District 107 candidates divided on priorities

The Doings
March 20, 2009
By JENNIFER ZIMMERMAN

The priorities emphasized by candidates running for the Pleasantdale Elementary District 107 Board are different: One side wants to see through implementation of the new strategic plan and the other stresses the need to improve morale among teaching staff and in the community.

Incumbents Mark Mirabile, Leandra Sedlack and Patti Essig touched on the strategic plan's implementation, to increase academic performance and improve the district as a whole. Essig said she has very much been part of the planning process since it began in 2003. She is seeking her third term on the board.

“I feel I still have more information to give,” she said. “I'm still a benefit to the district.”

The plan is now moving into phase two, which Essig said doesn't include any major changes, but supports what has already been modified such as the curriculum. However, the changes made so far need be measured and all three agree a new tool is needed to analyze the success of the Social Emotional Learning Program.

Lauri Valentin, who is running on a slate with Karen O'Halloran, Gina Scaletta-Nelson and Michael Rak, argues that measuring success should include community input. This isn't being accomplished through the current board, that she says is largely controlled by Superintendent Mark Fredisdorf.

“I think we tend to agree the system is broken,” Valentin said.

Valentin pointed to the remodeling of the elementary school front office as a situation where public input was ignored. The district expects to spend about $200,000 on the construction, which board members argue is necessary to address safety concerns and to control the level of access people are given when buzzed in.

“The plans they are proposing are not going to make that much of a difference,” said O'Halloran. Scaletta-Nelson said the project is unnecessary and the school is safe. She and Valentin agree spending $200,000 is fiscally irresponsible, considering the expected effect of the state tax cap on property taxes and the poor state of the economy.

The slate would like to restructure the way public comment is held at board meetings and host more town hall meetings. They would also like to see an upgrade to technology similar to that used in other feeder districts, such as LaGrange Highlands District 106, where students get laptops, starting in middle school.

Scaletta-Nelson would also like to see more staff with an expertise in technology brought into classrooms.

Mirabile agrees lines of communication need to be opened. This can be accomplished by interacting in different ways, such as e-mail, phone and the Internet. As for being fiscally responsible, Mirabile defended the board's work that put the district in a stable financial condition.

“We don't face a lot of problems other schools do,” he said.

Two or three years ago a cost analysis was put together to help the district's fiscal planning. Funding for new programs may have to be adjusted, and expenditures will be carefully monitored, but he sees Pleasantdale holding steady for at least the next five years. However, a new union contract for teachers is to be negotiated this year and will have to be carefully considered when it comes to salary increases, he said.