Jessica Neyzelman: Candidate profile

Bio

Name: Jessica Neyzelman

City: Mundelein

Office sought: Elementary District 75 Board of Education Member

Age:

Family:

Occupation: Global Marketing Manager

Education: Bachelor's Degree in Biology, and an MBA with a concentration in Healthcare Management

Civic involvement:

Previous elected offices held:

Incumbent: If yes, when were first elected?

Website:

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

While our district is facing challenges similar to many others outside of our community, we are fortunate to have amazing teachers and administrative personnel who work tirelessly to help students of different backgrounds and with different needs to excel. The struggle lies in how we continue to encourage the development and growth in new classroom and after school programs in a way that is financially and operationally sustainable, and positions students with different backgrounds and different needs to succeed. As an experienced businessperson working for several Fortune 500 companies and mother of a child with special needs, I know how to develop thoughtful, sustainable plans and to effectively oversee the execution of them.

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?

There is always work to be done and areas of improvement, but I have consistently been impressed with the teachers and administrative personnel who have educated my child. I would like to take my positive perspective on what the school district is doing well and use the areas where we are successful to enhance our approaches in other areas.

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.

I would like to continue to see the conservative financial spending and work through the challenge to ensure the use of the funds that state provides are appropriately used to give school children the programs that make them successful.

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?

No and No.

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?

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 pay increases that are not tied to specific and pre-determined performance metrics, including length of service, student and community satisfaction, or other appropriate measurement data. In sum, increasing a person's salary solely to boost their pension benefits post-retirement would be fiscally irresponsible and inappropriate.