New D46 Board Members Plan to Stir the Pot
Two newcomers and one re-elected school board member promise to keep the discussions flowing.
It was a tight race, but Shannon Smigielski and Kip Evans managed to garner enough votes to earn a seat on Grayslake’s District 46 Board of Education. Both will join re-elected member Sue Facklam and the current term members at the May 3 board meeting.
Smigielski’s campaign appealed to voters as a fellow parent who wanted to be the voice for the community.
Evans, a retired school teacher, made no secret of his affiliation with the Lake County Tea Party, seeking more financial transparency and lower taxes.
Facklam maintained her commitment to the district and will continue for a third term.
The newcomers to the board were asked about their plans for the upcoming term:
1. What will you bring to the table that has been missing or would be of benefit to the district?
As a new Board member, I hope to be a positive force in many areas. I hope to help bridge the divide that the community feels between them and the board. I want to encourage the community to have input and share their ideas. The district is facing some very difficult challenges ahead and one of the best ways to work through those challenges would be asking for and including community input. Grayslake is a fabulous community with a diversely skilled population. It is in everyone's best interest to utilize the talents and intellects of those who wish to share. Shannon Smigielski -
I hope to encourage the board to be more transparent and responsive to the public. This board should not act as the enemy of the public but rather as the representative of all taxpayers. Kip Evans
2. How will you handle differences of opinion on school board issues between yourself, other board members and the superintendent?
I may be slightly different than most people when it comes to differences of opinion: I welcome additional perspectives. I hope that when a decision is made that I don't agree with, the other Board Members will be able to diplomatically explain their process and reasons for reaching their decision. As long as decisions are made through diligent and thorough research, I will respect it, even if I don't agree. Shannon Smigielski
I am coming to this board with no preconceived agenda. I am a good listener and will consider the opinion of the superintendent and all other board members before I form my opinions. Kip Evans
3. Do you have target issues that you plan to address?
An important issue that I plan to address is how the board interacts with the administrators, staff, and students of the schools. A community member and I spoke before the election at length about this. It is time for our board to invest; what do I mean by this? We have seven Board members. We have seven schools. I will be proposing that each Board member "adopt" a school. The Board members should then invest themselves by getting to know the staff by participating at PTO functions, going to concerts/plays, observing classes, spending time with the custodians to the media assistants to the administrators. Ride a bus route! Have lunch with the kids! Take the staff out on a Friday night for pizza...say "Thank you!" and "How can I help?" Shannon Smigielski
The recent increase in the tax levy was to pay for a shortfall in the cost of bus transportation. I want to look into the details of this part of the budget. Otherwise, I have no targets other than becoming familiar with the inner workings of the district with an eye to making improvements whenever possible. Kip Evans
4. In your opinion, will politics continue to impact the school board, as it did during the elections?
If this school board and district wants to move forward and be productive, positive, and effective, then there is no room at the table for politics, grievances and acrimony. Shannon Smigielski
I got involved with the school board because of its lack of transparency. Unless the board is willing to make changes in the way it puts out information and in the way it treats the taxpayer, politics will continue to impact its actions. Kip Evans
Carl
2:11 pm on Saturday, April 16, 2011
Politics and taxpayer first...atta boy, Kip...what about the kids? any interest there? 37 votes...what are the odds they come through on Wednesday?
Sully
7:27 pm on Saturday, April 16, 2011
interesting thought- 'I will be proposing that each Board member "adopt" a school."- from smigielski. who gets carbone?
GoBlue
8:08 am on Monday, April 18, 2011
I am really not trying to attack Kip, but I have to be honest. His beliefs as do the beliefs of the tea party scare the hell out of me. I just hope his tea party rhetoric does not detract from the Board’s tasks at hand. I get the sinking feeling that he could care less about the kids. He already made his money as a now retired teacher. To me it is painfully obvious that he will do whatever it takes to keep as much money in his pocket as possible, regardless of his actions effects on the kids. That to me is sad. All I can say is that I hope I am wrong.
Sully
3:05 pm on Monday, April 18, 2011
i have to agree with you regarding the tea party. most of th members are so uninformed or misinformed, it's scary. here's a look at what one of the tea party governors is doing to his state-
http://blog.buzzflash.com/node/12610
somehow this doesn't strike me as LESS government intrusion.
HM
12:07 pm on Monday, April 18, 2011
CE - I appreciate what everyone has to say - there are many ways to look at these issues. While I am far from being a tea party member or supporter, I do have to state the obvious. Taxes in Illinois, and in Lake County, and in Grayslake most specifically, are out of control. I have yet to see any real sacrifices enacted. I see many instances of officials on every level burying their heads in the sand, approving greater spending, and hoping someone else will sacrifice. At some point, the expenses are going to have to be reduced. That means across the board. Schools, police/fire, libraray, park district, forest preserve, etc. Talk to anyone trying to sell a home here, and they will tell you - home prices in much of Grayslake are down 30% - much higher that average for Illinois - because of the exorbitant taxes we pay, for schools that, frankly, offer less than many neighboring districts. Throwing more money at the situation will not solve a thing, but will continue to erode home values, which leads us down a path that I'd rather not take.
