Renata Sliva: Candidate Profile

Back to Indian Prairie Unit District 204 School Board

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: NapervilleWebsite: http://www.renatasliva.com/Office sought: Indian Prairie Unit District 204 School Board Age: 56Family: married for 31 years, 8 childrenOccupation: stay at home mom for the past couple of decadesEducation: 4 years of collegeCivic involvement: involved in grassroots activismElected offices held: NoneQuestions Answers How satisfied are you that your school district is adequately 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 best grades are not the only way to a fulfilling life. Character and morality matter, too. Exposure to pornography, violence and bad language have a negative affect on children. I want the parents to know when such things occur at school. I have addressed this problem many times at school board meetings and some of my public comments can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/ipsd204watchdogWhat budgetary issues will your district have to confront during the next four years and what measures do you support to address them? If you believe cuts are necessary, be specific about programs and expenses that should be considered for reduction or elimination. On the income side, do you support any tax increases for local schools? Again, be specific.State of Illinois is in a bad shape financially, yet it adopted Common Core State Standards, a federal takeover of education, which is an untested program to "improve" education in the state and across the nation. There is only one certain thing about Common Core - it will be costly. So I would support any delay of further implementation of the standards. I would not support any tax increase. Last time we had a tax increase, a lot of people felt they were cheated as they voted for a high school to be built in one specific location, but it was built somewhere else.Are you currently employed by or retired from a school district, if so, which one? Is any member of your direct family - spouse, child or child-in-law - employed by the school district where you are seeking a school board seat?NoAs contract talks come up with various school employee groups -- teachers, support staff, etc. -- what posture should the school board take? Do you believe the district should ask for concessions from its employees, expect employee costs to stay about the same as they are now or provide increases in pay or benefits?Any contracts should reflect the current economic situation.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 would not support substantial increase in pay for the boost of pension benefits for superintendent/administrators at this time. Salary increase should reflect overall economic situation in Illinois.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?About 3 or 4 years ago our school district began slowly to discourage the celebration Valentine day and Halloween and replace them with all sorts of other celebrations. Many people may think this is benign situation that will not hurt anyone. But yesterday it was Christmas, today it is Valentine Day and Halloween and tomorrow it is Memorial Day and 4th of July. To take away traditional holidays is one way to take away the soul/identity of the nation. I would like to see American holidays back at our schools. Another issue is the situation of pro-life students. I believe that within the past few years they have been treated disrespectfully and differently than other groups of students.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Alveda King.What's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Not to make assumptions about people when I do not know their circumstances.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?When I was young, I really wanted to ride a horse.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?gym and math/geometryIf you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?keep seeking the truth