Cathy Dremel: Candidate profile

Bio

Name: Cathy Dremel

City: Batavia

Office sought: School board

Age: 51

Family: Husband Ray, Children Emily 21, Billy 19, Sarah 16

Occupation: Teacher

Education: BSC in Business Administration, DePaul University, MBA, Northern Illinois University, BA in Mathematics, Chadron State College, Teacher Licensure program, Northern Illinois University

Civic involvement: Past PTO officer, past Batavia Foundation for Educational Excellence Board member, past Girl Scout leader, frequent school volunteer, and current post-prom co-chair.

Previous elected offices held: Batavia school board

Incumbent? Yes, first elected 2011

Issue questions

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

Batavia is an amazing community with families that are committed to education and community involvement. But that does not mean that our students do not face issues and obstacles. One of the biggest concerns to all involved in education is the mental health of our students. High rates of anxiety and depression are just two examples of how mental health issues are impacting even our youngest learners. To that end, BPS101 has been working to address the Social and Emotional Learning of our students. This has been a focus of professional development in the District, and continues to be a priority for our staff moving forward, and the Board fully supports these efforts.

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?

Our school district is doing an excellent job in preparing students for the next stage in their lives. During transition from one level of school to the next, many supports are offered. There are school tours and parent information sessions supporting the transition from elementary to middle to high school. From middle school to high school, there is an excellent program run by our Link Crew that helps connect students in a variety of ways as they enter high school. We do a solid job of supporting students academically as evidenced by our graduation rates and college acceptances. We are also working to offer students access to more nontraditional opportunities, such as our partnership with the Batavia Chamber, to help students recognize nontraditional paths after high school. Finally, at all levels we are working to support students' Social Emotional learning to help them leave our schools as healthy, well-rounded individuals. Because we are always looking at the whole child, we will continue to make adjustments as student needs and interests become apparent, but I don't believe any specific changes need to be made at this time.

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 biggest budgetary issue school districts face is the uncertainty over revenues. State aid changes, unfunded mandates, potential pension cost shifts back to school districts, and timing of reimbursements from the state are just a few of the pressures that make school district budgeting difficult. Specifically in Batavia, our biggest concern is health care costs. The School Board has been working closely with our employees to contain these costs while still offering robust health care coverage, but there is still a great deal of progress that needs to be made in this area, and we continue to work toward this end. Cutting or eliminating programs is not something I see as necessary or would support. I also do not support tax increases. Thanks to great communication and leadership from Batavia's Chief Financial Officer, the Board has been able to make financial decisions that are often difficult, but focus on the long-term viability and financial health of our district. We recently received Financial Recognition status from the Illinois State Board of Education which illustrates the progress we have made to strengthen our financial health.

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?

Because of the work I have done for the past 8 years on the school board, I was inspired to complete a second bachelor's degree and a teacher training program. In 2017 I was hired to teach math at St. Charles East High School. No other member of my family is employed by BPS101 or any other school district.

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?

In terms of posture, BPS participates in Interest Based Bargaining which is a collaborative approach to contract negotiations that removes the adversarial posture that often exists in these situations. I believe our employees are our most important asset and I am proud that we provide a competitive compensation package and an excellent work environment. Overall, individual pay will increase commensurate with experience and further education, but the Board has committed itself to living within its revenues, so a major goal has been keeping total cost increases within the bounds of CPI. We have gotten much better at balancing overall expenditures with overall revenues in recent years. Although there are occasions when employee pay and benefits may outstrip this target, having a reference point has greatly aided the Board, and was certainly a factor in us receiving Financial Recognition from ISBE.

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 do not support increases to help boost pension benefits. Late career pay spikes are unfair to Illinois taxpayers as they create a situation where a local Board makes a decision but avoids having to bear the consequences of the decision. Instead, these costs become a burden to all taxpayers, without those taxpayers having any recourse against, or input to, the original decision-makers.