Pelleg Graupe: 2025 candidate for Aptakisic-Tripp Elementary District 102

Bio

Office sought: Aptakisic-Tripp Elementary District 102 (Vote for 4)

City: Buffalo Grove

Age: 52

Occupation: Accounting

Previous offices held: Aptakisic Tripp District 102 board since 2009

Why are you running for this office? Is there a particular issue that motivates you?

I am a passionate believer in the benefits of public education. It is our duty to help give every student the basis for becoming the best person they can be by providing each student the tools (academic and social emotional) to grow and achieve their goals.

What is the role of the school board in setting and monitoring the curriculum?

With the advice of administration, we are responsible for the curriculum. We make sure that it is in alignment with state standards. We are responsible that students are growing academically. We represent the local community in setting any curriculum, but that does not mean that we drive a local agenda in setting it.

We are then responsible that the teachers and administration implements the curriculum effectively and enhances student growth.

Are there curriculum issues within the district that you feel need particular attention from the board?

We need to guard against activist issues getting into our curriculum in an unbiased manner. In the recent past, issues related to critical race theory and transgender students have been contentious in districts across the country.

While we are aware of these debates, we need to make sure that we are teaching our students (and providing our faculty and administration the support they need) without bias. We need to stand against people pushing agendas rather than people pushing learning.

How do you view your role in confronting policy or curriculum controversies: provide leadership even if unpopular, give a voice to constituents — even ones with whom you disagree, or defer to state authorities?

One of the most powerful and direct ways that a school board exercises power is by setting policy.

Everyone should feel free to come to the school board and make their opinion known about policy and curriculum issues. Each individual should feel that their opinion was acknowledged and considered.

As a school board member, we are then duty bound to consider the various views presented (including the views of the administration and teachers) and decide, as a school board, on a course of action or a policy. That may be popular, it may be unpopular.

We may also opt to allow for a student and their family an accommodation (such as the opportunity to select a different book from their peers to meet the same learning objective).

Describe your experience working in a group setting to determine policy. What is your style in such a setting to reach an agreement and manage school district policy? Explain how you think that will be effective in producing effective actions and decisions for your school board.

I have been on the district policy committee since I first took office. That committee working with the administration at every meeting and presents recommendations to the school board as a whole.

In the committee, we are often like-minded, but on occasion we disagree. When there are disagreements at the committee level, or even agreement, but we recognize that a policy might be controversial. We are not afraid to highlight them when presenting them to the board as a whole, allow each position to be understood at the board level and then left to a vote of the board as a whole.

The various positions are presented in a respectful manner and the discussion is fair.

Ultimately everyone needs to understand that each person is advocating on behalf of what they think is best for their child and their community. We might disagree on a topic, but hopefully we are all coming at the discussion from that same place in our hearts.

What is your assessment of the school district's diversity and equity efforts? Do you support the continuation or enhancement of such programs, of would you rather see them diminished. Please explain your reasoning.

Our schools are diverse institutions serving diverse student populations. In the homes of our students, we have over 70 languages spoken. We cannot and should not ignore the diversity in our district. Instead we celebrate our diversity and allow each student to feel proud of who each student is, while respecting the diversity of every other student.

Our students are coming of age in a world in which they will likely work with people from around the world and from different cultures. They need to understand that, be rest for that and be able to be successful in that environment.

Our district has created a “Portrait of a Graduate,” a guide on who we would like each student to be on matriculating from District 102. One powerful piece of that portrait is that each student should be an ethical and open-minded global citizen. They should embrace the opinions and beliefs of others, and when they disagree, they should disagree respectfully.

What makes you the best candidate for the job?

I have experience on the board, but I am not ambitious. I embrace hearing from people with multiple points of view and making sure that they feel heard.

Ultimately, I am a strong and proud advocate for our students and the belief that with the support of our teachers, administration and the school board, each student will learn and learn to love learning.

What’s one good idea you have to better your district that no one is talking about yet?

Let each student have a capstone project in eighth grade that would cross disciplines. A report on a person or topic that incorporates elements of English, language arts, social studies, science, mathematics and the arts to highlight the students education and helps them realize that learning is not done in silos.