Carl
1:00 pm on Monday, April 18, 2011
HM...
Not so sure I agree with your housing analogy. The reason our values are falling is because the community is so polarized, no one wants to move here. As the quality of our schools erodes, the polarization intensifies, and we get all kinds of bad press to scare folks away. Besides, our housing values were artificially inflated to begin with.
I'm all for cost control; as long as the first and foremost priority is the kids. This business about "taxpayer first" will only destroy what little we have to build on. The board is not here to support the taxpayer. They're here to do what they have to do to serve the kids. If that means a legal levy, so be it. If the Tea Party thinks they can elect a board member on the premise that he will ignore his duty to the kids and community in order to reduce his supporters taxes, they won't last long. Sounds like good ole fashioned special interest to me.
GoBlue
1:34 pm on Monday, April 18, 2011
I am all for fiscal responsibility. I am also for paying lower taxes, but not at the expense of education. If cutting taxes and the school budget is justified by facts than I am all in. I am not all in for cutting for the sake of saving taxpayers a few bucks will the children suffer as programs are cut, and good teachers decide to move on as pay gets cut. I am sure if the board works together they can come up with equitable solutions to the problems at hand. In order to come to an agreement there will be much debate and disagreement and that is fine. I am all for a difference of opinion. What I am not for is one man pushing his political agenda on others instead of putting both his and the board's focus where it belongs, which are the children they were elected to serve. I do not want someone on the board to constantly raise a ruckus for the sole purpose of trying to undermine the board’s unity, while pulling their attention away from the tasks at hand.
GoBlue
1:34 pm on Monday, April 18, 2011
As for property tax, it depends on where you live as to how much you pay. There are areas in Grayslake that pay a lot in taxes and others that pay less. I am in Hainesville and I do not feel that my taxes are ridiculously high. Unfortunately I do not think you can solely blame property taxes for the housing market issues. The housing markets stink all over the country right now. I believe that if the board can work through the issues and keep District 46 headed in the right direction, it will only help bring more people to Grayslake and Hainesville.
Brad Faxton
2:44 pm on Monday, April 18, 2011
CE - but that is exactly what Kip wants to do... make a play to drastically lower taxes (just because) and then force the school to cut a HUGE amount of services (just because).
GoBlue
3:04 pm on Monday, April 18, 2011
At this point all I can do is hope the rest of the board hold Kip and Michael in check and not allow them to take over.
Sully
5:39 pm on Monday, April 18, 2011
i hope so too, ce. i won't be holding my breath though. i believe there are plenty of disgruntled teachers who if they had other options, would look elsewhere for employment. carbone and evans can run rampant knowing the teachers here are in a bind. i can hear the tea baggers now, screaming, 'then let them leave!', but that's the point. there's no where else to go. these are good teachers too who deserve better. the truly uneducated and the ignorant (evans would have to be included by belonging to the tea party) don't seem to understand that.
Brad Faxton
1:29 pm on Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Not to split hairs (no pun intended), a Tea Bagger and a Tea Party member are 2 somewhat unrelated..... affiliations
I gotta stop.
KPS
9:26 pm on Monday, April 18, 2011
I would encourage everyone concerned about property taxes and the funding of education to contact Suzi Schmidt and Sandy Cole. The current tax structure in Illinois leaves the funding of education on the backs of local tax payers. It results in high property taxes and an inequity of educational opportunities across communities, with the children living in wealthier communities reaping the benefits of their high property values and sales tax revenue. When we choose to live in a small community like Grayslake that does not have a lot of big businesses, that means the schools receive little revenue from sales tax and hence, the funds must come from property taxes. There is simply no way around this logic and it is the elephant in the room that no one seems to talk about or want to address. We all want every child to have the greatest opportunities for success. Reality: our per pupil expenditures are just below the state average; this school district is not spending outrageous sums on our children. It is about the tax structure and our community's minimal commercial development.
Sully
5:18 am on Tuesday, April 19, 2011
excellent point, kps! i know of schools down the north shore that offer each of its upper grade students their own laptops (that they keep for the school year-it's theirs to take home, etc...), there's no way grayslake can afford to do that. the disparities between school districts is breathtaking. yet some in grayslake want to make the disparities even greater by frugal spending policies. it will be kind of hard to compete with other students vying for college admission if the playing field is so one-sided. right now their hope is in capitalizing while in district 127, but how long are the high schools going to be able to provide for their students if the elementary district sends them less than the best possibly educated students?
Carl
6:49 am on Tuesday, April 19, 2011
In all fairness, we do need to keep an eye on how we SPEND. There is tremendous waste in CCSD 46. Unfortunately, when the Tea Party finds it, they give it back to the taxpayer rather than redirecting it appropriately in the system. That's why I continue to say that the 1st priority is the kids; not the taxpayer. What do we have to do to get rid of Blue Ribbon?
