John Karas: Candidate Profile

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:BioKey IssuesQA Bio City: Tower LakesWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Barrington Area Unit D220Age: 68Family: Married, two Daughters, Two GranddaughtersOccupation: Small Business OwnerEducation: Bachelor of Business Administration, University of Toledo, 1968Civic involvement: N/AElected offices held: N/AHave you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: NOCandidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 My campaign platform aligns itself with the ideas of studentsfirst. For additional information please visit studentsfirst220.org. Our major issue is that tax dollars should be spent on effective instructional programs not on bureaucracy and special interests. Results oriented,with teacher performance evaluated.Key Issue 2 Flexibility in addressing financial constraints. Reducing teaching staff, thereby increasing class size cannot be the only budget savings approach. With Illinois' budget problems pension plans must be reevaluated or newer teachers will not have a sustainable pension.Key Issue 3 Seventy six percent of the budget goes to salaries. To high a percentage of that goes for administrators.Questions Answers How satisfied are you that your district is 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 220 has a good percentage of students going off to college. But we need to do more in basics such as math and science.What budget issues will the district have to confront? What measures do you support to address them? If cuts are needed, be specific about programs and expenses that should be reduced or eliminated. Do you support any tax increases for local schools?In todays economic environment increased taxes cannot be justified. Budget reductions can be sought through better management, elimination of waste and financial fraud.Is experience as a teacher or support from a union valuable because it suggests educational insights or detrimental because it creates pro-teacher bias? Please clarify whether you have such experience or would accept union support.Unions and management need to come together to promote what they say they are striving for--student achievement. An area that we can work with the unions, is compensation based on this goal, not seniority or post graduate degrees. Results oriented.As contract talks come up with various employee groups, what posture should the board take? Do you believe the district should ask for concessions, expect employee costs to stay about the same as they are now or provide increases in pay or benefits?If there is to be a pension plan left for younger teachers changes need to be made. It is imperative that the union and board work together to seek a solution that is fair to the teachers without compromising the students--and I mean the students.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!! This would not happen in the private sector and is a taxpayer give away. Our current superintendent will retire at age 55 with a yearly pension exceeding $200,000. This is unsustainable.