2021 KINGS EDUCATION ASSOCIATION KINGS LOCAL SCHOOL

2021 KINGS EDUCATION ASSOCIATION KINGS LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD of EDUCATION QUESTIONNAIRE

PLEASE PRINT YOUR NAME EXACTLY AS IT WILL APPEAR ON THE BALLOT:

Karen Burton

1. What is your educational background, work experience, and involvement with Kings Local Schools? Please also describe your involvement specifically related to the classroom. What is your personal experience with students enrolled in KLSD? I was employed full time for over 30 years. Most of that time was spent as a software engineer at AT&T and Anthem. I also earned a PMP (Project Management Professional) certification and managed many large, cross-functional, regulatory projects. While working full-time, I was a single mom and raised two sons. They are both great husbands, fathers and productive members of society. One is an IT Manager at a Fortune 500 company, and the other is a research scientist at a National Laboratory. I specifically chose Kings Schools for my grandchildren 8 years ago because of the excellent academic, extra-curricular and small-town community feel. While my grandchildren did not move in with me as planned, I served the schools as a Whiz Kids Tutor for a couple of years. After I retired from my corporate job, I served Kings as a substitute bus driver for three years. It has been a pleasure to spend time with so many of our students, pre-K through 12th grade, as I transported them to and from school and field trips. I am especially impressed with the level of maturity and excellent manners of our junior high and high school students, the high level of energy and enthusiasm of our grade schoolers, and the care Columbia students show for each other.

Each student I interact with, pre-K through 12th grade, reminds me of one of my eight grandchildren. I am always mindful these are the precious children and grandchildren of my neighbors and I am truly blessed to be in a position to be able to serve them.

I recently became a voice for parents who are afraid to speak up about the disturbing emergence of sexuality, racism, anti-Christian, anti-USA books, teacher-led discussions and decorations in a couple of classrooms and hallways. This all started in February of this year when a friend shared her child’s struggle with a required reading assignment that vilified Christians, white people and the foundations of our country. I have since learned many parents have various concerns they have not publicly spoken about, for fear of retribution against their children. I have a legacy of volunteer work around supporting children and their families, and believe I am uniquely positioned to help the district transition from the current divisiveness, that is beginning to reflect the national political struggles, toward the all-inclusive school community everyone wants, where every child is physically and emotionally safe and celebrated for who they are.

2. Why have you become a candidate for the Kings Local School District Board of Education, what qualifications or unique considerations make you an especially good school board candidate, and what are your top objectives if elected to the board?

My passion for supporting families and improving the lives of children, coupled with decades of business and volunteer experience are a great fit for the needs of Kings Local School Board. My top objectives are: A. Revise outdated policies to protect parental authority and to keep politics, sexuality and religion out of the classroom, except in the rare and specific cases where these subjects are part of a specific unit of study, and specifically approved by parents and the building principal.

B.Create more opportunities for community engagement through town halls, citizen advisory committees and scheduling meetings at a time when most working parents and taxpayers can attend.

C. Closely examine all variable expenses and ensure every taxpayer can understand how their money is spent. I will work with the board to engage the community in discussions regarding opportunities for cost savings and income increases before we make decisions that impact students, parents or taxpayers.

D. Closely review teacher salaries and benefits and make changes, as needed, to ensure we can continue to retain and attract top talent for all our classrooms.

3. What is the role of the Kings Local School District Board of Education?

The Kings Local School District Board of Education has a crucial role in representing the parents and taxpayers of the district. While parents of students work closely with their children’s teachers and building principal, a school board member would never be involved at that level of discussion. School boards hire, supervise, and work closely with the superintendent and treasurer to ensure the schools are meeting the expectations of the parents and taxpayers. If there is a question or concern about what is, or is not, occurring within any school building or program, the school board works directly with the superintendent to address those issues and concerns. The school board also creates and revises policies, as needed, to provide guardrails for the administration’s path toward achieving goals established between the school board, superintendent and treasurer.

4. What do you believe to be the most important issues facing Kings Local School District. What would be your role in addressing those issues?

A) A constant stream of politically-motivated, anti-USA teaching materials are being released and promoted through our federal and state Departments of Education. Our existing policies are inadequate to prevent the use of these materials in our classrooms. As a board member, I will work with the other board members and legal counsel to update our policies to keep politically motivated, anti-USA teaching tools and materials out of Kings schools.

B) Responsible financial oversight requires a clear understanding of expenditures and sources of income. There appears to be a taxpayer knowledge gap in this area. Some of the skills I’ve developed through years of experience in helping business, marketing, legal and IT people understand each other will be very useful in this area. I will work with our treasurer to put together information pages with graphics and verbiage to help people understand what we have, what we expect to get, what we spent, what we expect to spend, what we need from the taxpayers and why. This will help voters make informed decisions when we need to ask for levies.

C) The school board represents the parents and the taxpayers within the district, but often passes agenda items with a unanimous vote after very little discussion, if any at all. Either they are completely unengaged and just vote yes for everything, or they are discussing these items outside of public meetings. The public deserves to hear these discussions so they understand what is being voted on, and why each member chose to vote either yes or no. As a board member, I will not engage in offline discussions with other board members about board business. I will insist those discussions take place at a public meeting, as required by Ohio’s Sunshine Law. I will also hold the rest of the board accountable for not discussing anything in executive session that can be discussed in a public meeting.

5. What ideas do you have for ensuring all children in Kings Local School District have an opportunity for a high

quality public education?

I believe all children within the district currently have an opportunity for a high quality public education, which is why I specifically chose this district for my grandchildren. I am always open to learning, and acting on, new information. So if I learn some children within the district have barriers to high quality education in our schools, I will work with the other board members, parents and the superintendent to remedy that situation.

6. The state of Ohio relies primarily on property taxes as a means to fund public schools. What is your position on placing operating levies on ballots?

Operating levies are needed to support the level of teacher salaries and benefits we need in order to attract and retain top talent in our classrooms. There are many other expenses within the district as well that must be supported by taxpayers. Most taxpayers understand occasional, reasonable, levies are needed to support excellent schools. It is the duty of the school board to ensure every expense line item is necessary for the operation of the school before the taxpayers are asked to approve an increase in revenue, and to clearly explain to the taxpayers why a new levy is needed. 7. What is your position on shifting public funding to charter and private schools?

Taxpayers support public schools, and public schools must remain free and accessible to all children within the district. This is a non-negotiable. I do not support any funding models that would reduce the quality or accessibility of free public education for every child.

8. What are your ideas for making Kings Local School District public schools safer for students and employees?

My main concern regarding student safety is bullying. Several parents have expressed frustration that their children have been bullied in school and nothing was done about it. I was told no one followed up with an injured child, and nothing was done to prevent a recurrence of the bullying. We have policies, procedures and tools for responding to bullying, but they appear to be inadequate to ensure every child feels physically and emotionally safe at school, and that is just not acceptable.

I’d like to see a task force, of parents with children currently enrolled in Kings schools, and some recent alumni, to take a fresh look at what they would like to see happen, for the student acting inappropriately, the student who was injured, and the parents of each child involved. Ideally, the task force would include parents of children, and alumni, who performed acts of bullying, as well as those who were bullied. When that group gets a clear picture of how they would like to see the process work, then one counselor from each building could join the task force and polish off a proposed process to present to the principals. The principals would then join the task force, adding their expertise to suggest changes where needed, and to work with the team to flesh out “how are we going to make this work”.

The question asks about staff safety. I am not aware of any issues regarding staff safety, but am willing to learn, and act on, new information. The teachers are represented by their union, so I would expect any safety concerns for teachers to be brought to our attention through their union representative. If there are staff safety concerns, I would work with the board, the superintendent and union representatives to close any known safety gaps as quickly and completely as possible, whether the contract is up for renewal or not. Kings has, and deserves to keep and attract, the best teachers in the area, and that requires a reasonable expectation of personal safety.

9. What are your positions on Kings Local School District Schools’ diversity and inclusion policies?

I am not aware that Kings Local School District has any diversity and inclusion policies.

10. How would you balance the varying interests within the community when making decisions?

The school board represents the parents and the taxpayers in the district, and while some people think those interests are at odds, I think they are aligned more often than not. People who live in Kings School District expect excellent schools, whether they have children in them or not. Excellent schools keep our property values high, and attract families who are great neighbors and responsible citizens. There is, of course, a wonderful diversity of values within the homes of our community. I highly value the freedom each of us has to live our lives as we wish. For example, some place a high value on patriotism. They would like to see new policies that clearly state a USA flag will fly at the front of every classroom, and every student and teacher will respectfully stand and say the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag at the beginning of each school day. There are some who do not approve of their children standing and saying the Pledge of Allegiance. I would require such a policy to have a provision for parents to submit an exemption notification to the school for their child. Students with an exemption would be required to sit quietly during that activity. Those who stand, and those who sit, can both learn to respect each other.

Most importantly, it is critical to understand and appreciate there is a wide variety of thoughts, opinions and values within our community, and each one of those deserves to be respectfully heard and considered when making decisions.

I believe more than one diverse need can, and must, be met at the same time, if we are willing to listen to each other and work together toward the all-inclusive school community we all want, where each student is celebrated for who they are.



