Two current members and one newcomer are seeking three seats on the Haines Borough school board in Tuesday’s municipal election.
Candidates were asked about the upcoming superintendent hire, school curriculum and wages, technology in the classroom, the importance of music and art, homeschooling and the district’s borough support.
Sara Chapell, 41, a development director at KHNS, has served three years. She said she’s running because she’s committed to making the school the best it can be.
Chapell said the ideal superintendent would understand school budgeting and administration and should be able to demonstrate an ability to work with staff and community to develop a district vision and goals. A superintendent “has to be good at the big picture” but also understand the details of budgets and “know how to make tough decisions,” she said.
Chapell said she’d like to continue to focus on improving math in the school. The district recently brought a new math curriculum into the lower grades, and she’s concerned that three math curricula – at the elementary, junior high and high school – work together. “We’re at a brand new point right now.”
Chapell said recent negotiations made new teacher pay more competitive with other districts. “We need to be able to attract top-quality teachers and retain them.” The district needs to be able to pay teachers what they deserve, she said. Administration pay is competitive enough to land good candidates, she said.
Art and music “could be done in a different way but we couldn’t do it as well without dedicated (art and music) teachers,” Chapell said.
Moving Chilkat Valley Preschool into the Haines School is complicated but doable, Chapell said. “I think we have plenty of time to figure it out, but it’s going to be a lot of work. It’s not as simple as clearing out a classroom and a closet.”
Chapell said attracting homeschoolers to the district’s program still needs attention. Activities, art, and science are bringing homeschool students into the district, she said. “The freedom to choose from an a la carte menu is what they like about our school. We’re putting the nuts and bolts in place to have some growth, but it’s not going to be an overnight process.”
Chapell said the relationship between the borough administration and schools has improved in terms of facilities management, but if state funding is cut, the district may need to seek the borough’s maximum school contribution.
Inez Gross, 53, is operations manager at the Haines bank. A graduate of local schools, Gross said she’s running to fill a gap, as in past years the board has lacked candidates.
Besides communicating with teachers, parents and staff, it’s important for a superintendent to be active in the community and present at school activities, like basketball games, Gross said. “A superintendent should be approachable.”
Gross said students in lower grades don’t need their own iPads or electronic devices. “Not everyone needs to be plugged in at the same time. Kids need to be able to go outside and run around and burn off excess energy instead of being plugged into the computer.”
As for school curriculum, Gross said she’s not excited by the “new math,” but will keep an open mind. “The couple ways I’ve seen the new math is done I’m not all for it because I can’t figure it out. I’m definitely curious about it. If I’m going to help my grandson with his homework, I’m afraid I’m not going to know how to do it, and he’s going to help me.”
Gross said she supports the music and art program as currently offered. “I’d like to see music and art in the school and taught by somebody who knows how to teach it and talk about it. I think that’s really important and they’re important equally.”
Getting more information on siting Chilkat Valley Preschool in the school would be one of her goals, Gross said. “(Whether I’d support it) depends on where they’re planning to put the preschool. The district gets so much money depending on enrollment and preschool students don’t count into that. There’s a lot more I’d like to know before saying ‘yea’ or ‘nay.’”
Gross said she supports efforts to attract homeschool students to the district’s program. As a working mother of three children who’ve gone through local schools, Gross said it’s difficult for her to imagine how parents have time for homeschooling. “The socializing at school is good for kids to grow.”
Gross said she didn’t have information to comment on teacher wages or borough support for the district.
As student body representative, Gross’ daughter Autumn Gross this year holds an advisory seat on the school board.
Mike Wilson, 68, is a retired principal and teacher who said he’s running because he believes in public education and helping students do their best. “It’s important work that needs to be done.” Wilson was appointed to fill a school board vacancy one year ago.
A new superintendent must reach out to everyone in the school system, who can work with others to resolve issues as they come up, Wilson said. A superintendent should be an active part of the community with a knowledge of Alaska school regulations and laws.
In terms of curriculum, Wilson said the steps the district has taken toward STEM curriculum (emphasizing science, technology and math) will be helpful for students in today’s world.
The school’s technology initiative is “very important,” Wilson said. “Our kids need to have the advantage of being literate in technology and be on the leading edge, and not far behind. Last year was a good start. This year it’s critical to follow through.”
Wilson said teachers can be “overloaded” to teach subjects like art and music but “specialists do a much better job.” Music, art, physical education and after-school activities are “vital” to the education of the “whole child,” he said.
Discussion of moving the Chilkat Valley Preschool to the Haines School predated his board term. He said he agrees with the move in principle – “those students are going to become our students,” he said – but said many issues still need to be resolved. “You have to look at unintended consequences and say, ‘What does it really mean and how do you resolve those things?’”
Wilson said he doesn’t have a lot of information on efforts to recruit students to the district’s homeschool but said it’s important “to have an open dialogue on how best to serve our kids in the community.”
As for pay, the teachers’ union and district created a “fair” contract during the summer, Wilson said. “It’s important to be competitive and bring in the best teachers we can. I support collective bargaining as a way to address the issues both (the district and teachers) are concerned about.”
Wilson said he didn’t know how to respond to a question about whether he was satisfied with borough support of the district. “I’d always hope the borough supports the school the best it can and keeps it a priority because these are our kids and we want them to do well.”