Lara Kristofer: 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: St. CharlesWebsite: LaraKristofer.comTwitter: @LaraBKristoferFacebook: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: St. Charles Unit District 303 School Board Age: 38Family: My husband Jon and I have been blessed with 4 amazing children! Enzo is 8, Antonia is 6, Gianni is 4, and Charlie is 2.Occupation: Juggling jumpy houses, legos, and lucky charms - that's my job; I get paid in hugs!Education: Bachelor of Science - Psychology - Loyola University ChicagoMaster of Arts - Clinical Psychology - Roosevelt University Master of Arts in Teaching - Elementary Education - National Louis UniversityCivic involvement: Vice President of PTO at Lincoln Elementary School (2016-2017)Religious Education Instructor - St. Patrick Parish (2015-2017)Greeter Ministry - St. Patrick Parish (2017)Campton Hills Citizen Police Academy Graduate (2016)Elected offices held: Candidate did not respond.Questions Answers Do you support the closure of Haines Middle School? If so, what should be done with the Haines campus once it is closed?The decision to close Haines is a sad one, as many students, families, and staff members will be affected by these changes. Our district is losing a great school that countless people have a strong connection with. However, the need to upgrade our middle schools has been a concern since at least 2007. Haines and Thompson are not fully air conditioned, therefore students are released early on days when temperatures get too high. At Wredling, lunch periods begin at 10:12 AM and end at 1:28 PM; the other schools follow similar schedules. Students at Haines are still in trailers. As a result, they carry buckets of water back and forth from the bathrooms to complete their science experiments! These conditions are clearly not conducive to learning. In a district that is highly respected and celebrated as one of the top school districts in Illinois, we can do better. Our students deserve better! Closing Haines allows us to perform the necessary upgrades to Thompson and Wredling. Once the renovations are complete, all middle school students will have access to upgraded facilities, including air conditioning, modernized science labs, and larger cafeterias. While I do support the closure of Haines, I also recognize the heightened emotions people are experiencing. To make the transition as smooth as possible, board members and administrators need to acknowledge any lingering concerns and provide support to the individuals who will be affected by the changes. Once closed, ideally the middle school would be sold, occupied, and adequately maintained.District officials expect the student population in the district will continue to decline in coming years. Do you believe that projection is accurate? If not, why? If so, would you support the closure of any other district schools, as was contemplated last year?I am hopeful that we will see an increase in the number of students our district services in the future! We have seen an indisputable decline in enrollment in recent years, but these numbers are expected to come back. The statistician hired by the district stated in his snapshot scenario, by the end of the 2019-2020 school year, elementary school enrollments "are expected to rebound and increase by a little more than 2% over the totals for 2014." This paints an optimistic picture of where our district might be headed. We are currently seeing many other positive trends such as a housing price increase, birth rates rising, and an improved economy. All of these things combined with potential growth in the form of new housing developments within the district's boundaries could possibly bring in more students. In the absence of any compelling evidence, I do not support the closure of other schools in the district at this time. Any future discussions would need to be based on new research.Jason Pearson was selected as the next superintendent to replace Don Schlomann. What are your top goals for Mr. Pearson?1. Cultivate a learning environment in which every student has the maximum opportunity to achieve academic excellence with a focus on enrichment as much as on remediation.2. Foster, encourage, and preserve constructive relationships among students, staff, families, and community members.3. Develop and implement a district-wide Strategic Plan that reflects the collective vision of D303 based on input from all community stakeholders.4. Maintain the high quality education parents expect and deserve while working with the board to continue the current practice of spending conservatively and abating taxes whenever possible.In recent years, school board members have crafted the budget with guideline of limiting annual property tax levy increases to 2 percent or less. Can/should that guideline remain in place?Yes, we should make every effort to keep that guideline in place! School board members are elected to balance the needs of the students with the needs of the taxpayers in the community. If we can continue this practice without compromising the quality of education our students receive, everyone wins.Do you support the current plan to borrow money to replace the athletic field at St. Charles North High School with synthetic turf? Do you support a related plan to borrow money to remodel the Norris Recreation Center?The field at North High School needs improvement due to poor quality of soil and problems with drainage. Presently, the natural grass playing surface is minimally utilized. The estimated use for these purposes is currently 66.5 hours per school year. With synthetic turf, the field would be utilized for an estimated 1637 hours per year. While the initial cost of installing the turf is higher, when you take into consideration the cost of maintenance which is much lower than that of natural turf, the cost over time ends up being lower for synthetic turf than it is for natural. In addition, the synthetic turf could be utilized by more groups from North High School, including physical education classes, which drives down the cost per use hour in the first 10 years from $630.30 for the natural turf, to $77.89 for synthetic. With all things being equal in regards to safety, it makes sense to opt for the synthetic turf. It allows more opportunities for student use and could be open to public use during off hours. Lastly, there is the potential to earn additional revenue through facility rentals with a synthetic turf field.The Norris Recreation Center was a gift to the district, therefore I do believe it is our responsibility to perform the necessary upgrades. However, I am not sure the rationale for this decision has been communicated well enough to the public. Taxpayers might need more information in order to fully understand the scope of this problem.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?I have attended 13 out of the last 14 regular board meetings; I made a proactive decision to become informed and participate in this process because I care about our children, this school district, and the entire city of St. Charles. I am passionate about furthering the progress we make in the field of education and understand the challenges of doing this while preserving the balanced budget our current board members have worked so hard to maintain. I recently learned in our community, around 60% of households do not have school aged children. This is a large percentage of the population whose needs should also be taken into consideration when making decisions. Being respectful of the needs and opinions of others while working within the dynamics of the group to reach effective solutions for students is one of my top priorities. I hope to prove I am responsible and trustworthy by upholding ethical standards, engaging in thoughtful dialogue, asking questions, formulating educated opinions, and making evidence based decisions.If given the chance to represent the residents of St. Charles as a School Board Member, I would view it as an opportunity to build rapport and develop relationships with District 303 staff members, students, and families, along with our business and community partners. I am excited for the opportunity to visit buildings and attend events when possible to learn more about the unique culture at each school, not just the one my children attend.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who believes in peace, compassion, and kindness.What is the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Be excellent to each other.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I embrace all my experiences and recognize the role each had in making me the person I am today. Changing one thing could change everything.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?Writing is a creative outlet that allows me to express myself and communicate effectively with others.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Live and let live.