Kim Chambers 1.What is your educational background, work experience, and involvement with Kings Local Schools? I graduated from Walnut Hills High School (Cincinnati, Ohio) in 2001 and later from Northern Kentucky University in 2005 (with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and minor in the Honors Program). Education has been a vital part of my professional experience. My first paid position, from ages 14-18, was at the Cincinnati Museum Center as an Exhibit Interpreter/Demonstrator, teaching science and history to the public. During my time there I also held internships coordinating field trips and region-wide conferences for the CMC Youth Program and for the region-wide Youth ALIVE! Program. At Northern Kentucky University, I was an academic tutor, New Student Orientation Leader with the Admissions Department, and Honors Wing Programmer (think of it as half of an RA's position for the Honors Wing). After graduation I was hired as a Teacher Assistant with Cincinnati Union Bethel for their HeadStart Program in College Hill. Shortly into the position I filled the role as Lead Teacher as my Lead was on long-term medical leave, and enacted policies that helped them pass a long overdue federal inspection. After two years, circumstances lead me to leaving that position and becoming a stay at home parent.

At J.F. Burns, I served as a room parent as well as helping in my daughters' classrooms with Friday folders and the like. I also was a member of JFB PTO, assisting with various projects the PTO has asked for help. At Columbia Intermediate, I briefly served as Corresponding Secretary for the PTO and am in my fourth year as the Restaurant Fundraiser Coordinator for the organization. I also participate in Roundtable XL, assisting classes with STEAM-related activities, on top of other projects the PTO has asked for help. Now that I have a child going in-person at Kings Junior High, I am more involved with the KJH PTO, serving as the Staff Appreciation Coordinator and volunteering for PACT-related activities.

I also serve as a member of the district's Diversity and Inclusion Taskforce since 2019. At every step of the way, including to our new district superintendent, I have offered myself up as a resource in terms of issues related to transgender students and families, as I am a trans/non-binary parent raising two transgender children, and quite a bit of my college education was focused on human sexuality and gender. Outside of the district itself but still within the community, I fill several roles. With Kings Service Unit Girl Scouts, I serve as the Kings Service Unit Manager in addition to being the Fall Product Coordinator for those troops who sell nut/candy/magazines; assist the Cookie Program Coordinator in his duties; I am a troop leader for Troop 45972 (the troop who gave cookies to the teachers/staff when they received their 2nd COVID vaccination); and I am making the transition to be the Kings Service Unit Manager as well as revitalizing our programming for girls in grades 6-12. At Harmony UU in Maineville, recently became the Religious Exploration Director; through my involvement in my faith, I am also a Facilitator (very close to a teacher) for the Greater Cincinnati Our Whole Lives Program, a comprehensive, developmentally appropriate, and science-based human sexuality program, and I am working to get that brought to this area (but not part of the Kings school curriculum,). I also serve as the adult advisor for the Leelah Alcorn Memorial Library, a project led by a Kings student to offer more resources to area teachers to embrace diversity in the classroom.

There are other positions I've held, but I feel they aren't relevant to school board (Oakley Drive-In, Kroger, Halloween USA, Smart Travel etc.) My apologies for this summary being so long but a lot of the position titles I've had only lead to more questions, so I want to answer those questions before they need to be asked.


I want to represent students, families, and staff who typically don't have much access to voicing their concerns. I grew up as a student in Cincinnati Public Schools; I lived as a parent and voter in Cincinnati Public Schools, Princeton City School District, Middletown City Schools, and Kings Local School District. Not once have I ever been approached by a school district where I didn't have to initiate the contact. I don't mean that as a complaint to Dawn Gould’s wonderful work as Kings LSD's PR Coordinator. I mean that we are missing important and crucial voices – families who don't communicate as well online, families overwhelmed with e-mails in general, families

who can't attend meetings due to work or child needs, families with children too young to be in school but today's decisions will effect their education, individuals who are childless but have a genuine concern for our students. I remember in the summer of 2020 board members acknowledging text messages they were getting from their friends during those school board meetings; it didn't seem fair that those concerned who didn't have that relationship didn't have that sort of real time access to voice their opinions. From my experience in other districts I know what it is like to feel helpless against a school district, and I want to do my part to keep that from happening to other parents. I want to be a board member who takes the effort to reach people where they're at – including meeting people on their streets. As far as my qualifications are concerned, I have experience working with students and their families of many ages – from preschool through grade 12. I have experience as an educator, traditionally in a classroom, non-traditionally in the community, on a wide variety of subjects, from the alphabet to more sensitive topics. I also want to bring my experience as a parent and as a person of several non-traditional identities to the board. We are a school district with a wide variety of students, staff, and families, especially in ways that a records analysis won’t show. While running schools is a business, it needs to be humane in its approach, more so than a typical business, and I want to do my part to make sure we don't forget why we are here.

In regards to my objectives, first I want to lead our schools through this pandemic. While we are certainly done with COVID-19, it is not done with us. I want to help our families and community survive, and use those learning opportunities so they are coming out of it thriving. I want to see our students happy, healthy, and learning. I want to see our teachers, staff, and volunteers revitalized; they do so much great work, work that is often exhausting in pre pandemic times. They are tired. Many of our students are tired. I see them and want to support them through the board. the community.

I plan to take an idea from David Donofrio of the South-Western City School Board near Columbus: once a week, weather/health permitting, pick a random street in the area and make myself available to talk to about school board issues. I want to reach out and ensure that everyone knows that I find their opinion important and I want to hear from them. I want to be available to teachers/staff, student groups, and family groups to discuss Kings schools in addition to my Meet Me Mondays.

Third, I want to support teachers, staff, and volunteers in bringing educational experiences that will help our students prepare for life outside of Kings schools, and give every student equitable experiences. It is important to acknowledge we aren't churning out robots for the workforce but rather whole individuals. This includes encouraging critical thinking and developing learning opportunities about the complicated issues in this world, all in a developmentally appropriate manner. This also includes making sure all of our students see a wide variety of people all year long, and in a positive manner. Every Kings student can walk across graduation stage a well-rounded, intelligent, compassionate adult, and I want to improve upon it.

3. What is the role of the Kings Local School District Board of Education? To me the primary role of the BOE is to support our schools. That may look like guidelines and rules to make decision-making easier; directing resources that schools need in a more efficient way; interacting with the community and other government organizations; oversee the fiscal health of the schools; and help unite a common vision so our students get a quality education at each step of their educational journey.

4. What do you believe to be the most important issues facing Kings Local School District? What would be your in addressing those issues? Obviously the pandemic. We're still not out of it, but so many of us really want to go back to pre-pandemic times (which I cannot blame them – I'd rather not live during a worldwide pandemic either). Schools provide for so many needs, and so many of them are best met in person. My younger child did not fair well with online schooling, despite her and her teachers’ best efforts (which beat the pants off of actual online schools in our family's experience), and I know she's far from alone. However, there are some good things that can come out of it. We can do online learning from time to time if we need it. We have an improved grasp of using technology in the classroom. Our government in general found the funds to make sure children have breakfast and lunch, and not just a bag of stale Cheerios or a cheese sandwich. I don't think we will go 100% back to the way things were, and we should take the opportunity help our students get through it and come out of it thriving, taking lessons learned to make things better for our students, staff, volunteers, and their families. I will make sure we apply those lessons in our future decision making.

Space/Overcrowding. While we're not having classrooms of 60+ (maybe some of the specials that have larger space), and the current board is letting numbers shake out, it is not going to be long before it becomes a major issue. We need to address it, and find out what we're missing in terms of getting financial support passed. Do we need to combat misinformation? Do we need to get the community more excited about supporting our schools so we show up to vote? Do we need to break up portions of this to adapt to our current economy? I want to get out into the community to listen to it, and find a practical solution.

Diversity. We clearly have challenges related to that. Our school district as gone national about bigoted rhetoric too many times. There are many more incidents that go unnoticed beyond our borders. Every student needs to feel safe in order to learn. Every teacher and staff member should feel comfortable being themselves so they can better engage with students. Families and volunteers need to feel welcome as they are so they can contribute to their roles in the school community. I don’t have all the answers, but I know there are members of the Kings community in every role willing to do the work. We should get to it, and I want to support those doing said work through guidelines and resources to make it easier and to have stronger support.

5. What ideas do you have for ensuring all children in Kings Local School District have an opportunity for a high-quality public education?

First, I want to do more to make sure we are attracting and keeping quality teachers, staff, and volunteers. So much is being put on the shoulders, and I fear burnout for those who haven’t already left. That's not to say this is specifically a Kings issue – look at how many superintendents have left their districts this year alone – and that's just one position of many. I want to take more time to listen to their needs and what resources need to be in place to keep who we have and bring in excellent others as we expand and our staff naturally retires.

Second, I want to do as much as possible to bring resources that will lighten the nonacademic load of our students. It is easier to learn without having to worry about things that really should be the worry of adults. Finally, I want to look more into where the students are at, and not just in academic performance or college readiness. What are their interests? What's going to not only keep them in school but loving learning? What do they need to prepare themselves for the big world out there, regardless of what career path they take (or don't take)? What extracurriculars can we use to enhance their education? What resources are out there to make all of that happen? Every Kings student can walk across graduation stage an intelligent, compassionate, well rounded mover and shaker of this country, but we have to meet them where they are at.

6. The state of Ohio relies primarily on property taxes as a means to fund public schools. What is your position on placing operating levies on ballots? While it isn't an ideal way to distribute those funds, there's only so much that can be done within the role of a local school board member, but rather something to take up with the state as a citizen. Part of the role includes working with the system at hand. While I agree with Mr. Furniss's recommendation to let the proverbial dust settle before introducing another attempt a levy or bond, I believe an investment in schools is an investment on the community, and in one’s home. Just looking at the market for Kings homes compared to similar homes elsewhere, there's a marked difference in price between them. We, renters and buyers alike, pay extra for being in Kings schools. We invest more in our homes because of Kings schools. Like our homes, Kings schools needs extra money now and then to maintain that quality. We are attracting more families and more students and our schools need that investment to adapt to that growth. However, we need to do it in such a way that will be effective, in a way that will pass so we can get ahead of the challenges growth brings.

