Susan Kerr: Candidate Profile

Back to Elgin-Area Unit 46 School Board 4-year terms

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: BartlettWebsite: https://sites.google.com/site/suekerrforu46/ (not public yet)Office sought: Elgin-Area Unit 46 School Board 4-year terms Age: 58Family: I have been married to Bruce Peterson for almost 33 years. We have three children. Our daughter is a nurse in New York, our oldest son is a lieutenant (j.g.) in the U.S. Navy, and our youngest son is an undergraduate at the University of Chicago.Occupation: Not currently employed; previously worked as a programmer/analyst.Education: B.A. Smith College M.A. University of ChicagoCivic involvement: U-46 Citizens' Advisory Council for about 20 years (includes participation in Curriculum, Finance, Enrollment and Facilities, Special Education, and Parent Group Network committees) Bartlett Little League DuPage County Fair Northern Illinois Food BankElected offices held: NoneQuestions Answers What is your position on standards-based grading, which has been controversial with parents, students and even some teachers? Did the district botch the implementation of this new system? What could it have done differently?The implementation of standards-based grading was not done well. Teachers were not all trained, communication with students and parents was poor, and expectations as to the outcomes were unclear. Implementation of any new program should involve training, communication, dialogue, and assessment. Personally, I am in favor of standards-based grading if it requires our students to demonstrate mastery of a subject before receiving a high grade. I am not, however, in favor of unrealistic expectations that tell students top grades are impossible. All three of my children mentioned that one of the big differences between high school and college was that in college they were no longer spoon-fed information and allowed to pile up small assignments to pad a grade. I believe that standards-based grading - done correctly - will better prepare our students for life beyond high school.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?I am not and have never been employed by a school district. No family member has been employed by U-46.Would you support holding the line on tax increases since the district has emerged from deficit spending and has a healthy surplus of roughly $50 million? Explain why or why not.First of all, I do not regard $50 million as a healthy surplus for a district of this size. At a recent U-46 School Board meeting, the Chief Financial Officer, Jeff King, announced that the district could be looking at a $30 million shortfall in revenue from the state for the remainder of the fiscal year which ends on June 30. In addition, the Illinois State Board of Education would like to see districts have 180 days cash on hand for them to receive its highest rating of on the School District Financial Profile. For U-46 this would be close to $200 million, an amount the district has not been able to achieve in years, if ever. That being said, I do not believe that the district can rely on future tax increases. Many tax payers are under a huge property tax burden. Because of a Kane County error, DuPage tax payers were doubly hit last year and Kane tax payers will be doubly hit this year to make up for the mistake. I believe we must look to the state to begin paying its fair share of education.Would you support a charter school within U-46? Why or why not?I would support a charter school within U-46 if it were non-profit; offered programs to all children, including those with special needs and English Language learners; and was held to the same standards of accountability as U-46. There are some very good charter schools but unfortunately the charter movement has been beset by scandals in recent years. Some charters have been accused of expelling difficult students who might negatively impact their results while others have made huge profits off of taxpayer dollars on exorbitant leases and management fees. On the whole, I think charters are no better and no worse than public schools. It is ironic that I have misgivings about charter schools since I home-schooled for a number of years. There is a lot of talk these days about school choice, about the dollars following the child. What does that mean? I have serious concerns that public schools will become the dumping grounds for kids no one else wants. I support any parent's right to educate his child as he chooses - private school, home school, charter school - but I believe that we need to focus on public schools since that is where the majority of children will be educated. It would be immoral, in my opinion, for the state to fund vouchers when for years it hasn't sent schools 100% of their General State Aid.What 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? Be specific.There are huge financial issues confronting all school districts in Illinois. It is unclear whether the state will have enough money to pay districts what it owes them for the remainder of this year. The new fiscal year brings even more questions. For the past 2 years the state has "pro-rated" General State Aid by 11% -- districts only have received 89% of what is due them. Whether this will happen next year, whether the cuts will be deeper, or whether state aid will be funded at 100% is very unclear. The fate of Senate Bill 1, which seeks to overhaul education funding by making it more equitable among districts, could also have a huge impact on U-46. U-46 is one of the districts that could benefit from this bill. How it will fare in the legislature is another unknown. In both cases, however, I believe U-46 should be actively engaged in promoting education funding in Springfield, including support for Senate Bill 1 and support for legislation that brings mandate relief to school districts. Revenue shortages cannot be made up in increased property taxes. U-46 could very well be forced to make cuts. I would like to see any cuts made kept as far from the classroom as possible, but that may not be realistic. Capital projects which can be safely deferred or modified, upgrades in technology or curriculum that are not essential, and extra-curricular activities are all painful choices that the district should consider before reducing teaching staff.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?The success of our students is the most important mission of this district. Every decision the district makes should be evaluated by how it impacts students. Does our curriculum challenge and engage our students, teaching them to be critical and thoughtful citizens? Do our students have access to the technology needed in this 21st century world? Do our teachers have the support and training needed to support our very diverse student population? These are some of the issues that face U-46, and financial challenges make them more difficult. As a school board member I will work to voice these issues, push the state to support all school children, and recognize that locally funds are limited and we will need to be creative.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Pope FrancisWhat's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Taking responsibility for your actions.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?Getting to know my grandparents better.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?History, because it gave me perspective.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Follow your dreams.