Kevin Carrick: 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: CaryWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Cary Elementary D26Age: 42Family: Married, 4 childrenOccupation: VP Production, Healthcare publishingEducation: BS, Illinois State University 1991Civic involvement: School Board, coachingElected offices held: Appointed Cary District 26 School Board August 2010Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: NoCandidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 Excellence in educationKey Issue 2 Fiscal responsibilityKey Issue 3 Candidate did not respond.Questions Answers What prompted you to run for the D26 board? If you're a newcomer, how will you make a difference? If you're an incumbent, how have you made a difference?I decided to run for a full term because it is a critical time for the District and it#146;s important to keep a cohesive School Board together in order to continue the positive momentum towards recovery. Of the current Board, 5 of 7 members have been on for less than 2 years while only one of the remaining two members has been on the Board for more than 3 years. I feel that the frequent Board turnover, predominantly from resignations, has had an adverse effect on District operations which also led to Administrative turnover. District 26 has always provided the children of Cary a good education but has been terrible stewards of the communities money for the past decade.The board has discussed closing a school to save money, but administrators recommend against it. What is your position and why?I support the Administrations recommendation to save by attrition and not to close a school resulting in more layoffs. I will continue to support the option(s) that has the least amount of negative impact on the education of the children in Cary. My hope is that I won#146;t have to choose between closing another school or a return to deficit spending.Did you support the resident bid to raise $4.3 million? If you were a part of the stalled parent-led bailout attempt, why did the initiative fail to get off the ground?I can#146;t say NO strong enough concerning this group. In fact, I spoke out against this group while still a community member in the August 12, 2010 Board meeting. This group made claims that the $4.3 million was already collected and in a bank account. I don#146;t believe the money was ever real and that it was an attempt to financial encumber the District with commitments it couldn#146;t keep should the grant fall through.District 26 will continue to face budget reductions. Do you support further program cuts in order to balance the budget? If so, which programs would you reduce or eliminate? If not, how would you ensure the district's financial viability?I don#146;t believe there are any program cuts left to do. Future reductions will come from the operations part of the district and not from reading, writing or arithmetic. The district needs to continue to keep expenditures in check and live within our means.How satisfied are you that your school district is adequately preparing students for the next stage in their lives? What changes, if any, do you think need to be made to ensure academic success?The one constant over this long period of chaos has been the academic achievements of the children in Cary. Due to the fact that we have involved parents, great volunteerism, a dedicated teaching and administration staff, along with a supportive community, I only see our academic success continuing to climb higher. I am very satisfied.