District 211 candidates debate teachers’ role

All seven candidates for the Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211 school board say they know how important the roles teachers play in education.

Where they differ is how those roles are defined.

Roman Golash, a retired Army colonel from Palatine, said teachers should play a vital role in establishing a student’s values.

“It’s a matter of our students developing a moral compass, for them to have belief systems with faith and core values,” Golash said.

Golash takes issue with history teachers, believing students aren’t taught to love America, but to resent it. He feels if students took more pride in the U.S. they would better understand radical Islam, which he said is the top threat to students and the country.

None of the Golash’s opponents for District 211 school board would say if they agreed with his thoughts on radical Islam. And none, Golash included, would say how they could differentiate between a “law-abiding” Muslim and one who posed a threat.

Besides Islam, there are other issues that could be considered controversial, especially in social studies classes, and the candidates shared how they would want teachers to handle them in school.

Incumbent George Brandt, of Palatine, said Golash’s views represent only “1/1,000,000 of what you need to get into the heads” of students. He advocates educating students with a variety of perspectives.

“It’s a piece,” Brandt said of Golash’s beliefs. “It’s nothing more than that.”

Political newcomer Mucia Burke, of Schaumburg, agrees with Brandt and said she wants conversation sparked in the classroom.

“As long as all the facts are presented, we shouldn’t be one way or another. It’s a very diverse world and knowledge is very powerful,” she said.

Charles Fritz, of Inverness, said you “cannot force beliefs on someone else.” A former board member trying to win back a seat, Fritz wants teachers to avoid coming into the classroom with an agenda to influence students politically.

Incumbent Richard Gerber, of Schaumburg, said teachers trying to establish those values sets a dangerous priority for the district and community. He’d rather have teachers ensure students are better prepared to compete for jobs when they graduate.

Bill Robertson, a Palatine resident and an assistant principal for Jefferson High School in Rockford, said his personal beliefs don’t matter.

“We don’t want to strong-arm our personal beliefs on students,” he said.

M. Bryan Neal, of Palatine, said teachers have many responsibilities, but it should be parents or houses of worship charged with teaching students values.

“It’s going to be hard for our teachers to do what society should be doing,” Neal said.

There are four seats at stake in Tuesday’s election.

District 211 is the state’s largest high school district with Conant, Fremd, Hoffman Estates, Palatine and Schaumburg high schools. The district stretches into Elk Grove Village, Hanover Park, Hoffman Estates, Inverness, Palatine, Rolling Meadows, Schaumburg and South Barrington.