Fewer than 10 people, including moderator Mark Schreiber, attended a candidate forum held Wednesday evening at the Flint Hills Technical College conference room.
The candidates — incumbents Mike Crouch and Brent Windsor, and Danny Giefer and Amy Scheller — are running for three open seats that will be filled in the April 7 election.
Crouch, who has served on the board for four years, said that he has survived the learning curve that comes with operating a school district and dealing with budgets, and that he would provide experience that would be valuable to the board if he is re-elected.
Brent Windsor said that as marketing director at Hopkins Manufacturing, he routinely is in charge of “pretty significant budgets” and has experience in team-building, working with groups of people, and in planning for the future. He said that strategic thinking — “What’s something different we can do?” — is something that he deals with on the job daily and was a strength that he brings to the board.
Danny Giefer, a manager at Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corp. until his recent retirement, said he has business experience as owner and operator of Mr. G’s car washes and rental properties.
Scheller, who holds a degree in nursing and nursing education, talked about her work with various committees within the district that help the board and administrators determine priorities for operating the schools.
All favored a blend of experienced and new teachers when an audience member asked whether older teachers would be the first to be released if a reduction in force were needed.
Scheller said teachers need to be free to be creative, rather than “teaching to the test.”
“The common phrase I hear is ‘I just wish I could teach. I just wish they would let me teach,’” Scheller said.
Windsor, too, was concerned with emphasis on testing.
“When you start teaching to the test, you take out the creativity, you take out the problem-solving,” Windsor said, adding that problem-solving skills are essential for students to adapt better to situations when they are older.
“I’m very much a proponent of making some changes,” Windsor said.
Giefer said that the school board needs to listen more to the teachers who are “on the front line” in education.
Each candidate identified the budget as the major challenge the board will face in coming years.
“One of the challenges is not to look two years ahead, but to look on out so that we’re not in trouble five years from now,” Giefer said.
Having less money or less time to accomplish a task is not necessarily a negative, but can be an opportunity to find new solutions, Windsor said.
“In tough times, you often have the opportunity to look at ways you have been doing things and ask yourself, ‘Why?’” Windsor said.
Crouch said it was important not to lose sight of the board members’ roles in the district, as representatives of the people of Emporia. He suggested that board members and district patrons communicate their needs and suggestions to local, state and national officials.
For a fuller story on the forum, go to www.emporiagazette.com.