices held: Candidate did not respond.Questions Answers What is your position on standards-based grading, which has been controversial with parents, students and even some teachers? Did the district botch the implementation of this new system? What could it have done differently?I have been present at several board meetings and have heard the concerns from parents and students. I do understand the purpose of adapting the grading scale which is to align with common core yet the communication to parents and students regarding the continuing roll-out of standards based grading could have been a little better. Teachers that are utilizing the new grading scale in their classrooms should have receive professional development and full understanding prior to implementing.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 do not work for any school district.Would you support holding the line on tax increases since the district has emerged from deficit spending and has a healthy surplus of roughly $50 million? Explain why or why not.Taking in consideration that our school district serves a large percentage of low income students a hold on the tax increase will be a much needed break for our families and tax payers. With the continuous increases on taxes in the past few years we have many families in our district struggling to keep their homes. But a quick fixes are not the answer, we need fundamentals changes, innovative ideas that will make a different without sacrificing the learning opportunities of our students. Despite an impending cut in state funds the board and school officials have to work hard and do everything in their powers to minimize the tax levy in the incoming years.Would you support a charter school within U-46? Why or why not?I support education. I am very clear about the need to close the achievement gap and my top priority is to ensure that all students have access to a quality education that prepares them for the very competitive world out there and to become productive citizens. I will have to see how the new Charter school proposal benefits the students before I can agreed or disagreed with the initiatives.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? Be specific.With the ISBE warning of eliminating 2 payment to school district this year and possible additional reduction on other state aids our school district will have to work even harder to make sure that this changes don't impact the learning experience of our students. With that being said the budget for next year will possibly be tight and administration will have to become more creative to save money where ever possible. With the new strategic plans in the works we hope that we will have the opportunity to look deeper into some programs and see what works and what doesn't work and this will open up a healthy discussion with the community of what we can afford.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?Not just as a candidate but as a parent I want to work with the community, I don't want to bring up issues without a solution or an idea of how to resolve it. I want the community to come together and push on one direction to for the future leaders, our students. Our school system is the bedrock of our community and I want to embrace that.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.My mother. I look up to her and still seek her advise anytime I need one.What's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?My mom have always taught me to do the best in whatever I do, to let my passion shine.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I think we are who we are because of our past, we live and we learn.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?My favorite subject in school was Math. I work in logistics and I use math in different ways at work everyday.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?I always tell my daughter to do something that will make her happy that money is not everything in life.