Meet the Candidates: Eight Candidates Fighting for Three Francis Howell Board of Education Seats

Three seats are up for grabs on the Francis Howell Board of Education.

Candidates Mike Hoehn, Mike Sommer, Ronnie Johnson, Eric Seider, Eric Ewalt, Burt Biermann, Gary Miller and Mark Lafata are in the race for a three Board of Education seats. Each open spot is for a three-year term. 

A request for information was sent out to each of the candidates and this is their response. Candidates are being presented in alphabetical order.

__________

What is your address? 112 Timber Run. St. Peters, MO 63376.

Current occupation? Retired.

Why are you running? At a time of declining enrollment, the current school board has a track record of budget-busting spending. The Francis Howell School District has the highest paid teachers and administration in St. Charles County. This crash spending has not resulted in improvement in test scores or inspiring leadership.

The incumbent board members running for re-election are targeting layoffs of teachers and support staff. They have told us they are not in favor of a tax increase at this time. They are, however, poised to take that up again after the election. It is time they realize that they cannot burden the St. Charles County taxpayers with a pointless tax increase when many residents and friends are struggling to make ends meet.

What relevant experience do you have? I have directed multi-million dollar projects for corporate information technology clients. I have solely negotiated multi-million dollar contracts with health and state entities. Both State Representative Kurt Bahr and St. Charles County chairman and leader of the Republican Party Cynthia Davis have endorsed my candidacy.    

What goals do you have? If we do the same things, we will have the same problems. My goal is to find great solutions and get the best results from the Francis Howell School board so we can have great schools and great education of our children. Another goal is to inspire students, parents, teachers, and administrators to take a leap for American Exceptionalism.

Contract information: burt319(at)yahoo.com 

________

What is your address? PO Box 303, Cottleville, MO 63338.

Current occupation: Underwriters Laboratories Inc. I am a standards Compliance Auditor.

Educational Background: 1985 Francis Howell High School Graduate, 1988 Westminster College Graduate with Bachelors Degree in Mathematics and through William Woods College - State of Missouri Teacher's Certificate for Mathematics Grade Levels 7-12.  1996 Keller Graduate School of Management Master's Degree in Project Management.     

Why are you running? I would like to see what I can contribute to improving student achievement in our District by focusing on providing a solid curriculum and educators committed to a standard of student mastery of the material before students are passed on to the next level of the curriculum.    

If elected, what would be your priority objectives?  I’d like to make a comprehensive evaluation of the district's curriculum at all grade levels to see where improvements may be made.  Also, I’d like to evaluate the standards used in measuring student learning of the curriculum and taking action on trends found so that continuous improvements to the delivery of education are provided.  

___________

Where do you live? St. Charles.

What is your current occupation? Local business owner. 

Why are you running: I have served on the Board for three years and continue to bring a fiscally responsible, practical and proactive approach to the issues facing the district.  I would like to see the district construction projects completed on time and on or under budget.  

Relevant Experience:  I have been on the School Board since 2008 and currently serve as the Treasurer.  My wife, Terrie, and I have been parent volunteers in the district for over 20 years.  I currently sit on two District committees and the Design team for the District construction projects.  We attend events all over the district that give us the opportunity to talk to parents, teachers, volunteers and students to hear their ideas and concerns.  

Please tell us about one goal you have for this position: We, as a School Board, need to make sure we keep our focus on student safety and achievement in all the decisions we make.  That is our No. 1priority!

__________

Where do you live? Cottleville

What is your current job/position? I am an Executive IT Specialist providing support and leadership to a large global technical team of specialists, who provide the daily services to over 2000 clients.

Why are you running for Board of Education? Serving and giving back to students is a passion of my life. I plan to focus on the technological students and the financial resources necessary to support learning what technology entails for the students and the teachers of Francis Howell School District. 

What do think you can you bring to this position? I bring hopes and values to the students, teachers and Administration during times when the Francis Howell School District is facing many challenges. I bring more than 27 years experience in technology, more than fiveyears serving as Board of Director, more than 10 years mentoring, serving students and leading an Executive Committee and more than five years supporting major Labor Negotiations with an understanding of budget constraints and the importance of working to find the best financial solutions to maintain stability.

Please tell us about one goal you have for this position: Our children deserve the best possible leadership and hiring the best educators and working with innovative programs is the beginning.

Contact information:  rdjohnson10(at)msn.com

____________

Where do you live? 100 Twill Haven.

What is your current occupation? Vice President Commercial Lending Real Estate Group at Heartland Bank

Relevant experience: I have 23 year as a banking executive and nine years on the school board. I served as President of the board for 4 years 2004 to 2008.

Why are you running for office?  I would like to eliminate the constant calls for taxes increases. At a critical time when Americans are tightening their belts and cutting their own budgets, facing high unemployment, decreased property values, and huge deficits, taxpayers in the Francis Howell School District taxes are going up in 2011.  Mike Sommer, Mike Hoehn and Ronnie Johnson voted to increase your 2011 taxes. I did not support this decision.

When I was elected in 2001, our district faced a $13 million dollar deficit. Yet, within three years after my election, the District was operating with a $3.5 million dollar surplus.  In 2004, I led the charge to maintain the .25-cent rollback of taxes and this commitment has saved our District’s taxpayers more than $35 million dollars over the last seven years. All of this was accomplished with no program cuts, no teacher layoffs, and no tax increases. During that same time period, the Francis Howell School District has become the one of the highest performing school districts academically in the St. Charles and surrounding area.