7. What is your position on shifting public funding to charter and private schools?

When we pay taxes for roads, parks, assistance, etc., there is no guarantee we will use them, and no option to shift said monies to those we do use once we have paid them. Even if we don't care for them, there is generally no significant extra cost to paying to make use of those public resources. Public schools should be no different, as there is little additional cost to make use of those resources, even if we don't care for them. Shifting the funding also hurts students whose families cannot move to alternate education, whether it is money, knowledge, or other logistics. Instead of enhancing the privileges of those who have the means to seek alternative education, we need to support the students who don't have such privilege.


To some this may sound silly to even mention but simply making sure schools stay open. For many students, school IS their safe place, where they are accepted, loved, and fed. If we have to shut down, those students loose foundational needs. Let's avoid that as much as possible.

In regards to communicable diseases, I would promote following the science and guidelines experts suggest within the limitations the school board has, and find ways to adapt those guidelines for students, staff, and volunteers who might have trouble adhering to them. For COVID-19, that includes efforts to increase proper mask wearing, vaccinations, et al. In regards to other epidemics that may come our way, I'm open to problem solving with the information we have when that time comes.

I believe encouraging more mental health awareness as well as a school environment strongly in support of diversity will be a significant factor in the prevention of bullying and violence as well as the reducing the effects of bullying and the threat/incidents of violence. If those who may instigate such situations have more effective outlets for their feelings; if victims and others effected by such situations are harmed less by them; and if we build a community that doesn't tolerate such acts, we will fare better. That being said, I would want to work with Kings families to better ensure that our students lack the resources to enact acts of violence or bullying, be it physical weapons or words.

I want to also do more to support our teachers and staff. The work they do is incredibly hard, from maintaining national/state/local requirements to processing emotional situations to a thousand other things, including not enough time or money to truly do it all. On those lines I want to encourage volunteers as possible to help lift some of that burden off of those staff. I want to make sure Kings is an emotionally healthy place to work; beyond crossing some massive boundaries (i.e. abuse and neglect as defined by ORC) where there is already a system in place, our teachers and staff shouldn't have to worry about being reported for doing their jobs. If they feel safe, they will do more and be more effective at keeping our students safe.


Being a member of the Diversity and Inclusion Taskforce, a member of the community with multiple reasons to be considered “diverse” (as well as the spouse and parent of those who would be as well), I'm supportive of preparing our students for the diverse world they will be leading. I support aspects of our curriculum and school environment - from lessons to signage to our forms – that embraces diversity and equity throughout the school community. I support efforts to attract and retain diverse staff and volunteers. I appreciate Kings in their definition of diversity being more than 1 or 2 checkboxes, claiming diversity, and calling it day; that is what my elementary school experience was – my peers and I deserved better, and so does Kings.

That being said, I think we need to do more to address making Kings an inclusive environment. Racism, sexism, xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia, classism, ableism, etc. are still problems as students are not having the appropriate conversations at home, and I fear too many of them are getting the opposite conversations. While Kings schools cannot and should not control what happens in the homes of students, we can get a better handle on what of that comes into schools so everyone feels welcome, everyone can learn or work, and everyone can grow.


The first aspect to my balance would be my attitude toward the role. This is the Kings Local School District, not Chambers and Friends Schools. I would seek to make sure we are listening to as much of the Kings area that wants to be listened to, not just the loudest or the ones who can attend meetings on Tuesday evenings, even those I may not entirely agree with. It is one of the reasons why I would host Meet Me Mondays, hitting the streets to see what concerns people have.

I would promote both compromise and we as a board being centered on our top priority: the students, the staff, the volunteers, and all their families. If we are not serving the students’ needs as well as the staff's/ volunteers' needs to effectively serve the students, then there’s no point to the Board of Education doing anything else. This may include making unpopular decisions either within the community or within my circles. If that happens, so be it, as long I make efforts to share my thought process with the community so they understand how I, as well as the board, came to the conclusions we did, and in doing so acknowledging the various perspectives that contribute to the specific issue at hand, in such a way it is clear we are meeting the needs of the students.


PLEASE PRINT YOUR NAME EXACTLY AS IT WILL APPEAR ON THE BALLOT

Deb Cowan

1. What is your educational background, work experience, and involvement with Kings Local Schools? Please also describe your involvement specifically related to the classroom. What is your personal experience with students enrolled in KLSD? I have a Bachelor of Science degree in Education from Texas Christian University. Upon graduation, I was an elementary school teacher in the Richardson and Fort Worth areas. I gained experience in both public and private schools, which provided the opportunity to work with children and families from diverse backgrounds. This work gave me a deep appreciation for the meaningful work educators do every day. When we moved to Ohio, I worked as a compliance trainer for a bank in downtown Cincinnati and then transitioned to working for Market Day, which was a big fundraiser for many schools. It was rewarding to partner with schools and organizations to assist them in meeting their fundraising goals. I moved on from Market Day to take a job with Macy’s, where I have worked for the last 13 years. My current role is as a Compliance Project Administrator. When we moved to Kings, we had a toddler, a kindergartener, and a second grader. All 3 children attended Kings Mills Elementary. My youngest attended Kings from preschool at 3 years old all the way though graduation from Kings High School in 2016. As far as involvement with the schools, I served as the Market Day chair at KME for a couple years. In addition to that role, I have done/currently do the following: District Parent Council (2005-2008, 2010-2016) – served as KME representative, KJH representative, Band representative, and Secretary Kings Board of Education representative to District Parent Council (2019 – present) Kings Board of Education representative to Diversity & Inclusion Parent Committee (2018 – present) Kings Local Neighborhood Bridges Steering Committee Board Member (2020-present) - a 501(c)(3) charitable organization to respond to the growing rate of poverty in suburban and rural areas (https://www.neighborhoodbridges.org/community/kingslocal-oh) I am also a current member of the Kings Board of Education and was recently elected to serve as Vice President by my fellow board members. 2. Why have you become a candidate for the Kings Local School District Board of Education, what qualifications or unique considerations make you an especially good school board candidate, and what are your top objectives if elected to the board? When I decided to run 4 years ago, it was because there was a need for someone to step up. It was such an easy decision because I love this community, and I had just one goal – to always try to do what is in the best interest of the children and the community. It also tapped back into my love of education. I tend to be the type of person who always tries to find the good and positive in any situation. There were challenging times that the board and community went through. However, it was working for and with the children, this community, our incredible faculty and staff, our administrative team and especially my fellow board members that always kept the light shining through any darkness. I want to continue to serve, as I still have the same goal I started out with -to try to do what is in the best interest of the children and the community. Kings is an amazing place, but there are always growth opportunities. I want all children and families to feel welcome and supported. I want to continue to partner with our administrators to assist them in guiding our schools in the best possible ways while continuing to be fiscally responsible. I want our teachers and staff to feel valued and supported in the important role they play in the lives of our children. I want the community to feel confident that the school board is here for everyone and is willing to listen and respond to concerns.

3. What is the role of the Kings Local School District Board of Education? The Kings Local School District Board of Education exists as an overseeing body that partners with our administration to establish and set policy. We are also tasked with evaluating superintendent and treasurer performance. The board is there to ensure that our people and environments have all the tools and support they need to do the important work of educating our children and helping them grow into critical thinkers and lifelong learners. 4. What do you believe to be the most important issues facing Kings Local School District? What would be your role in addressing those issues? Growth is a pressing issue. Planning for growth based on projections is not an exact science which is why continued diligence will be needed in the stewardship of our schools. Vigilance in forecasting and management of resources will be vital as we move forward. It is the goal of the board to be as fiscally responsible as possible while balancing the needs of our community. As we head into 2022, the board will need to prioritize our needs and continue to monitor our growth and use of space. I think whatever plan we move toward should include input from the community, building personnel, and students. We should evaluate our current buildings and utilize these existing structures as efficiently as possible. Our approach should be conservative, yet always open to innovative thinking. Navigating through COVID is another challenge. As we move forward, we need to monitor the data and recommendations and be flexible in our responses. The safety and well-being of our students and building personnel needs to be at the forefront of our decisions. I want to continue to evaluate all sides of the issue and help to keep our students in class in ways that are practical and safe for all. Diversity and inclusion are also important issues facing us. We need to be sure all students, families, district personnel, and community members feel welcomed, supported, and a valued part of our district. From its inception, the #KingsStrong initiative was built to be a blueprint to move the district towards its best self. It is meant to inspire us to aspire towards more positive directions and avoid complacency. I love Kings, but that does not mean I am not open to new ideas and ways to move us all forward. Just as a parent wants to foster and grow positive behaviors and results for their child, this plan encourages Kings, as a district and as a community, to reflect on where we are and grow toward what we could be. After all, we are all in this together. 5. What ideas do you have for ensuring all children in Kings Local School District have an opportunity for a high-quality public education? I think all children in our district currently have the opportunity for a high quality public education. Could we improve? Of course, there is always room to grow. We need to continue to be sure our offerings are inclusive and encouraging for all. We can review our curriculum and practices and compare to similar school districts to evaluate if there are aspects that we do not have that we can implement. Maintaining excellence is a team effort, so we need to be open to feedback and change. Supporting our building administrators, teachers, and staff in the important role they play in the lives of our children is a vital step in this process. 6. The state of Ohio relies primarily on property taxes as a means to fund public schools. What is your position on placing operating levies on ballots? The state of Ohio created this system of funding schools, and as a district we must make the best use we can of the system we are given. Levies and/or bond issues are necessary when needed. The key is to be as fiscally responsible as possible in decision making to reduce the need to go to the ballot. 7. What is your position on shifting public funding to charter and private schools? First and foremost, we need to make sure we have properly funded public schools. Beyond that, we must look at what the state requires of us and make sure we are following these mandates to be fair to all the children within our district.