GoBlue
8:47 am on Tuesday, April 19, 2011
That is an excellent point KPS. I did not think of it from that angle. I have no idea what we should do. It is not like we have the land to bring in a bunch of new businesses. Also, if we overcrowd Grayslake/Hainesville with too much commercialization, it detracts from the small town atmosphere that caused people to move here in the first place. I am interested to hear what other posters think would be the best course of action. We can most certainly be more watchful in how we spend what we have per Carl's comments, which I completely agree with as long as the money is kept within the school system helping the children. What else can we do?
Pmint
1:31 am on Wednesday, April 20, 2011
FINALLY someone who understands the underlying problem! Illinois ranks in the bottom 10% in the nation of states that financially support public education. That means that for the majority of expenses, the District has to find the money itself. And the state has drastically limited where that income can come from. People look at a graph of district income and are appalled that 75% of it comes from property taxes - that's the only place they're allowed to get it! I'm not suggesting that IL has any money to start funding a reasonable amount, but they regularly place limitations on what local entities can do to change their financial situations, and regularly pass unfunded mandates, which requires us to spend our dwindling resources in specific ways. Add that to the rampant housing growth in our district in the past 15 years (how many school children live in each house, townhouse and condo?) with no concurrent commercial growth, and it's the disaster we have now. I say make the state solve their own problems, and leave our local schools alone - at least until they bring something to the table besides more regulations.
Sully
10:10 am on Tuesday, April 19, 2011
that's a question every school district in the country is asking. how about less money from the feds. for war and more for domestic spending? the priorities in this country are seriously out of whack. fewer tax cuts for multi-billionaires wouldn't hurt either. for some reason, the common folk who make up the tea party (not the rich who are funding it) think that lower taxes for the wealthy will somehow help the economy.
Brad Faxton
1:32 pm on Tuesday, April 19, 2011
This does come full circle. in D46, we have far too high administrative costs. Too many admins, too many principals (sorry), too many.... list can keep going.
Rearrange those costs, refocus the cost savings on the students - like bus transportation, music, curriculum etc...
Carl
2:37 pm on Tuesday, April 19, 2011
And the idea of having administrators wear "two hats" is so counter-productive. A principal should not also be a superintendent. Switching between 2 jobs is as inefficient as it gets. Let a principal be a principal and let them work 2 or 3 buildings. That way, they do one job, centralize their support functions for multiple locations, and end up with multiple schools on the same page relative to culture. That's how you down-size staff.
Sully
5:12 pm on Tuesday, April 19, 2011
let a principal work 2 or 3 buildings? are you kidding? maybe you should shadow one of the principals and see what their day consists of. they barely have time to get through a day, and without an a.p., there's no way they could do everything needed for the good of the school.
Sully
3:00 pm on Tuesday, April 19, 2011
brad- the d46 administration is far from top heavy. if you believe otherwise, you are mistaken.
Carl
3:44 pm on Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Sullivan...
...until you look at the spread between teacher cost vs. Administrator cost. Much bigger gap than most districts.
Sully
5:09 pm on Tuesday, April 19, 2011
however, with some administrators taking on two positions, what is the true cost? and compared to other district's administrator pay, how does grayslake stack up?
Sully
4:37 am on Wednesday, April 20, 2011
i fear that with the likes of carbone and evans on the board, and with lennie jarratt on some personal crusade against the superintendent, this district is in for some rough times ahead.
Tazer
9:57 am on Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Cool story on D46 in today's Daily Herald.
Sully
10:06 am on Wednesday, April 20, 2011
cool? in what sense?
Carl
2:32 pm on Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Cool that Jarratt continues to waste district funds with a silly complaint over an email. He needs to get a job and pay his mortgage which in turn will pay the taxes he DOESN'T pay ant complains about so vehemently...
Sully
3:29 pm on Wednesday, April 20, 2011
i'd like to know why jarratt was sending tea party literature to mrs. correll on district email. is that not political?
Carl
6:25 pm on Wednesday, April 20, 2011
It's called bait. I've read the entire thread/complaint and this whole thing is a joke. What a waste of money. It's going nowhere but the check register under "legal" instead of what's best for the district.
Sully
6:54 pm on Wednesday, April 20, 2011
that was my thinking as well, carl. i'm not sure lennie is bright enough to think up a plan like this on his own though. maybe carbone?
Carl
9:04 pm on Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Actually, the bait came to Ellen from that AFP dude...Joe something...Lennie's not that bright. He has a new puppeteer...used to be Bruno.
Sully
7:00 pm on Wednesday, April 20, 2011
hmmm... timely, and interesting- lennie's bosses-
http://www.thenation.com/print/article/160062/big-brothers-thought-control-koch
Carl
9:06 pm on Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Awww...it's just their favorite double-standard...
Carl
9:17 pm on Wednesday, April 20, 2011
A word about the ethics complaint...
As usual, the DH took it all out of context. Ellen was checking with counsel because Smigelski threatened a slander/libel action; not if the "Meet & Greet" was appropriate. Facklam was concerned because she didn't feel it was warranted. District counsel is certainly an appropriate go-to when a board member is threatened with such.
Sully
9:44 pm on Wednesday, April 20, 2011
i've been wondering- what does the herald have against d46? it seems that any press the district receives is negative.