Carole M. Jones: Candidate profile

Bio

Name: Carole M. Jones

City: Naperville

Office sought: 204 IPSD School Board

Age:

Family: Christopher (husband), Haley (daughter) and Logan (son)

Occupation: National Retail Sales Manager for Dole Packaged Foods

Education: BS in Business Administration

Civic involvement: Co-Founder and Director of SOS for 2e (Supports, Options and Solutions for Twice Exceptional Children) and Board of Directors for Chicago Gifted Community Center

Previous elected offices held: None

Incumbent: If yes, when were first elected? No

Website:

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Issue questions

What are the most important issues facing your district and how do you intend to address them?

Meeting the needs of all learners. Promoting a child centered approach where resources are spent on supporting students to reach their potential. Training is key. The need for teachers and administrators who have both the knowledge and the ability to teach complex students is more critical today than ever before. On-the-job training is essential to ensure teachers and staff have the skills needed to teach all students in their classroom.

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 with the current progress but realize that as an organization we should never just be satisfied but continue to seek avenues to improve.

Areas of focus:

• Encourage students to find creative solutions to challenges

• Teach collaboration as a skill

• Analyze and evaluate information accuracy

• Teach tolerance so students are open to unfamiliar cultures and ideas

• Coach students to embrace and learn through their strengths - one size doesn't fit all

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? Be specific.

The following are budgetary issues facing 204 IPSD:

• Teacher pay

• Maintaining buildings and grounds

• Shifting from a growing to a mature district

I am not in favor for a tax increase at this time. I would recommend a Zero Base Budgetary practice. Zero Base Budget is a simple concept being embraced by many financial leaders. It proposes instead of relying on historical forecast budgets, start with zero and build budgets based on costs with justified needs. This practices encourages efficiency and uncovers monetary waste.

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 employed at the 204 IPSD nor is any member of my family.

As 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?

At the last contract teachers received a raise for the first time but are still underpaid versus 10 similar surrounding districts. Benefits, salary and pension need to be examined as a total package to ensure competitiveness to allow us to retain the talent in the district. During negotiations I would request that teachers and staff provide feedback to determine what requests are working and which ones are not. For example, are we seeing expected outcomes on Wednesday morning development or is there a better structure?

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?

I would not support this practice. Wages and pension benefits should be based on the position not the employee circumstances.