8. What are your ideas for making Kings Local School District public schools safer for students and employees? While there are measures in place, we can always improve safety. I would love input from our school administrators, faculty, and staff on ways they would like us to make our schools safer places. I would also like input from students on how to make them feel safer, if they in any way do not feel safe. Safety involves both the physical state of being secure and a mental component of feeling safe. As I often have stated, I want everyone to feel welcome and supported in our buildings. I am always open to input on how we can improve our school environments and experiences. 9. What are your positions on Kings Local School District Schools’ diversity and inclusion policies? The Kings school board has worked to enact board policies to support and improve diversity and inclusion efforts. We also have an amazing group of parents and faculty members involved in our D/I task force. I fully support our policies and the work of the task force, which I am also a member. While we have made strides, we should always work towards better outcomes. Recent speakers at board meetings have provided examples where we have fallen short with some of our students, whether the treatment experienced falls into the “bullying” category or not. We can do better. I have confidence in our administration, teachers, and staff that we can work together to move forward in more unifying and positive directions. 10. How would you balance the varying interests within the community when making decisions? As a member of the board, I want to encourage continued collaboration to strengthen the relationship of key stakeholders which include our teachers and staff, the administration, the board, and extends to the families and the entire community. I will continue listen to all viewpoints presented and fairly review the facts available to make decisions that are in the best interests of all involved.


PLEASE PRINT YOUR NAME EXACTLY AS IT WILL APPEAR ON THE BALLOT

Ray Gaier 1. What is your educational background, work experience, and involvement with Kings Local Schools? Please also describe your involvement specifically related to the classroom. What is your personal experience with students enrolled in KLSD? I have over 30 years Active Duty/Army Reserves including a combat tour during Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom and three command tours of military units from 100 to 700 soldiers. I retired in 2009 as a Colonel in the US Army. In addition, I have over 40 years of logistics, financial and program management experience within the Department of Defense (DoD) and Fortune 100 organizations almost entirely in the defense and information technology business sectors. I retired in 2019 as a GS-15, Civilian, US Air Force from Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. I have a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Dayton, OH and an MBA (with a minor in Contract Management) from the Florida Institute of Tech, FL. I have led numerous highly successful and diverse teams. I have graduated from the Air War College and Advanced Program Managers Course. I earned my PMP (Project Management Professional) certification in 1993. I have been responsible for budgets with values from millions of dollars to over $16 billion a year. As a certified PMP, I have highly developed soft skills to effectively lead teams, have the technical skills to successfully lead projects, and can bring a project, organizational strategy and people together to completion on cost and on schedule. I have many awards documenting my accomplishments, both in the military and civilian workforce. I look forward to using the skills, experience and knowledge I have attained to help Kings Local School District be successful in providing outstanding, quality education for our students!

Education is not new to me. Throughout my military and civilian career I have developed many training classes on weapon system processes, taught thousands of professionals to understand and be skilled at the newly developed processes. I have developed the processes and training materials to streamline our air force depots and obtain visibility of costs and schedule impacts in the repair of our nation’s military weapon systems.

I do not have children in Kings. However, I am a parent and grandparent of children outside this school district. With my military commitments, I was not as available as others to be as actively engaged in the multiple school districts we lived in. Now that I am retired from the military and civilian positions I have held, I have the time to use my skills to be involved with the Kings Local Board of Education as a Board Member. I feel I bring a clear mind, not biased by past events in the district, nor individuals within the Kings School District. As in all my past positions, I value team members that have different perspectives. I would be a school board member that questions things and thinks out of the box bringing new energy and fresh new ideas with the focus on providing the best education for our children – the future for all of us. 2. Why have you become a candidate for the Kings Local School District Board of Education, what qualifications or unique considerations make you an especially good school board candidate, and what are your top objectives if elected to the board? I am running for the Kings Local School District Board of Education because I believe that our children are our future! I am a fiscally conservative professional with exceptional professional experiences and capabilities which can be helpful as I represent our parents, taxpayers and community members over the next 4 years to address current and future issues, challenges and concerns. We are in trying times with concerns about Masking, COVID, Critical Race Theory/Racism, inflation, and unemployment to name a few. We need to have inclusive, honest and difficult discussions with corresponding decisions to address what’s best for our students in the district. I think our district needs to be fiscally responsible – by that I mean we need to understand where our dollars are going and why, and maintain our academic excellence while operating within a budget. I understand that this is a service organization. That means our greatest asset is our teachers. Without great teachers, we cannot have a great school district. Lastly, I know how busy parents are who have kids in school – I see my grown daughters struggle to juggle all the commitments with school, sports and extracurricular activities. I want to be your voice in school matters so you can focus on the day to day raising of your children in the best school district in Ohio. I won’t back down to criticism, confrontation, or group think. I value all diversity of opinion, and will serve the parents and community with duty and honor.

3. What is the role of the Kings Local School District Board of Education? I totally agree with responsibilities as presented on the Kings Local School District Board of Education website. Specifically:

The Board's major responsibilities are to set policy and oversee the implementation of those policies by the Superintendent and his staff. Other functions of the Board include:

· Adopting plans and establishing district goals.

· Selecting and employing a Superintendent and Treasurer, and conducting their evaluations.

· Monitoring the overall financial operations of the district.

· Considering recommendations of the Superintendent regarding policy, personnel, curriculum, and other matters.

· Evaluating the district's effectiveness.

· Informing the public about the progress and needs of the district.

It is the responsibility of each Board member to represent the entire school district and to make decisions based on what is best for the Kings Local School District as a whole, not individual preferences.

If you review my background, skills and accomplishments in the first paragraph, you will note they are aligned to the functions of the board. 4. What do you believe to be the most important issues facing Kings Local School District? What would be your role in addressing those issues? I currently see three major, important issues facing Kings:

Transparency: The school board can do a better job in this area. The current board does well to give the parents and community an opportunity to voice their concerns. However, it’s interesting a past board member commented to me that the comments from the community are too negative. She stated there needs to be more positive comments. My thought – I want to hear negative comments from the parents and community members. The job of the School Board is not to sit up there and be told how good a job they are doing. Sure, it’s good to hear that every once in a while, but not essential. It’s also interesting the FB Page for the School Board Candidates has a question about Kings Academic Standing and asks each candidate what they would do to bring academic excellence back to Kings schools? It’s interesting, I have not heard any parent or community member talk at a School Board meeting say there was a problem. Additionally, we need to reassess our social media standards. Currently we have a facebook site, affiliated with Kings School District that professes to be open to discussion on Diversity and Inclusion, yet they block individuals from accessing the site. We have a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Kings Website with many resources that also appears to only be accessible if you know how to get to it. The only way to get class curriculums is by requesting them through records requests. Yes, these are negative and sometimes difficult for some to understand, but these are my observations and they concern me that they are happening in this school district.

Responsible Financial Decisions: Board Members must manage the district with a core belief that we are morally obligated to make efficient use of taxpayer money, while maintaining excellence in education for our students. The board submitted two $90M levies in the past few years. Both failed. However, there is nothing that has been discussed to address the supposed critical need for which it was put on the ballot. A lack of action does not give confidence the need was there (or maybe it’s being deferred) – either way there is a concern. The board reviewed the fiscal year income and expenses recently and the measure was against last years income and expenses – no mention against the budget. I have always reviewed expenses against the budget to determine success or failure, the past year is just another data point. The board considered a 6.9M operating levy in Jul and Aug of this year. They decided not to put it forth in the Nov election. The justification used for originally considering the levy was that in the 5 year plan we will have about a $17M shortfall. What’s interesting is we currently have a ~$13M (give or take) surplus. It seems we are overrunning our budget each year or planning a budget for more money than we bring in. I haven’t spent the time to delve into the numbers, but we have a serious disconnect here. We need people to ask the tough questions. And if it’s needed – let’s explain it so everyone can understand it. We may need to set goals for improving services and cutting expenses – without

