Josh Gordon: 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: LibertyvilleWebsite: www.joshgordon.orgTwitter: Candidate did not respond.Facebook: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Libertyville District 70 School Board Age: 41Family: My wife, Shannon has a Master of Education degree in secondary education and is very involved in D70 schools as VP of the Butterfield Family Association and through committees such as the FAD70. She drives the passion around education and commitment to learning in our home. My son, Will is currently a freshman at LHS and formerly a product of D70. My daughters, Abby and Cate are in 7th and 5th grade respectively and have spent the majority of their school years in D70.Occupation: VP Marketing and Global Business Development, FramGroup LLC in Lake ForestEducation: - BA in Economics, University of Michigan, 1997- MBA with High Distinction, University of Michigan, 2005Civic involvement: I spent the first 7 years of my professional life as a US Navy Officer, so service to our country and community is an integral part of who I am and what I would bring to the board. Current: Blood drive coordinator for Heartland Blood Center, successfully introducing blood drives to 7 companies in our building. Volunteer coach for GLSA.Past: Junior Achievement volunteer at Rogers High School, Rogers, AR for the 4 years prior to moving to Libertyville. D70: 2016 Parent Curriculum Advisory Committee member. Parent representative on the 2016 D70 Strategic Planning Committee.Elected offices held: Candidate did not respond.Questions Answers Why are you running for this office, whether for re-election or election the first time? Is there a particular issue that motivates you, and if so, what is it?My wife, Shannon, and I moved our family to Libertyville for the same reasons as many families before us: great schools and strong community. Our three children have benefited from the outstanding learning environment found in D70. Over the past few year, I have volunteered on the Curriculum Committee and the Strategic Planning Committee. Now I want to take the next step to help build upon the strong foundation of D70. Over the past four years, the D70 administration has made tremendous progress on several fronts including technology, security, and infrastructure improvement. If elected, I would advise the administration to build on that momentum with improvement in the following areas:1.Transparency: Transparency is instrumental in maintaining the community's trust. By sharing policy decisions and justifications more openly, improving communication (including video recording Committee of the Whole and board meetings), and facilitating community participation, the board can foster a culture of transparency 2.Engagement: Many parents want to play an active role in their children's educations beyond volunteering. Research proves that when parents and teachers collaborate, students benefit. Valuing parent involvement and influence can only lead to positive change 3.Benchmarking: High school district 128 was recently ranked as the best district in Illinois and the second best nationally by Niche.com see: https://k12.niche.com/rankings/public-school-districts/best-overall/. D70 should strive to match that level of excellence instead of benchmarking against state average districts. Parents are trusting the board to set the expectation that D70 should be a state leading district in K-8 educationWhat do you think about the process for measuring student success in your district? Is it adequate? What changes, if any, do you propose?Every student is unique, making success measurement very challenging. It requires a variety of multi-dimensional assessments, ranging from classroom observation to standardized testing, so that each student can accurately demonstrate his/her proficiency and growth. No evaluation is a one-size-fits-all. The board must define what "success" looks like on chosen assessments, and demonstrate how that "success" links to district goals.I would champion a few parent concerns about measurement voiced on recent surveys and in feedback from the latest strategic plan:1.Standardized testing: Excessive class time allocated to standardized testing and preparation is a concern for many parents. While D70 administration must follow state and federal testing requirements, the board must establish a culture of minimal testing disruption to authentic learning and classroom instruction2.Standards-based grading vs letter grades: Currently D70 elementary schools use standards-based grading and Highland uses traditional letter grades. We know from focus groups and surveys that many parents struggle with this evaluation discrepancy. The board should encourage parent-teacher collaboration to identify student focused grading solutions that are sufficient for everyone3.HMS consistency with LHS: D70 should collaborate with LHS to identify opportunities to better prepare and transition students. Skills development and success metrics must be aligned between Highland and LHS so students maximize their academic potential Finally, I would encourage D70 administration to implement an audit process to check the validity and reliability of any data collected. In short, confirming that the measurements used to determine student achievement are actually predicting student success.