Sharon Kucik: Candidate Profile

Back to DuPage High School District 88 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: Villa ParkWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: DuPage High School District 88 School Board (4-year Terms Age: 52Family: Tom - husband of 27 years Children: Christa - age 24 Kyle - age 21 Jeremy - age 20Occupation: Family Care Coordinator at Easter SealsEducation: B.S. In Psychology - University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign B.S. In Medical Technology - University of Illinois at ChicagoCivic involvement: Candidate did not respond.Elected offices held: school Board MemberQuestions 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?I am satisfied that we are preparing the students in our district for life after high school. We have aligned our curriculum to the common core so that each course has a high level of rigor. If there are better programs out there that would be beneficial for our students' learning then I would try to make those changes.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? Again, be specific.All districts will be looking at a pension shift in some form in the near future. We have already been preparing for this cost shift by reducing staff through attrition, having all our contacts align with the CPI and reducing expenses that our CFO deemed necessary to run a more efficient district to name a few. Currently we have not cut programs but know that with less money we will have to think outside the box in the way we teach our students. At this time I don't think we need a tax increase if we can eliminate most of the unfunded mandates that are putting strains on schools' budgets right now.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?As I stated before we have aligned all our employee contracts to the CPI because that way raises are not out of line with what the district is receiving from local income.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?No I would not support this because it would set a precedent that all adminstration would be entitled to this benefit. It also sends a wrong message to the staff if we ask them for concessions and then increase a salary of a retiring superintendent or administrator beyond our means. The community would also see us at being hypocritical if we need to make cuts yet give a big payout.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?Candidate did not respond.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Pope Francis because I see him as really listening and trying to work with the everyone.What's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?If you make a commitment you must follow through until it is completed.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?Becoming a nurse.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?Some of my psychology classes because they help me understand how to work with different people.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Be the best person you can be in everything you do.