hurting the education of our students. We may need to implement a performance audit and management systems to ensure the district is spending money in the right places and as efficiently as possible. Performance audits have achieved savings without damaging services to students by being aimed at cutting costs while improving performance. I want to bring fresh ideas, positive solutions and accountability to the Kings School District. Education not Indoctrination: This is a critical subject with much debate in our district, in the state and in the nation. I am deeply concerned about the teaching of Critical Race Theory (CRT) concepts in Kings – I have talked at two Board Meetings and written in support of House Bills – 322 and 327 against CRT concepts in Ohio Schools. Many people have stated “CRT is not in Kings – show me where it is”. I will say, it is not widespread, not all teachers are incorporating it, but it has been identified in Kings. I refer you to the www.KEInow.org website for examples. CRT concepts are divisive and damaging. What troubles me most about CRT concepts is that it teaches that the United States is systemically racist. I believe racism exists – but the US is not systemically racist. The foundation of our United States is Patriotism. That is what separates us from other nations and our adversaries. We as a nation, have made great strides against racism and I feel we need to continue that improvement without the negativity and divisiveness which permeates CRT theory and concepts. Unless we take a stand now, our teachers will be pressured to incorporate it. We must also protect our teachers as there are many influencers that at first glance seem harmless, but, in reality, are not right for our children. As an example, it worries me that the National Education Association (NEA) has come out on record and supported teaching CRT in Schools including providing funding and advocacy. The NEA can influence our school district and their New Business Item #39 even includes asking teachers to sign a pledge to teach CRT! Finally, after multiple months of bringing this up at board meetings, the Union President stated to me that they don’t answer to the NEA and don’t have to do everything they say. Ok, why did it take three months to say it? Will everyone stand up against them when NEA comes knocking on the door? The only way to ensure CRT concepts into our school system is with community involvement – one such option I would advocate for is a diverse and inclusive curriculum review committee. 5. What ideas do you have for ensuring all children in Kings Local School District have an opportunity for a high-quality public education? I would say Kings provides a high-quality public education – that’s what I have heard and understand. Kudo’s so far to all the teachers and administrators – especially with COVID and the political unrest going on right now. However, the challenge will be to continue it at this level in an affordable manner. I have provided explanations above – Transparency, Fiscal Responsibility and Education not Indoctrination as areas I am concerned with. If we work at those things, we will be successful in providing high-quality public education. 6. The state of Ohio relies primarily on property taxes as a means to fund public schools. What is your position on placing operating levies on ballots? I will support any operating levy that is justified and needed. I will not support a levy unless all options are reviewed, discussed and considered prior to a levy being put on the ballot. Why is that? We are in trying economic times. We have many senior citizens in our community on fixed incomes. We as a community, need to understand all impacts and make the best decision. 7. What is your position on shifting public funding to charter and private schools? I don’t make those decisions so my position really does not matter. I do understand it can adversely affect the money we receive from the state. However, if Kings is the best school option out there and we budget appropriately, it should not matter. 8. What are your ideas for making Kings Local School District public schools safer for students and employees? Interesting question. To effectively answer the question I would need more specifics – for example what are we trying to make safer and why? In general, if there was an area of concern – the board should identify the problem; determine the magnitude of the problem; what options do we have to solve the problem; fund and implement the solution. 9. What are your positions on Kings Local School District Schools’ diversity and inclusion policies? I am for Diversity and Inclusion. I am for Equality – everyone should have an equal chance for success, not Equity – everyone should not be guaranteed to obtain the same result. I have spent all my life in the Army and Civil Service supporting and being trained in Diversity and Inclusion concepts and practices. I however, am not in agreement on the extremes we are seeing in today environment that profess to be contributing to Diversity and Inclusion – BLM, for one, does not support diversity and inclusion in my opinion – it has shown it supports radical ideas, protests that

http://www.keinow.org/

turn into violence and promotes attacking individuals to profess they are white supremacists. It is a shame, because they could do great things by helping to provide equality for minorities with the millions of dollars receive, but they don’t. Another is CRT concepts which are neither diverse nor inclusive. An example is I do not think the recognition of George Floyd’s birthday or even treating him like a martyr to support diversity initiatives – it was a tragic event that happened to Mr. Floyd and his killer was arrested, tried and convicted. But Mr. Floyd was no innocent man. He was under the influence of fentanyl and methamphetamine at the time of arrest. He went to jail for at least 5 times and a look at George Floyd’s profile as per court documents reads like a career criminal involved in drug abuse, theft, criminal trespassing, aggravated robbery as well as entering a woman’s home and pointing a gun at her stomach while looking for drugs and money. So, no I do not think a career criminal should have his birthdate celebrated. Nor do I feel it is racist to think so. 10. How would you balance the varying interests within the community when making decisions? I have made many decisions over my lifetime that have affected the lives of many people and millions of dollars of expenditures. My process is simple. Ask for the details from the School Superintendent and Treasurer. Ask for the impacts – pros and cons – and how it affects Kings students. Do what’s best within the funding we have available with the goal to provide the best education possible to Kings students.



Janelle Groff 1. What is your educational background, work experience, and involvement with Kings Local Schools? Please also describe your involvement specifically related to the classroom. What is your personal experience with students enrolled in KLSD? I was born in Pueblo, Colorado where I attended public schools. I was accepted to Johnson and Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island where I graduated with a degree in marketing. Following graduation, I was recruited to Charlotte, North Carolina where I started my career in food retail and eventually moved into new home sales with one of the largest new home builders in the country. After four years in sales I was promoted to a regional sales training position where I became responsible for interviewing, hiring, and training new sales people and providing ongoing training to veteran sales associates across four divisions of the company. When my second son was born, I made the difficult decision to pause a very successful career in order to focus all of my efforts toward raising my boys. My husband and I are both products of public school systems and we believe strongly in the quality of education that well-run public schools provide. While in Charlotte, we enrolled our boys in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school system (CMS), a very large and diverse district. I volunteered by assisting teachers as a room parent in multiple classrooms and eventually served as a substitute teacher in both the elementary and middle school grade levels. Outside the classroom, I served as VP of fundraising and PTA president, where I was directly responsible for one of the highest budgets in a district with more than 100 elementary schools and 25 high schools. Funding within the district did not allow for the in-classroom technology our school needed, so as a PTA we raised enough money to install Smart Boards in every classroom and instructional technology for every teacher. All of this was achieved in a highly diverse and economically challenged community. Accomplishing this goal proved to me that when people come together to work for a common goal, anything can be accomplished. Our family relocated to the Cincinnati area 6 ½ years ago. We chose where to live based on the reputation of the Kings Local School District. We have been blessed by the amazing teachers our boys have had across SLE, Columbia, the Junior High, and now the High School. When I moved here I knew I could make an impact if teachers and staff knew they were appreciated, so I joined the PTO to serve as the staff appreciation chairperson, and have held that position for Columbia Intermediate, Kings Junior High, and currently in the high school. Whether it be in my career as a sales trainer or my experiences volunteering in the schools, I have always had a passion for learning and in helping others learn. To that end, I have recently accepted a position as a part-time academic coach with “GOVS”, Greater Ohio Virtual School, and will begin that role September 29th. Beyond my work on the PTO, my most rewarding personal experience with students enrolled in King’s has been as a mom. Raising my children and seeing them thrive has been my greatest joy. I absolutely love driving my kids and their friends around and listening to their conversations in the back seat. Nothing warms my heart like hearing a story about a teacher that went above and beyond to teach a concept they were all struggling with, or a coach that promoted character over winning a match. I’ve been thrilled to watch my kids and their peers as they learn to serve their community at Joshua’s Place, Kings Food Pantry, or at their local schools. It’s an honor to live in a community and be able to cheer on the neighborhood kids whether it be in cross country, marching band, academic quiz team, or the many other extracurricular activities they are involved in. 2. Why have you become a candidate for the Kings Local School District Board of Education, what qualifications or unique considerations make you an especially good school board candidate, and what are your top objectives if elected to the board? The reason I have become a candidate for KLSD school board is simple—I love this community and I want to help ensure that the amazing experience our family has had at Kings is available to ALL families in the community. I did not expect that in 6 short years I would care so much about the students, the families, the neighborhoods, and the small businesses. In some ways, I feel like I have lived here forever. I believe that serving as a school board member means serving EVERYONE in the community, and if given the opportunity, I will strive to support the following:

First, I want to ensure all of our students have amazing opportunities to learn, discover their passions, and figure out how they can make the world a better place. Kings already provides our students with many incredible opportunities. Supporting these opportunities, and seeking ways to expand the breadth of experiences available to our students will require support for funding of these opportunities. Ensuring we retain and attract the top talent to lead our classrooms will provide these opportunities. Second, I want to ensure that these opportunities are available to all of our students. I want to be a resource that parents can come to for help. If a child is struggling with a certain problem, I want to connect students and parents to the right people to fix it. I know enough people in each building to get students the help they need, but even if I don’t, we will figure it out together. My unique qualifications are my connections that I have developed at all levels in this district. My passion is for supporting students and helping to make their Kings story memorable, while building a solid foundation to take them into their future. My intent as a Kings School Board member is to keep the superintendent on their toes to keep working for our kids while also keeping our treasurer working to save money where we can, so we can spend where it’s needed. This is a nonpartisan position, and I truly believe I can bring balance to the role and not grid-lock the progress of our schools. I want to be a positive, forward-thinking board member. This might be the most important school board election many of us have ever seen. Voters have a choice between casting their ballot for someone who is passionate about the education and opportunities that Kings can provide our students, or casting their ballot for someone driven by a political agenda. I moved here because I felt in my heart that this district was special. My husband and I wanted to raise our children in Kings because we knew they would thrive here. I’m willing to work to keep it that way, not just for our family, but for everyone. 3. What is the role of the Kings Local School District Board of Education? If you go on the website you will see the responsibilities of the school board are hiring the superintendent, the treasurer, and making policy. Yes, the board does vote on curriculum and oversees the budget, but classroom instruction should be controlled by the superintendent and all of their direct reports, such as the principals. I am not a micromanager. We hire well-educated, highly-qualified teachers. We need to let them do their jobs and teach. It is also the responsibility of the school board to represent the entire school district. I am confident that I can do this. 4. What do you believe to be the most important issues facing Kings Local School District? What would be your role in addressing those issues? 1. We need to make sure our students who fell behind last year because of COVID get the help they need to catch up. We had some of the biggest summer school numbers this past year. The academic side needs to be evaluated and also the social and emotional side as well.

2. An operational levy will need to be considered.

3. Growth is an ongoing challenge that the community has put on hold. Our capacity has not changed. We had 4,050 students in 2015 and now have 4,688 in 2021. This issue will need to be addressed.

4. I think our biggest challenge facing the district is if we don't have the right 3 candidates elected. We certainly face losing good teachers and administrators. We face policies getting overturned and new policies detrimental to learning being made. And we face our community continuing to be divided. I hope voters realize what is at stake in this election.