What are your goals for this position? I would like to eliminate deficit spending and reduce the amount of debt the school district is carrying.  School districts need to operate within their budget.  

I would like to eliminate the constant calls for tax increases. The board majority saw a need to increase your taxes this year. I would like to eliminate the debt being extended in our school district. It’s not necessary to continue to build new school building when you have district-wide declining enrollment, and you’re operating your district at a deficit. Does it make to sense to borrow money for operations and then extend your debt out even further? The only way to change the decisions being made is to change the majority.

_________________

Where do you live? I live in the Francis Howell School District. 3919 Harvest Meadow Dr. St. Peters, MO 63376

What is your current occupation? I have been a pipefitter for 24 years. 

What is your relevant experience? I am a taxpayer and I have lived in Francis Howell for more than 30 years.

Why are you running? I am running for the Board of Education because I feel that I have a voice of reason, I believe I can work  with administration,  board members and employee groups to give students of Francis Howell the best education possible. 

Please tell us about one goal you have for this position: My goal is to work with all the stakeholders in the district to give students of Francis Howell  a great education.

___________

Where do you live? St. Peters, MO

What is your current job/position? I am a Director of IT & Telecommunication.

Why are you running for Board of Education? I am very passionate about public education in our community, state, and country.  I believe that public education is the key to competing in the global economy and maintaining our local economy. Public education is a human and civil rights issue.

I believe the school board, administrative staff, teachers, and parents should closely work together keeping the success of the students in the district as the first priority.

I believe that parent involvement is also key in the success of the students. It is truly frightening to attend district meetings, parent/teacher conferences, and open houses and see such a small turnout of parents.

I believe that contracts granted by the district should go to local union contractors with a preference to contractors located in the district. This supports the local economy and families in the district.

Relevant Experience:  I have managed large capital and operational budgets. In tough economic times like we are facing it is necessary to look at expenses (both capital and operational) to make the necessary adjustments. When making these adjustments we need to insure we are not reducing student achievement or the students' ability to excel.

In my current position I manage both non-represented employees and represented employees and understand the key to success lies in proper management of the resources.

I have the trust of the Francis Howell Education Association and Tri County Labor.

What do think you can you bring to this position? I can bring a fresh perspective and objective analysis to problem solving. As an independent thinker, I will not always just vote with the majority if I feel the decision is negatively impacting student achievement, property values, or our neighborhoods' ability to attract young families who want the best education for their children.

I will work with the other board members in a respectful manner to team solve problems.

I will also not stand in the way of our district Superintendent from fulfilling their responsibility. The primary responsibility of the board is in hiring the correct administrator for the district and not getting tied up in gritty details such as what kind of soap is being ordered in the district.

Please tell us about one goal you have for this position: One goal I have for the position is to quickly rehire the staff that was recently laid off based on the current economic need. Every staff person cut directly impacted student achievement in our district—from class sizes, reading resources, gifted education, after school activities, and early childhood education.

Contact information:

• eric.seider67(at)gmail.com
• http://www.facebook.com/eseider
• http://seiderforschoolboard.com

_________

Where do you live?  6 Williamsburg Ct, St Charles, MO 63303

What is your current job / position?  I own my own business, Sommer & Associates CPAs LLC.  I am a Certified Public Accountant.

Why are you running for the Board of Education? With tough economic times comes tough decisions and I believe that I can provide a common-sense approach to helping solve the challenges within our school district.  A sound and responsible school district means more than just getting our children ready for the future; it means higher property resale values, happier neighborhoods, and a better community. 

Relevant Experience: My qualifications include more than 25 years in Public Accounting and 30 years of Community Involvement. Some highlights include: 

Board of Education Leadership positions and District Committee involvement including Finance, Human Resources, Technology, Insurance, Enrollment, Code of Conduct, Transportation, and Strategic Planning.

• Missouri School Board Association – Certified Board Member / Region 7 Leadership                                            
• Saint Charles Chamber of Commerce – Past Chairman
• Saint Charles Jaycees – Past President
• Harvest Ridge Elementary / Barnwell Middle PTO

What do you think you can bring to this position? This was taken from GreatSchools.org ,and I believe I am a reflection of these qualities:  

What to look for in a board candidate? The ability to work well with a team and support group decisions, along with an understanding that the board sets a climate for the entire district.

• A desire to work toward a stronger relationship between the district and the public it serves
• A keen eye toward serving the needs of all students, regardless of their abilities and backgrounds
• A professional, poised demeanor and respectful, respectable behavior
• Respect for diverse points of view
• Commitment to the time and energy required each week for meetings, phone calls, conversations, visits to schools, and professional development seminars and workshops
• Knowledge about district policies, guidelines, needs, challenges and strengths
• At the heart of it all, members of a district's board of education must believe, unequivocally, in the value of public education. They must be dedicated to serving and teaching all children. They must believe in the democratic process and understand that their role is to act strategically, in line with the interests of the entire school community.

Again this was taken from: http://www.greatschools.org/improvement/volunteering/school-board-candidates.gs?content=22&page=2  

Please tell us about one goal you have for this position: I believe that the Board of Education must not be satisfied with the status quo.  We must continue to look for opportunities by thinking outside the box while still improving the educational experience available to our students. It is important that we keep looking towards the future with the knowledge that our success lies in our teachers and students.  

Contact Information:  http://MikeSommer.info