Shana Sparber: 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: Maple ParkWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Twitter: Candidate did not respond.Facebook: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Kaneland Unit District 302 School Board Age: 43Family: I am married with 3 daughters.Occupation: AccountantEducation: MBA - University of Wisconsin at MadisonBS/Accountancy - University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignCertified Public AccountantCivic involvement: Citizen's Advisory Committee (2005-2016)Finance Advisory Committee (2005-2009)Elected offices held: School Board Member of Kaneland CUSD #302 since October 2016Questions 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?I believe in Kaneland's mission to graduate all students college, career and community ready. I'd like students to have the opportunity to explore a variety of experiences that hopefully will guide them in finding their passion. There isn't a single issue that has motivated me to run for this office. Instead I'm more generally focused on continuing to improve the quality of education within our limited resources.What do you think about the process for measuring student success in your district? Is it adequate? What changes, if any, do you propose?There are a variety of ways student success is measured in the District, but many involve local and state/national assessment data. Local assessment data is helpful to guide in personalized learning decisions and to provide a data point to evaluate student achievement. State or national assessment data is also important to consider. The change to the PARCC assessment over the last few years left some gaps including eliminating the ACT portion, decreased participation rates and delayed reporting of results. However, progress is being made in these areas. Student success is also more than test scores. Students need to learn Kaneland's core values of integrity, respect, responsibility, citizenship and commitment to excellence to be prepared for life.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?Ultimately the Board of Education is responsible to ensure the curriculum is meeting the needs of the students. I agree with the District's commitment to personalized learning through educators knowing their students, creating leading edge learning environments and making interdisciplinary connections. The school board looks to curriculum and education professionals in our district to provide specific recommendations for the Board's consideration. The Board ensures these curriculum recommendations are aligned to state standards and the strategic plan while also monitoring performance.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 or fee increases?School funding in Illinois is a challenge for school districts both due to the funding levels and uncertainty. Cost shifts that are being considered from the State to local districts are concerning and the delayed timing and uncertainty of what funding will ultimately be received makes managing the school district's finances more difficult than it should be. Currently the District is projecting a deficit. The Board expects to decrease planned expenditures to work toward a balanced budget while attempting to minimize the impact on achieving the District's goals.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?All students should have access to a quality education, which I believe the Kaneland School District provides to its community. I think the State should be concerned about historically disadvantaged students that often attend underfunded schools. However, I don't believe any school choice or voucher system is appropriate or needed for the students in our community.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?Candidate did not respond.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Candidate did not respond.What is the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Candidate did not respond.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?Candidate did not respond.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?Candidate did not respond.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Candidate did not respond.