My role in addressing these issues would be to consider the superintendent’s recommendations, evaluate the effectiveness of the district, and to vote on policies to fix these issues. Sometimes I think people don’t clearly understand the role and responsibilities of the school board. The board does not fix these problems themselves. They oversee the implementation of policy by the superintendent and his staff. 5. What ideas do you have for ensuring all children in Kings Local School District have an opportunity for a high-quality public education? Ensuring all children in KLSD have an opportunity for a high-quality education can be accomplished in different ways. First is hiring a talented, passionate staff. There is no substitution for hiring for talent. I love this definition of a teacher: “an educational superhero, superb multi-tasker, and fixer of problems. An individual who loves to

inspire and encourage.” That’s who we have in our buildings now and who we need to continue to hire. This doesn’t end with teachers; we also need talented administration. I appreciate when the HS principal meets his freshman parents at orientation and tells them that he never hires anyone that doesn’t love kids. That is the attitude that all administrators should have. The second idea is opportunity—opportunity for our students to learn a variety of subjects based on their passions. Opportunity to be involved in clubs and organizations to build character and leadership. Opportunity to play sports and learn teamwork and discipline. Opportunities for community service to learn compassion and work ethic. I couldn’t possibly list all of the amazing programs we have at Kings to enable our students to become great citizens after leaving our district and going out into the world. We can accomplish this by being pro-school. We can accomplish this by being pro-Kings. 6. The state of Ohio relies primarily on property taxes as a means to fund public schools. What is your position on placing operating levies on ballots? My stance is that you put an operating levy on the ballot when it is needed. Our last operational levy was predicted to last 5 years. Because of good financial budgeting, spending, and control, it did just what it was predicted to do. What some people in our district don’t realize is we have one of the most highly respected treasurers in the state of Ohio. He has won awards and passes our audits with flying colors because he is so knowledgeable in school finances. He came out of retirement to work for our district. I don’t want to lose him while I am on the board for the next 4 years. He is professional and transparent with our public school finances, that literally any single tax payer could call him and he would explain the complex way our state finances public education. This is just another example of how the wrong school board members getting elected could drive away our talented leaders. 7. What is your position on shifting public funding to charter and private schools? I am opposed to public funding shifting to charter schools. I don’t make that statement without experience on this subject. I came from a huge district in Charlotte, NC. Our taxes were literally a quarter of what we pay here in OH. Public schools were not great. Charter schools were popping up all over our county and state. Each time a student left to attend a charter school, $8,500 left with them, putting a complete drain on the public system. This doesn’t even mention what divides they put on the community. We lived on a street where kids went to 6-8 different charter schools. One of the reasons I was thrilled to move here was to get away from the charter school madness. There is no sense of community when kids don’t all grow up together, both in school and out of school. Private schools are another story. Many families send their kids to private schools for religious reasons or because of specialized programs to help their children learn and develop. Currently, many students benefit from transportation from Kings school busses. They should benefit, they pay the same taxes the rest of us pay. 8. What are your ideas for making Kings Local School District public schools safer for students and employees? For the most part, our school does a lot to make sure our students and staff stay safe from outside threats. Our School Resource Officers do an amazing job at each of our schools. Policies for entering our buildings, background checks for being employed, and staff training all contribute to this safety. What I think we can do better is keeping our students safe while in school. At a recent board meeting we heard from a mother who explained her child’s experience with bullying. We also here of many students suffering from emotional issues due to COVID isolation. Unfortunately, we also hear of abuse of students at home. We need to re-enforce our culture to, “if you see something, say something.” Our website has a 24-hour student help line called, “Stay Safe Speak Up”. We need to use this in order to help students who don’t feel safe due to abuse, alcohol/drugs, bullying/harassment, discrimination, cybercrime, self-abuse, threats, vandalism, violence, or weapons. This help line needs a more prominent place on our website. It needs to be explained to our students and parents as a resource for our school administration to not only be aware of situations, but to be able to handle them. Lastly, we need to enforce consequences for bad behavior. I have absolutely no tolerance for children to feel unsafe at school. Our schools should be a loving, nurturing, learning environment to every student. 9. What are your positions on Kings Local School District Schools’ diversity and inclusion policies? I grew up in a highly diverse public school system and I moved to Ohio from a highly diverse school system in NC. I think diversity and inclusion is something our children should learn to appreciate and celebrate now, so they can take that understanding and awareness out into the world where they will become compassionate citizens. When we researched schools 6 1/2 years ago, we toured Sycamore schools and it was actually pointed out to us the 50+ different flags of various countries hanging in their cafeteria. Each student who came from a different country had

their home flag hanging to welcome them and celebrate their culture. I have to admit; we were impressed by how Sycamore felt very inclusive. We can do better! The Diversity and Inclusion Taskforce along with our entire community needs to work on this together. D/I is much like other issues we have at Kings, we can improve as a group of human beings to be more accepting and welcoming. 10. How would you balance the varying interests within the community when making decisions? I love this question because I truly believe this is what separates me from my opponents in this election. I do not have a political agenda. I am running on King’s issues, not a specific party’s issues. My agenda is to continue to make Kings an amazing place for our students. I have a reputation and record for bringing people together to work towards a common goal. I would balance the varying interests within the community by listening to truly understand ALL members of the community. I would then use common sense to make decisions. All my votes would be in the best interest of the school district. I know the reputation of the entire school district is reflected in my behavior and attitude. So my question for this community is which candidate’s past behavior and attitude is one you want representing our children and our district?



Scott Schitter

1. What is your educational background, work experience, and involvement with Kings Local Schools? Please also describe your involvement specifically related to the classroom. What is your personal experience with students enrolled in KLSD?

I have a Bachelor's degree in Accounting with a Master's degree in Taxation. I am also a Certified Public Accountant and a member of the Ohio Society of Certified Public Accountants, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and American Health Law Association. I am the Vice President of Tax for the largest healthcare system in Ohio, and have been with my company for 17 years. I am responsible for tax-exempt and for-profit compliance, legal entity formation and dissolution, joint ventures, tax consulting and real estate taxes and exemptions.

I coached for the Kings Basketball Association (KBA) for five years and served as the KBA Treasurer for four years. I coached football for two years and baseball for three. I served as a Kings Athletic Booster Club representative and volunteered for Kings Cross Country and Track teams. I have assisted various PTOs and the KBA with pro bono tax services. Additionally, my wife and I together made career and financial sacrifices to support her efforts in raising our children and serving the community and the schools through countless volunteer efforts.

I serve as Treasurer and member on the Board of Heavenward Farm and Horsemanship, a tax exempt organization that provides equine-assisted therapy to at-risk youth from our district and others in the area. I serve as an usher at my church, and I am a 7 year member of the Knights of Columbus (both in district).


In my 20 years of living in Kings I have seen many changes in our district, not all beneficial to our students and community members. Some voices of our community have been woefully overlooked. I seek to change that. For the past two years I have regularly attended board meetings, making suggestions and bringing concerns to the board. I believe our community deserves board members who are unabashedly transparent about their beliefs and intentions. Now that my children have graduated, freeing me from any potential conflicts of interest, I am running for the school board to restore conservative values such as patriotism, responsible financial decisions, parental choice and increased transparency to Kings Local School District.

In 2021 school districts are faced with difficult and sometimes divisive issues, and Kings is no different. I believe we cannot be truly Uknighted until these difficult issues are addressed, and school board campaigns that ignore them are doing an injustice to the community.

I intend to address divisive politics and anti-USA rhetoric such as the teachings and concepts of Critical Race Theory (CRT) that are plaguing schools in our Nation. Additionally, I believe parents are the first and final authority over their children's physical, social-emotional, and spiritual health. We need to have clear understanding of laws vs. guidelines, effectively and transparently communicate how they impact the school district, and honor parental authority to the absolute best of our ability.

Another top objective is to make responsible financial decisions for our district. With current spending trends and projections the district is looking at a 19 million dollar deficit by 2025. Board discussions have been largely focused on increasing revenue (increasing real estate taxes) versus reducing expenses. And, I'd like to make use of a Citizen's Advisory Committee to aid in reviewing budgets, levies, and finances. I would like to increase transparency through all of the workings of the school board. We have an underutilized board policy that allows the board to create Citizen's Advisory Committees, that best ensures a committee that is well balanced with broad representation of district stakeholders. I would like to implement this policy to ensure diversity of thought is actively pursued and respected for areas such as curriculum, extra-curricular activities, and the annual budget. I also seek to provide more opportunities for parents and taxpayers to dialogue with the school board.

3. What is the role of the Kings Local School District Board of Education? The school board sets the tone for the district by developing the overall mission of the school district. The role of the school board is to determine the overall methods, process, means or personnel by which school district operations are to be conducted. Additionally, the school board is responsible for making the rules and regulations by which the employees of the school board will be governed.

Ultimately, the teachers hold the responsibility for following the policies and procedures approved by the school board. The school board should only become involved when policies and procedures need to be approved or reviewed or are not being enforced. 4. What do you believe to be the most important issues facing Kings Local School District? What would be your role in addressing those issues? The most important issues facing the Kings should ultimately be determined through interaction with the community. From my perspective the most important issues are increasing patriotism, putting an end to politics in the school, protecting our students and teachers from divisive, anti-American curriculum requirements (such as the teachings of CRT), making responsible financial decisions including operating levies, establishing parental choice regarding masking, vaccines and educational content, and accurately projecting future growth and building capacity/needs. The school board needs to establish policies that adequately address the above issues, with a priority on addressing Critical Race Theory and it's divisive concepts. The school board needs to work with the administration to reduce all unnecessary spending and devise operating and building levies that fulfill the needs of the school district with the lowest possible financial impact to the community. As mentioned earlier, parents are the first and final authority over their children's physical, social-emotional, and spiritual health. Parental authority should be honored to the best of our ability The board should admit the 2018 enrollment projections were flawed, and work with the administration to make new and accurate enrollment projections. A Citizens Advisory Committee should be established to review future enrollment growth and building needs in order to develop a building plan that will be accepted by the community.

