Andrea Cline: 2025 candidate for Park Ridge Elementary District 64 board

Bio

Office sought: Park Ridge Elementary District 64 board (Vote for 4)

City: Park Ridge

Age: 46

Occupation: Environmental scientist

Previous offices held: None

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

I am running for the District 64 board to uphold the commitment to spend the taxpayer’s dollars responsibly, use my professional expertise to help oversee and implement the referendum, and to support the continued investment in excellence in our schools.

We all live in the community, contribute to school funding, and are feeling the results of a dollar that doesn’t reach as far. It is essential that District 64 spends the taxpayer’s money wisely. It is the responsibility of the board to safeguard the public’s investment in our greatest community asset — our schools.

This includes spending referendum dollars wisely, resulting in projects that are on time and under budget. I will use my professional experience overseeing large infrastructure projects to help support the district to deliver quality facilities.

Lastly, District 64 has seen many changes in leadership. The current administration has achieved so much and has big plans for the future, including the implementation of the student services action plan and the middle school review, and improving curriculum and facilities. It will be my goal to support the experts, hold them accountable, and foster a stable environment.

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

The school board establishes goals and priorities for the district, determines policy, and oversees the budget, leadership, and administration. In Illinois, school boards approve the curriculum.

District 64 has a Department of Student Learning which is tasked with regular curriculum reviews and making curriculum recommendations, including meeting state requirement. It is these experts, with the oversight of the administration and the board that set the curriculum.

The role of the board is to approve curriculum, hold our professionals accountable for implementation, oversee and monitor, ensure that state and local requirements are being met, and make sure that local community input is heard.

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

The district is currently and will continue to take a hard look at math and language arts. As a District 64 board member, I would focus on ensuring the curriculum addresses the academic achievement goals and would want to know if the current curriculum is what students need to achieve MAP growth targets.

For the middle school students, the district is in the midst of the middle school review which takes a comprehensive look at the balancing academic needs for grades 6-8. As this is an ongoing effort, the review and approval will need board attention when it is complete.

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?

I view my role in confronting policy or curriculum controversies as one of leadership. Leadership in this position means listening, making sure all voices are heard, representing all constituents, and fostering an understanding of all sides of the issues.

One of the most important strategies in dealing with controversy is listening. When hearing different sides of an issue, commonalities can usually be found. It is the responsibility of an elected school board member to represent the constituents of the office in which they hold, whether they agree or disagree with their perspective.

All voices deserve to be heard. If there are unpopular decisions that are made, I also find it helpful to explain why those are being made. Often times, there are misconceptions about the decisions that can be ameliorated with explanation.

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 personally will bring a listen first mentality, with a desire to have every interested party heard to the board. I want to increase collaboration, both within the Park Ridge-Niles community and across other similar districts. It is imperative that elected officials work together across government entities, and not at cross purposes.

To this end, I bring to the board my history and current involvement with the city and the park district through volunteerism, advocacy, and meeting attendance. I bring to the board leadership experience, including facilitating large group planning, the skill of working with government bodies, and experience managing large infrastructure projects. I understand that I would be one member of a seven-member board and will work with an open mind to arrive at consensus. Ultimately, the board’s responsibility is to serve the children and the community.

As current chair of the city of Park Ridge Sustainability Commission and a volunteer in various organizations, I believe it is important for all board members to be present, come prepared, and be willing to listen. I like to ensure that all members are heard and responsibilities are divided.

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.

In the 2021-26 Strategic Plan, District 64 identifies Culture, including bullying and inclusivity, as an area of improvement and a goal was created to “Enhance Diversity, Inclusion, Equity and Access.”

As part of that goal, one objective (“Review and grow hiring practices for greater outreach”) has been met, while the other three objectives are in progress. Strategic planning will take place once again in 2027.

Our schools need to be a reflection of our community and the larger world in which we expect our students to function. In order to set our students up for success, they need to be able to work with a diversity of people.

What makes you the best candidate for the job?

My experience makes me an excellent candidate for District 64. I have worked throughout my professional career and volunteer gigs to develop planning documents, including facilitating the creation of goals and mission statements, strategic and long-term plans, and implementation plans.

I am an effective, efficient, and organized leader. I am eager to support the administration who manage the schools which allows the teachers to teach and, ultimately, give the students the best environment to learn.

In my career, I help to oversee large infrastructure projects. This has given me insight into how to hold people accountable to deliver projects on time and under budget. At this time of implementing the referendum, this is a crucial skill.

I have volunteered for the community by serving as the city of Park Ridge’s chair of the Sustainability Commission, a member of the Sustainability Task Force, Community Health Commission, and the park district’s Committee for Local Government Efficiency.

Because of this experience, I have seen how local government can work together and will strive for increased coordination.

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

I am excited to further investigate how District 64 can set money aside in a capital projects account to fund the long term maintenance of the district’s buildings so that there are no future referendums. Keeping District 64’s portion of the tax bill consistent will help residents plan for the future and continue to support bringing new families to Park Ridge and Niles.

School building construction is the second-highest capital expenditure of state and local funds, trailing only investments in infrastructure like roads. It makes sense that the upkeep of these facilities is costly too, and therefore, must be considered as a planned investment in the future. In order to do this effective, District 64 needs to establish a capital projects account with restricted use.