Questions?

Personally, I am generally in favor of a post-Labor Day start.

As a parent, I understand why this matters to so many families. Labor Day has traditionally marked the end of summer, and many families value having that final long weekend together. Starting after Labor Day can also make scheduling family vacations, the State Fair, activities, athletics, camps, and employment easier, particularly because many neighboring districts follow a similar calendar.

I also understand why the district made the calendar changes it did. One of the goals was to better align the high school calendar with natural breaks in the semester and, ultimately, support students academically.

But for me, this is where data becomes incredibly important.

Whenever we make a significant district-wide change, I believe we should clearly define what success looks like, measure the results, and then honestly ask whether we achieved those goals. Did student learning improve? Did the semester alignment benefit students? What are teachers, staff, students, and families experiencing? Are there unintended consequences we didn't anticipate?

If the evidence shows that the current calendar is producing meaningful benefits for students, I want us to understand that and support it. If the evidence shows that it is creating more challenges than benefits, then I believe we should be willing to have a conversation about whether another approach would better serve our community.

I don't believe major decisions should be made simply because "that's how we've always done it," but I also don't believe they should remain in place simply because "we've already made the change." Decisions should be guided by meaningful data, measurable outcomes, and input from the families, staff, and students they affect.

That is a philosophy I would bring to the board in general. I want our district and school board to consistently use data and community feedback when evaluating significant decisions. Whenever possible, families should be able to see the information behind those decisions and understand the "why." Transparency builds trust, and I think people are much more likely to support difficult decisions when they know their voices were heard and the evidence was thoughtfully considered.

This is an area where my professional background gives me a little different perspective. I have worked in healthcare finance for more than a decade, so I see firsthand that rising healthcare costs are not an issue unique to educators. It is a challenge facing employers, employees, families, and governments across Minnesota and the country.

I absolutely think we should be looking for ways to make healthcare more affordable and sustainable for school employees, and I believe the state has a role to play in helping address the larger healthcare cost problem.

At the same time, I think we have to do our part locally as well. When the district goes through its benefit negotiations and RFP processes, we need to be doing our due diligence and asking hard questions of our insurance partners. Are we getting the best value? Are there opportunities to control costs without reducing the quality of coverage? Are we putting appropriate pressure on our insurance providers to do better?

This is especially important because not every employee in our district is making a salary that makes rising healthcare costs easy to absorb. For employees supporting families and paying a significant portion of their benefits, healthcare costs can have a very real impact on their financial well-being.

I don't pretend to have the single answer to fixing healthcare costs, but I do believe we need to be willing to explore statewide solutions while also being good stewards of the benefits we negotiate locally.

Professionally, I have been in finance for more than 15 years, with approximately 13 of those years specifically in healthcare finance. My career has given me a strong background in budgeting, financial analysis, decision-making, contracts, and understanding how complicated financial systems actually work.

Outside of my career, I have spent the past five-plus years serving as Chair of the Andersen Parent Group, which is now transitioning to the Bayport Elementary Parent Group with our new school. In that role, I oversee budgets, volunteers, communications, event planning, sponsorships and fundraising, and the overall decision-making for the organization.

I have genuinely loved being part of our school community and helping create a better experience for our kids. When I saw that four school board seats were up for election this year, I started thinking about whether I could take what I have learned as a parent, community volunteer, and finance professional and apply it on a larger scale.

When I started talking to families and staff about the possibility of running, I received a lot of encouragement. People often tell me that I listen, I ask questions, and I don't just accept an answer without wanting to understand the facts, the data, and the different perspectives involved. I think those are important qualities for a school board member.

I have also been a parent in this district for many years, and I have felt the volatility and frustration among families over the past several years. That made me ask myself, Maybe I can help? Maybe bringing in some new perspectives is exactly what our district needs right now.

I also applied to serve on the district's Community Finance Committee this past year, and that experience has been incredibly eye-opening. School finance is complex. It isn't as simple as taking money from one place and moving it somewhere else. There are restrictions, funding sources, enrollment considerations, contracts, staffing needs, and a lot of competing priorities that have to be considered.

Ultimately, I am running because I care about this community, I care about our schools, and I want my kids to be proud to be Ponies. I have spent years advocating for students and families at the elementary level, and I feel ready to see if I can contribute in a broader way.

I think we have several significant challenges ahead, but I would put financial sustainability, academic achievement, and maintaining confidence in our public schools near the top of the list.

First, I think our financial situation is going to be difficult over the next several years. I would not be surprised if the district needs to ask voters to consider a levy in the next year or two. With the limitations of state funding and the reductions we have already experienced, I don't think we can continue to maintain every program and service that makes our schools strong without eventually having to make some difficult choices about additional revenue.

