Allison Fosdick: 2021 candidate for Indian Prairie District 204

Challenger Allison Fosdick, one of 11 candidates running for four, 4-year terms in Indian Prairie Unit District 204, responds to the Daily Herald candidate questionnaire for the April 6, 2021, local election.

The candidates are: incumbents Laurie Donahue of Naperville and Susan Taylor-Demming of Naperville; and challengers Shannon Adcock of Naperville, Allison Fosdick of Naperville, Saba Haider of Aurora, Robert O. Harris of Naperville, Supna C. Jain of Naperville, Marina Kosak of Naperville, Yanmei May Liang of Naperville, Rajesh Narayan of Naperville, and Kader Sakkaria of Naperville.

In-person early voting with paper ballots is now available at DuPage County Fairgrounds Building 5, 2015 Manchester Road, Wheaton. In-person early voting with touch-screen voting begins March 22 at locations throughout the county. Learn more at www.dupageco.org/earlyvoting/.

For more election coverage, visit dailyherald.com.

Bio

City: Naperville

Age: 43

Occupation: English professor at Aurora University

Civic involvement: vice president, Orchestra Parents Association at Neuqua Valley High School, 2020-present; director/vice president, Silver Springs Estates Homeowners Association, 2013-present; active member, Magical Starlight Theatre, Naperville Park District, 2013-present; PTA president, Spring Brook Elementary School, 2016-18; board member, Breckenridge Breakers Swim Team, 2016, 2018; Art Awareness volunteer, Spring Brook Elementary School, 2012-20; and board member, Centennial Beach Mudrats Swim Team, 2006-07.

Q&A

Q: Why are you running for this office, whether for reelection or election the first time? Is there a particular issue that motivates you, and if so, what is it?

A: I'm running for the District 204 school board because my children have benefitted enormously from the high quality education and experience they've received here. I was raised with the idea that with privilege comes the responsibility to give back, and serving the community as a school board member is a perfect opportunity to do just that. I want to contribute to ensuring all district students receive the resources and tools they need to achieve the academic and personal excellence for which our district is known. I'm further motivated by the desire to make sure our students are learning the social and emotional skills necessary to grow into thriving and productive members of society.

Q: How would you grade the current school board on its response to the pandemic? Why?

A: I'd give the current school board a "B" grade on pandemic response. None of us have ever been faced with a challenge of this kind, and the board has prioritized the safety of students and staff above all. I can't fault them for that. I do think there more clear and consistent communication between the district and families would have helped decrease anxiety. A publicly available, graduated plan to return (complete with post hybrid steps and a fully remote option) would also reassure families that the district is planning ahead.

Q: How do you view your role in confronting the pandemic: provide leadership even if unpopular, give a voice to constituents - even ones with whom you disagree, or defer to state authorities?

A: As a school board member, I think my role would be to blend all of the above. Sometimes leadership is the courage to make the unpopular choice if it's in the best interest of the whole. Good leaders also listen to constituents and bring their collective concerns to the table when tasked with decision-making. School board members are not experts in every field, nor are they expected to be. So I think there will be times when it is absolutely appropriate to defer to authorities, state or otherwise.

Q: Did your district continue to adequately serve students during the disruptions caused by the pandemic? If so, please cite an example of how it successfully adjusted to continue providing services. If not, please cite a specific example of what could have been done better.

A: I think some (but not all) students were adequately served, at least academically speaking. For instance, speaking as a parent with self-motivated learners, my children were able to continue their classes on Zoom. I don't think it was ideal, but it was manageable given the circumstances. However, there are many students for whom this was not a workable solution - students with special needs, or IEPs, students whose parents were not able to work from home to help with assignments or tech issues, etc. I think in order to adequately serve all populations, we needed to allow small groups to return in person earlier, so that some of those needs could be more fully met.

Q: Do you have a plan on how to safely and effectively conduct classes in the spring? What have you learned from the fall semester that you would change in the spring?

A: I think the first step in figuring out how to safely and effectively conduct classes this spring is to figure out exactly how many in-person students can be accommodated daily while following CDC and IDPH guidelines. At the time of this questionnaire, I believe the administration is working with building principals to determine those numbers. Once we know that, I think the district must ask parents again whether or not they plan for their students to attend in-person. We need both sets of numbers to be able to make a safe in-person plan that gets kids as much face to face instructional time as possible. I think we learned during the fall semester that students who plan to stay remote at this time deserve a teacher dedicated to their learning - as an teacher with experience trying to teach to two groups simultaneously, I think "room and Zoom" is a disservice to both groups of students as well as teachers.

Q: What is your position on allowing high school sports to continue during the pandemic? Be specific.

A: I understand that sports are vital for the mental and physical health of student athletes. I think our focus should be first on opening schools, but if we ARE going to allow sports to continue in-person, then I think we must also allow other extracurriculars to meet in person as well. Activities such as musical groups, theater, speech team, Best Buddies, language clubs, etc. are just as vital for their student participants as sports are for athletes, and I don't believe it's right to allow sports to continue if we are not going to allow these other groups to continue in-person as well.