Matthew Saternus: Candidate profile

Bio

Name: Matthew Saternus

City: Hoffman Estates

Office sought: District 211 Board of Education

Age: 35

Family: Wife, Lauren. Daughters, Sydney (6) and Quinn (4).

Occupation: Firefighter

Education: BA from Duke University

Facebook: @MattSaternusforD211

Issue questions

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

The most important thing for District 211 is refusing to be complacent. 211 is a great district with many strong programs. They're improving AP and Dual Credit participation, closing the achievement gap, and working hard to make sure students are prepared to be competitive in a global economy. The key in the next four years will be continuing to find new ways to partner with local colleges and businesses to push college and career readiness even further.

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?

District 211 has taken strong steps to make sure that its students are prepared for a variety of post-secondary options. One change that I would like to see is an expansion of the Global Competitive Skills program. Currently, these skills are taught and evaluated in the English department. I would like to see them applied across the academic disciplines so that students can see how they apply in a variety of contexts.

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.

District 211 is in the enviable position of being debt free. The responsibility of the Board of Education will be maintaining that status while continuing to provide a great education for our students. I do not believe that cuts are necessary at this time. I would support a tax increase if it were necessary to maintain the quality of education that the district provides, but I do not support the idea of raising taxes annually without a reason.

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.

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 I'm elected to the Board of Education, my goal will be to make sure that District 211 students receive the best educational opportunities possible. That starts with having great teachers and staff. Our teachers work tirelessly for our students and should be paid like the well-trained professionals that they are. All that said, there cannot be a blanket answer to this question. If the budget allows us to be fiscally responsible and pay our teachers more, I would support that. If, for whatever reason, there is less money available, the Board would need to work with the teachers on ways to save money.

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?

Administrators are a key part of our school system, and they should be fairly compensated. End of career raises designed to game the pension system are not part of that fair compensation. Everyone's inherent sense of fair play knows that raises should be earned based on performance. When we step outside those bounds of fair play, we hurt the public's trust in our institutions, not to mention the financial health of the state.