5. What ideas do you have for ensuring all children in Kings Local School District have an opportunity for a high-quality public education?

Kings teachers are doing a fantastic job of providing a high-quality education. I believe we need to take the "not one size fits all" approach. Some children are destined to go to college while other are not. Kings already has an outstanding trade program that I'd like to see developed further. Kings needs to enhance its partnership with the Warren County Career Center which is an underutilized resource.

All students need to feel safe and respected in order to having a learning environment conducive for a high-quality education. This can be accomplished by having a school board that creates policies and procedures that provide for the rights of all students.

6. The state of Ohio relies primarily on property taxes as a means to fund public schools. What is your position on placing operating levies on ballots?

Operating levies are definitely a necessity for any school district in Ohio due to property taxes being the primary funding mechanism for Ohio school districts. It is worth noting that typically operating levies are said to have a life of three to five years. This is misleading since all Kings levies are permanent levies which means these levies never fall off your taxes.

ted only satisfies the expenses for 3-5 years. This is the reason why operating levies appear on the ballot every few years. The school board needs to work with the administration to ensure the revenue from the operating levies lasts as long as possible. Additionally, these operating levies could be created as a levy with a fixed sum for a fixed period of time (similar to a mortgage). This would require more frequent levies but the school board and administration would need to provide support for the levy.

Kings needs to stop budgeting losses. This is not an easy task but expenses need to be reduced. This can be accomplished partially through a performance audit. Kings needs to be run more like a business and less like a charity relying on others for support. 7. What is your position on shifting public funding to charter and private schools? We are blessed to live in an area that offers an outstanding public education system while other choices such as private schools, charter schools home-schooling and on-line schooling exists. This allows our parents to find the education system that works best for their student. Public school education is not the best option for every child.

A public school system that provides a high-quality education, (like Kings), should not need to worry about shifting public school funding. This is an issue for lower performing public school districts. This is just another reason for maintaining the high-quality education that is currently provided by Kings. The school board and administration need to work with our legislators to ensure adequate public school funding remains in place.


I did not realize safety was a problem for Kings schools. I believe it's time to have a conversation about cameras in classrooms, that might serve to help identify instances of bullying and could protect teachers form being accused of inappropriate behavior. When student and employee safety becomes an issue it is the responsibility of the board to approve appropriate policies and procedures.

9. What are your positions on Kings Local School District Schools' diversity and inclusion policies?

I'm not aware of any current policies specific to diversity and inclusion.


It is the job of a school board member to represent the interests of the community. The use of citizen's advisory committees and face to face community meetings will aid in obtaining honest community input. School board members need to be available to the community and make ensure their decisions and thought processes are heard and understood by the community. Too often it appears the board is making decision behind closed doors as there is limited or no public discussion.

We all have to remember that only roughly 25% of households in Kings have students in a Kings school. It is important to obtain feedback from all community members and treat all community members equally. Kings can never be UKnighted until this is accomplished.



John Skerl


I have both my bachelor’s degree and MBA from the University of Cincinnati. I am an accounting manager for Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield and have been with the organization for the past 16 years. I currently have 3 children enrolled in Kings schools. My involvement in Kings Local schools has been active. I have served as a Watchdog at Kings Mills Elementary and have also volunteered in a variety of roles throughout the years. I have helped with carnivals at schools (Krazy Karnival, Extravaganza, Spooktacular) as well as classroom parties. While serving as a Watchdog, I would help teachers in the classroom with various activities. My personal experience with students enrolled in KLSD has been great. My 3 children have had some wonderful teachers who do a great job teaching and challenging them. In attending open houses and parent-teacher conferences, I have gotten to know my children’s teachers and what is going on in the classrooms.


I have become a candidate for the Kings Local School Board because I love our district. Throughout the years in my time at Kings, I have been involved in my children’s activities, whether it be events at school, coaching on the sidelines, or scouting. As my children have grown, I have wanted to get more involved aside from these activities. I have seen how great our schools are, and I want to be able to be a part of that, to help keep Kings a strong district not just for now, but for the years to come. I feel that my variety of experiences, as well as professional experiences, make a good candidate for school board. Throughout my career, I have held varying roles and have worked with a variety of folks from a wide range of backgrounds. I work very well with others, especially in collaboration efforts. As a board member, I will bring an open-minded approach and listen to all sides of issues and will encourage others to do the same. I also want to look at the district’s expenditures and be sure that funds are being spent appropriately. The overcrowding at schools is becoming an issue as students at some of the schools are using outdoor trailers, stages, and libraries as classrooms. We need to ensure that the students have the best learning opportunities possible. I want to represent the entire district – Kings Mills / Landen / Maineville / South Lebanon – everyone. I want to hear your concerns and be a voice to make sure that each taxpayer and community member is heard. I want to leave the district in a better place when I leave in comparison to where it will be when I start.

3. What is the role of the Kings Local School District Board of Education?

The role of Kings Local School BOE is to be a driving force for Kings Schools. The board sets policies and oversees these policies which are implemented. The board works closely with the superintendent with the policies and approving curriculum. They are responsible for hiring the superintendent and treasurer, and work closely with them to establishing goals, and ensure that the district is maintaining fiscal responsibility. The board also has an important role in public relations, to build public support and be leaders in the public for Kings Local Schools.

4. What do you believe to be the most important issues facing Kings Local School District? What would be your role in addressing those issues?

I think that there are a few issues in Kings Schools. One that is a hot issue is quarantining. A large challenge that the district is facing is keeping healthy children in the buildings. As a board member, it is important to look at quarantine rules, as well as those of social distancing. Looking at medical studies and assessing what the medical experts are recommending needs to be looked at. A second challenge is growth. Enrollment has increased over the past 10 years with no major upgrades to the facilities. As a board member, I would want to identify the best ways we could address this. Looking at all our schools where crowding is an issue and assessing different options of solving it. Another issue Kings is currently facing is a shortage of bus drivers and food service. My role would be to promote and be an advocate for any position where there are staffing shortages. Our children don’t need to be on the bus for extended periods and have ample time to eat their lunch.

5. What ideas do you have for ensuring all children in Kings Local School District have an opportunity for a high-quality public education? I think that Kings is currently providing high quality public education for all students. We need to ensure that this continues. I think that we would first need to attract and retain great teachers. If we can bring in effective teachers, and keep them in Kings, a high-quality public education will fall into place easily. We need to have teachers who can teach children effectively in all our schools. Across all K-4 buildings, ensuring that learning is consistent across all buildings will ensure that all children have the same opportunities. We also need to offer learning opportunities to help prepare students for life after high school. For those who are looking to go to college, keep offering College Prep and Advanced Placement courses. For those who are not planning on going to college, or are preparing for a trade, continued partnership with the Warren County Career Center will offer student opportunities they may not have at the high school. 6. The state of Ohio relies primarily on property taxes as a means to fund public schools. What is your position on placing operating levies on ballots? I think that if needed, operating levies are essential to ensuring that schools can maintain their daily operations. We were lucky that there was money allocated to districts due to Covid-19, which gave the district funds necessary that a levy was not needed for this November’s election. However, as these funds will diminish, the need for an operating levy may become real. If necessary, I would support placing an operating levy on the ballot and let the voters decide. However, a hard look into spending would first need to be looked at to ensure fiscal responsibility before deeming if a levy is necessary. If one is needed, we would need to have involvement with the Kings community so they are aware of why the funds are needed. 7. What is your position on shifting public funding to charter and private schools? I feel that public funding should be used for public schools. Given how charter schools in Ohio are not subject to the same requirements as public schools, they should only be receiving public assistance that is proportionate to enrollment. While these ratios may have changed, but statistics showing as of the 2015/2016 school year, charter schools represent 7.77% of total enrollment in the state of Ohio. To maintain the balance of funding, charter schools should be receiving the same 7.77% of public funding. This same ratio may not be true for Kings. The same holds true for private schools. Students are given the choice to attend a private school, and they should not be receiving public funding similar to public schools.


All students and employees need to feel safe when they are in the schools. I think that the first area would be to see where there are opportunities to improve safety. I think that one area is around bullying. Bullying is not acceptable, nor should it be tolerated anywhere, especially in schools. Starting teaching about it and preventing it at a young age can help when students are at older, more vulnerable ages. Stopping bad behavior is essential, because if it goes unaddressed, it will just continue. With the wide-spread use of social medial, cyberbullying is an issue as well. Setting policies to prevent cyberbullying would be beneficial. I am aware that Kings has a button for reporting bullying on their website, but I think it needs to be bigger and more visible, not at the bottom of the website. Ensuring that there is a no-retaliation policy and can provide anonymity for reporting bullying might help students and teachers feel more comfortable reporting any incidents that are seen. Continuing to have resource officers in the buildings helps to let students and teachers know that the district is concerned about their safety.


I am a proponent of Kings Diversity and Inclusion Policies and support what they stand for. I feel that we need to be a district that promotes diversity and inclusion, be a place where all students and families feel welcome and safe. As Kings continues to grow, we are seeing more diversity in our schools, and that is a good thing. But we need to make sure that each student has the same opportunity no matter what background they are coming from.


I think the key to balance varying interests is to look at the big picture. I am a person who likes to look at different perspectives as opposed to simply looking at something from one point of view. Having different perspectives allows us to see what others may be thinking. Sometimes it is that different perspective which may be best for the situation. Personal feelings need to be set to the side when making decisions on the board. Decisions need made which will be the best for the school district, and it imperative to hear voices from different points of view.


