Teresa J. Witt: 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: Sugar GroveWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Kaneland Community Unit D302Age: 46Family: I am married with three children: Elliot - 16 (Junior at Kaneland High School), Ethan - 14 (Freshman at Kaneland High School), Erica - 12 (6th grader at Kaneland Harter Middle School).Occupation: I am a library assistant working in technical services at the Waubonsee Community College Todd Library. I am also a substitute circulation clerk at the Batavia Public Library.Education: Bachelor of Science in Journalism and Mass Communications, A.Q. Miller School of Journalism, Kansas State University, 1988Civic involvement: Kaneland CUSD #302 Finance Advisory Committee Member since 2004, Communications Director, Between Friends Food Pantry of Sugar GrovePrevious experience as Communications Director for Citizens for Kaneland, Kaneland CUSD #302 Gifted Advisory Committee member, Kaneland John Shields PTO SecretaryElected offices held: Candidate did not respond.Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: NoCandidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 Ranking the issues facing the Kaneland School Board in order of importance or priority would be short-sighted. No one issue can stand above the others, as they all directly affect the quality of the education we give our students, the impact on our taxpayers and employees, and the services we provide our community. What is most important is finding balance among the many facets of school governance. Certainly, the goal must be to provide the best possible education to our students while maintaining the district's financial health, and while being a good steward of taxpayers' money. Getting there requires making prudent fiscal decisions and maintaining a balanced budget, setting high educational standards for our students and providing them with the tools and skills for success, and being accountable to the entire Kaneland community. It is a web of interdependence that requires constant diligence to achieve an equitable balance.Key Issue 2 Candidate did not respond.Key Issue 3 Candidate did not respond.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?The Kaneland School District implemented this year an ambitious school improvement plan with specific goals designed to improve student readiness across all levels and to better prepare Kaneland High School students for college. While student test scores and college readiness results have not been as high as they should be, this plan is targeting Kaneland's weaknesses, and putting an action plan in place to address them. Also included is a plan to increase academic rigor at Kaneland High School, which should result in more Kaneland High School students meeting or exceeding college readiness benchmarks. The success of these initiatives is vital to improving the quality of education at Kaneland, and the board of education must remain committed to continuing them.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?The ongoing economic crisis and the disastrous condition of the State of Illinois' finances have caused much uncertainty not only for school districts, but all local taxing bodies. Despite recent action in the Illinois legislature designed to generate more revenue, the future of state funding for education remains undetermined. In addition, falling home prices have placed an increased burden on taxpayers, and the current halt in development means that there will be no added commercial sources of tax revenue. Faced with this uncertainty, it is prudent for the Kaneland School District to continue to exercise fiscal restraint. Holding the line on spending and maintaining a balanced budget are paramount to ensuring that the Kaneland School District maintains its financial health. If and when cuts are needed, they should always first be made to those areas which have the least amount of direct impact on students. Core curriculum programs and educational services must be maintained as much as possible. While the financial outlook is bleak, seeking a tax increase at this time would put added stress on taxpayers already burdened by the poor state of the economy, and would not be prudent in the foreseeable future.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.It is important for a Board of Education to be comprised of members of varying backgrounds, and over-representation by any one group could create bias. Having one or two board members who are current or former educators can be beneficial, but educators should not comprise a majority of a seated board. I am not currently, nor have I been in the past employed as an educator. Of greater concern this election cycle is the possiblity that a majority of the board could be comprised of members with current or former personal or family affiliations with the Kaneland School District. As the board enters into contract talks with teachers in 2012, it would be detrimental to have a majority of the board of education having a personal stake in the outcome of the negotiations.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?The board should always enter any contract negotiations with the intent of arriving at a decision that is in the best interest of the community as a whole. Whether or not there should be concessions made or increases provided must be budget driven. Given the current economic climate, it would be unwise for Kaneland to enter into an agreement with any group of employees that would place the Kaneland School District in further financial jeopardy. Decisions must be made that are not only feasible at the time of the negotiations, but also sustainable for the duration of the contract period.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?I do not support the practice of inflating superintendent or administrator salaries in the final years of service to boost pension benefits. Doing so not only requires additional money from the school budget during the final years, but also overly depletes the teachers' pension fund, making it unfair to younger teachers and the taxpayers who pay into the system. It is a practice that takes unfair advantage of loopholes in the system.