When the administration recently showed the list of potential cuts that were considered but ultimately not made, it was eye-opening. Many of the things that remained were programs and services that I believe make our students' education more complete, including arts and other opportunities that I do not want to see disappear.

I understand that difficult cuts may still be necessary at times. I am not going to sit here and promise that I can prevent every cut or solve the district's financial challenges. But I do want to make sure that when difficult decisions have to be made, we are making the right decisions and not simply making the typical or easiest cuts.

Academically, I want to see us continue improving in reading and math. We have seen declines in some areas for the past couple of years, but I am seeing promise with our new data that was just presented, and I am hopeful that our new curriculum, standards, and instructional approaches can help us turn that around consistently. At the same time, I believe academic success needs to be looked at more broadly than a single test score. We need strong academic foundations while also recognizing that students learn differently and that a successful school experience includes more than testing.

Another area I think we need to pay close attention to is enrollment and what I would describe as our ability to retain and attract families. If families are choosing private schools, charter schools, homeschooling, or other districts, we need to understand why. Enrollment directly affects our financial picture, but more importantly, I think it tells us something about how our community views the value of our public schools.

That is why I think programs like Pre-K and our elementary schools are particularly important. If we can provide families with an excellent experience from the beginning, we have an opportunity to build trust and keep those students within our district for years to come.

Over the past few years, we have made a lot of changes that have primarily affected our older students, such as school start times, the calendar, cell phone policies, block scheduling, PSEO, and other secondary-level decisions. I think those students absolutely deserve our attention, but I also want us to make sure we aren't overlooking where our future enrollment and success begins: our youngest students and families.

If elected, I would want to be a board member who asks questions, listens to the people closest to the issue, understands the financial and academic data, and looks at the long-term consequences of decisions and not just what solves the immediate problem.

Most importantly, I want our district to have a culture where it is okay to ask, "Is this working?"

If the answer is yes, great! Let's understand why and keep moving forward.

If the answer is no, I don't think changing course should be viewed as a failure. I think being willing to recognize that something isn't working and make a better decision is responsible leadership.

I don't expect to agree with everyone, and I don't think a school board should. But I do believe we can disagree respectfully, listen to one another, use the information available to us, and ultimately make decisions that put students and the long-term health of our district first.

Yes, I did support the bond for the new schools and the addition to Oak-Land.

I spent a lot of time at Andersen as a parent and through my involvement with the Parent Group, and I saw firsthand how old and dysfunctional parts of that building had become. I didn't believe it was a sustainable building for our long-term needs, and I felt the new schools were necessary for our students and community.

I also understand the population growth we are seeing south of 36. With all of the new developments and family housing being built in that area, I don't think Oak-Land was going to be able to adequately accommodate that growth without an addition. To me, the bond was about planning for where our district is going, not just where we are today.

My first priority would be understanding their goals and vision for the district. As a parent and community member, my perspective may sometimes be very different from that of administration, and I think that's okay. We don't have to agree on everything to work effectively together.

I think the biggest things I can bring to the table are listening, asking questions, understanding the background and data behind decisions, and thinking about the potential long-term implications and benefits.

I also think a school board needs to understand its role. The board should provide oversight, direction, and accountability while allowing administration to do the job they were hired to do. I would want to have a collaborative relationship with administration while still being willing to ask the hard questions when necessary.

Ultimately, I think we all need to be able to respect each other's roles and work toward the same goal: creating the best possible outcome for our students, staff, families, and district.

If I had to choose one immediate priority, it would be helping navigate our current financial situation.

I expect we are going to face additional difficult budget decisions in the coming years, and I want to be at the table to understand the options and help make the best decisions possible for our district. I don't think we can avoid every cut, and I don't want to make promises that I can't keep. But I do want to make sure that when difficult choices have to be made, we are looking at the long-term impact and protecting the things that matter most to students.

Beyond the budget, I think one of my biggest priorities would be strengthening the relationship between our staff, administration, and school board. I personally feel there is a level of division within our district right now, and I would like to be part of rebuilding those relationships. Our teachers and staff need to feel heard, administration needs to feel supported while also being held accountable, and the board needs to be able to have difficult conversations without those conversations becoming divisive.

I also think we need to focus more intentionally on our enrollment and capture rate, particularly with our youngest students. I worry that more families are looking elsewhere for their educational needs, whether that is private school, charter school, homeschooling, or another district. We need to understand why.

We have spent a lot of time over the past few years making changes that primarily affect our secondary students. Those students absolutely matter, but I think we also need to make sure we are giving our youngest students and families the same level of attention. If we can give families a great experience from the beginning, we have a much better chance of keeping those students in our district for the long term.

At the end of the day, I want every student, from our youngest learners to our graduating seniors to have the opportunity to have a great experience in Stillwater schools. That means we have to look at the entire district, not just one age group, one program, one test, or one budget year.