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?The school board does not exist to manage the district. We have a team of experienced and talented education professionals to do that. As experts in instruction, the district administrators and teachers will make specific curriculum recommendations. Principles of Good governance dictate that the board sets the vision for a curriculum that meets government requirements while keeping D70 students and the interests of the community first. There are a few areas where the D70 board can guide and challenge the administration in the area of curriculum:1.Early language integration: Early elementary foreign language integration is consistently the top curriculum priority for D70 parents. We live in an increasingly global community and success for today's D70 students will depend on their ability to navigate other cultures. This is a significant endeavor and the board must support the administration to make this change a reality, both for the future of our students, and to remain competitive with top-ranking school districts2.STEM/STEAM expansion: Parents want their children to be prepared for the careers of tomorrow, and those careers require advanced skills in innovation, critical thinking, teamwork, and self-direction. I see those skills in successful business leaders every day. I will advocate for policies that expand the incorporation of these principles in D70 curriculum3.Differentiated instruction: Teachers are the experts in determining how students learn. By identifying students based on their abilities, interests and learning styles, instruction and curriculum can be tailored to challenge each student to achieve his/her unique potentialWhat 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 or fee increases?In the coming term, D70 will face significant economic challenges; state budget shortfalls, rising education expenses, new labor contracts, state and federal curriculum requirements, aging infrastructure, and population impact from potential housing developments just to name a few. The families of Libertyville demand great education from D70 and have always shown the willingness to fund it. That said, the board must challenge the administration to deliver on that community mandate without an undue tax burden. That means establishing annual savings goals and optimizing non-education spending before cutting education positive programs or seeking incremental funding. I can offer experience in reducing costs with several proven tools. Bottoms-up Budgeting: Most years, D70 plans the district budget based on a percent increase over the prior year. Bottoms-up budgeting is an analytical exercise that forces an organization to match the dollars in a budget directly to the benefits delivered, thereby uncovering hidden dollars that are not matched to primary benefits. Existing dollars are allocated optimally to ensure coverage before additional dollars are requested. This is common practice for business and non-profit organizations and can deliver significant value to D70. Sourcing Coordination: We already share finance resources with D68 and pool purchasing on transportation, both of which are great steps. I think there is an opportunity to share a sourcing/purchasing manager and further pool resources to improve our pricing and terms on all materials, services, and contracts. Strategic sourcing is a key enabler for most organizations to control costs and achieve their financial objectives.What role can and should school choice play in your district? If Congress or the state approves a voucher system or other means giving students broader choices among public and private schools, how will that affect your district? What is the appropriate response for the board of education of a public school system?Although public schools must follow state and federal mandates, we can minimize the impact of vouchers or school choice on our district by ensuring that D70 schools are equal to or better than all neighboring education options, both public and private. If we provide top-notch curriculum and instruction, excellent teachers, and an environment in which children love to learn, our community will want to send their students to D70 schools instead of using vouchers or school choice to enroll elsewhere. Please go to www.joshgordon.org or https://www.facebook.com/joshgordon4d70/ on facebook for more information. Also, I look forward to hearing your ideas and welcome additional questions at joshgordon4D70@gmail.comWhat other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?Regardless of the issues that are personally important to my family, I believe that the responsibility of a board member is to ensure that policies and decision reflect the community's priorities. Whatever issues come up, I will work to make sure that students needs come first, that the district exercises fiscal responsibility, and that decisions are transparent. Two specific issues will be important to our entire community in the coming school board term: (1) impact of new residential development and (2) potential new teacher and administrator contracts. Residential expansion in Libertyville will have an impact on the operations, staff, logistics, facilities and resources of D70. The school board does not have authority to approve or deny development proposals, but the board must support the district in understanding and then preparing for the impact of any developments. New staff contracts directly affect the instruction and development of our students. I would work to ensure that contracts encourage hiring and retention of the best teachers and staff available and match the expectations of village residents.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.The Commanding Officer on my first ship was very inspiring. He taught me: Don't fear what you don't know, fear the questions you don't askWhat is the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Everyone that you meet in life has a lesson to teach you if only you are willing to listen and learnIf life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?Learning a foreign language: As our world becomes smaller, culture, business and politics further overlap. Language is the key to being a 21st century learnerWhat was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?Math, because it teaches general lessons that apply to life: don't quit when things get difficult, work the problem and you will eventually solve itIf you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Besides listen to your parents? Reject instant gratification in favor of long-term goals. Patience and humility are the keys to lifelong happiness and success