PLEASE PRINT YOUR NAME EXACTLY AS IT WILLAPPEAR ON THE BALLOT

Sara Spencer


Educational Background - I attended IUPUI and studied education. Work Experience - I’ve spent 13 years in the corporate world as a regional trainer, supporting 16 units across two states with 1,000+ employees and annual sales of approximately $64 million. My duties included ensuring accurate monthly profit and loss statements, onboarding new employees and the successful training of all new hires and new rollouts. After we moved to Kings, I had the privilege of staying home with our children for seven years. After helping to plant a new church in Loveland, I went on staff full time in a thriving children’s ministry at Montgomery Community Church. My duties included overseeing our daytime preschool and childcare programs along with the children’s ministry budget, recruiting new volunteers, writing training manuals and curriculum for children birth - 6th grade and parenting classes. Kings Involvement - My children have attended KME, CIS, KJH and KHS. While my children were at KME and CIS, I was hands on in their classrooms. I served the teachers as often as I could. That normally looked like a few hours once a week. I served as room mom and party planner. I also helped to serve at any of the fundraising activities. My heart was to support their teachers. We also served in whatever way their extracurriculars needed. Once in KJH and KHS, we supported in whatever way we could with donations to the teachers, PTO or extracurriculars. The majority of our time has been spent with extracurriculars. As a family that serves in the Safe Families Ministry, we also bring children into our home and help support families with a variety of needs. This is another way we have served in the district. Our own children have grown through a variety of challenges. They have learned to rely on their educators and coaches, to advocate for themselves and to take responsibility for their education and extracurricular advancement. I can say the same for other students that we regularly interact with. While students do not always make the best choices, this is the best place for them to fall. From my experience, I believe our district and educators create an environment where students can learn from their mistakes to go on to make better choices for themselves and others.

2. Why have you become a candidate for the Kings Local School District Board of Education, what qualifications or unique considerations make you an especially good school board candidate, and what are your top objectives if elected to the board? I believe in the next generation. Our students will be our future leaders and innovators. I believe that our schools must be a safe haven for each and every student in the district each and every day. Every classroom, cafeteria, bus ride, extra curricular activity and playground must create spaces for our children to grow not only in knowledge, but as kind and compassionate young people. I believe that our administrators and teachers want this as well. Our teachers are not just invested in the classroom in front of them, but in every class they have taught. They see each of their students as individuals and work with each one's strengths and weaknesses. At the end of the year when they pass them on to the next teacher, I’ve seen how they pass on their knowledge of each student. And I’ve seen our teachers follow their students' progress through graduation. This is the kind of dedication that allows our students to feel safe, known and even loved. I want to be a part of helping to support our administrators and teachers to do just this. I want to be a part of the process in helping Kings to be one of the greatest schools in the area. I want for all of the residents inside our district to have the knowledge needed to help us make wise decisions for the future young men and women that will grow up inside this community. I have spent the better part of my adult life serving families and educating adults from an array of backgrounds on different topics. I am not a stranger to figuring out what communication and teaching methods work best for different people. I believe that every child needs to be known for who they are and supported right where they are. In order to do this, we need to ensure our educators have the resources to do it. We all may come from different circles, believe in different things and have families that look different from one another. In the end, I think we can all agree that what we have in common is worth fighting for. I believe strongly that our community wants to support,

love and care for the next generation. I believe we want to give our kids every opportunity to succeed. I want to be a part of continuing the process that has been established. I want for our Kings community to continue to be a highly sought after school district in this area. 3. What is the role of the Kings Local School District Board of Education? ● The board ensures the accountability of the Superintendent and Treasurer in their management of the district. The board is a policy making body and not day to day managers inside the district. The board should work with the Superintendent and Treasurer to hold a high standard for achievement. We should have hard conversations so that we can always be working towards continuing improvements for the success of our students. ● The board is to create opportunities of growth for students and families. The board can do this by seeking resources for new opportunities and by advocating for families and all children.

● The board is responsible for educating the community and seeking their opinions or concerns. This goes a long way in helping the community to understand processes and procedures. It ensures open dialogue and not insinuation when the latest rumor runs wild on social media. It allows the community to be a part of the process and not only a means to seek revenue. 4. What do you believe to be the most important issues facing Kings Local School District? What would be your role in addressing those issues? 1. Pandemic - I believe that we need to keep our focus on getting through this pandemic well. We have many challenges ahead of us as things are ever changing. As each day passes more information is coming to light and more of these things affect our schools. It will be so important to stay informed of new guidelines and how they will impact students, teachers and other faculty members. We need to be at the drawing board for each new change looking for innovative ways to help everyone thrive. I believe we must work together and even pivot at times, so that we can provide a safe and life-giving environment to our students. How we choose to handle all of these changes in public, on social media, in the classroom, and at home will affect our children. 2. Master Plan - Our master plan is going to be another area where we will need to come together to find new or alternative solutions. We have seen what the community does not want. So now the work must be done to find new solutions. We need to offer ways for the entire community, not a sample size of those who utilize the schools, to share their concerns and even hopes. In order to do these things, the board will need to get into the community in different ways to ask questions and educate on the needs of this district. Finding better ways of communication is going to be challenging in and of itself. 3. Communication/Education in Community - Communication and effective listening are going to be paramount in moving forward. As we have seen at recent board meetings, there is much disinformation out there. This must be corrected and on a large scale. Our educators deserve to have leaders that will correct the bad press. Our students should also not be made to feel poorly of inaccurate descriptions of their behavior towards one another. We must move towards educating about processes and procedures. Somewhere there is a divide between what we have communicated before and how we continue to communicate. As people move in and out of the district, we have to always be allowed room for education of who we are, how we work together and what our common mission and vision are. We have an incredible communications director. We need to resource her without fear of what people will say about giving of the resources.

4. Election - I also believe, depending on who is elected, the board could be one of the challenges. While it is so important to have different voices on the board, they must all be able to work together to find solutions and then move forward together. At the end of the day, a win is a win for the community. But a loss is a loss for the entire community and it could take years to turn that around. We need a board that will work together in tandem for a bright future for EVERYONE. Otherwise our challenges will only mount.

5. What ideas do you have for ensuring all children in Kings Local School District have an opportunity for a high-quality public education? I believe the board should ensure that we have the best superintendent that is able to hire the best and experienced educators and also retain them. In order to hire more teachers, the board must ensure the Treasurer is keeping fiscal order so we are able to keep teacher to student ratios as low as possible. If the board is not making wise decisions for the future, the community may find themselves in a place where we do not have enough teachers and that we can not retain the good teachers we have become accustomed to because we do not have the financial means or commitment to do so.

We must also provide resources for our teachers to have continuing education. This is another example of how the district can continue making improvements and create innovative and engaging educational spaces. This leads to a continued dedication to high quality education and that leads to improved successes for our students. 6. The state of Ohio relies primarily on property taxes as a means to fund public schools. What is your position on placing operating levies on ballots? Because the majority of funding comes from taxes, yes, it will be necessary to place a levy and even a bond on the ballot. We must be open to and educated on the needs of the district. We must seek guidance from our treasurer as to the best possible way to attain what is needed. When the time arises for a levy, we must create a strategic plan to communicate each step of the way with the community tax payers. 7. What is your position on shifting public funding to charter and private schools? While every situation is different, the “school choice” program looks to penalize the school district when a family makes the decision to place their child somewhere else. It’s unfortunate because there are legitimate circumstances that children may need or want to make a move. It would seem to make more sense for only the federal funding per student to transfer instead of the entire cost per student. I am not certain how HB 110 is going to affect these numbers. I would rely on our Treasurer and attorney to advise us on the new changes. 8. What are your ideas for making Kings Local School District public schools safer for students and employees? This is a good question. With time, discussion and then research I know we can work together to help ensure that our students and teachers feel safe. First, the board will need to know what does not feel safe currently. We need this information from both the students and teachers. It would be good to hear from admins and other staff members, as well. Once we know the climate from those inside the buildings, along with any requests they have, then we need to do some research as to what is being done here locally and on the national level. It will also be prudent to go through all of the processes and procedures we currently have in place. What has become too relaxed? What can help the perception of feeling unsafe? What needs to be enhanced or even changed? If we need to take steps to add any more security measures, we would then discuss with our Treasurer how to find the resources to do it.


We are a public school in America. Education is a right for all of our students. I also believe that there is no place in society for discrimination or racism. In my opinion, our schools should be the safest place next to a child’s home. Each and EVERY student should feel safe, known and even cared for by the adults and other students inside of our buildings. As a parent, I have been leading my own children to love and care for their classmates and authority figures this way over their lifetime. I will always be in support of finding ways to build character in our students. I am proud of our previous board for having the courage to write a resolution stating that we will maintain safe learning environments for every child, that we will embrace and respect diversity, and that we will continue to enhance and expand the plan. They were specific in their wording to include every single child from all backgrounds and beliefs.


As a board representing the entire community it will be very important for all five of us to come to the table with knowledge of what the community is saying and knowledge we have gathered from research and study. If each of us come to the table with genuine interest of hearing from all five of us and our Superintendent/Treasurer on our community and research involvement, I believe we will be able to make, not only informed but also wise decisions on what is best for the whole community. We will never be able to please everyone. But if we can keep agendas out of the conversation and really be willing to bend from our personal beliefs for the sake of everyone, we will thrive. But we must be able to work and listen as a team. We have mutual respect for one another and the community. If all five of us have the same thoughts and beliefs, will we really hear from varying interests in the community? Or will we only align ourselves with pockets of information and opinions? This election will be pivotal in ensuring that all voices in our community can be heard. It will also show us if the research being done is from one source or multiple sources.

Documents

2021 KINGS EDUCATION ASSOCIATION KINGS LOCAL SCHOOL