001[Music] All right. Good evening everyone and welcome to the 2025 meet the candidates night. Thank you for joining us for this important opportunity to hear directly from the candidates running for a seat on the board of education. to guide us through tonight's event. I am pleased to introduce you to our moderator for the night, Amy Thomas, the executive director of the Monroe County School Boards Association. We're honored to have her with us tonight and to moderate this evening's discussions. Without further ado, please join me in welcoming Amy Thomas. I don't think I've ever gotten applause before, so that's really welcoming. Thank you very much. Um, good evening everyone and welcome to the Easter Ronquite Central School District meet the candidates night. My name is Amy Thomas. I'm the executive director of the Monroe County School
002Boards Association and I have been invited to be the moderator this evening and it's my honor to be here this year. We have four candidates running for three seats. Our candidates seated in ballot order are Sheney Keelin, Kimberly Lasher, Jeffrey Petri, and Jessica Krupa. Before we invite the candidates to give their opening statements, I'd like to highlight the work of elected board of education members. East Arandquite has nine dedicated unpaid volunteers who invest hundreds of hours during their term to understand their roles and responsibilities and stay updated on educational trends and legislation affecting public education. They also ensure that they are accessible to the community by serving on district committees and participating in district functions and events throughout the school year. I extend my gratitude to each one of you for your commitment to pursuing
003this vital position of service to students, the community, and to public education. With that said, candidates, thank you for being here this evening. You will be provided three minutes for an opening introductory statement. After opening statements, each candidate will be asked five questions alternating who answers first and then I'll ask audience questions submitted tonight. And as I mentioned to you before, there may be specific questions for specific candidates. Candidates, you'll be given two minutes to deliver your responses. Please feel free to ask for any question to be repeated when needed. We'll end the night with twominut closing statements. Please watch the timekeeper right in front of you for a yellow card which will indicate 30 seconds are left and for a red card to know when the time is up. We ask that you start
004wrapping up when you see the yellow card. As a reminder, community members in attendance may submit questions on the index cards provided to the district clerk. We ask that audience members submit no more than three questions so that our candidates have time to get through all of them. So, it's time to get to know our candidates. So, we'll begin with opening statements beginning with Sheney. Good evening. um as an educator with over 25 years experience starting out as a substitute teacher um in Chicago public schools and a teacher instructional coach moved into principalship and assistant principal shipped. I then moved to Buffalo, New York um and did some turnaround assistant principal and principal ship work. I headed back to Illinois for a short time, uh, not short, five years, uh, and worked on my assistant
005superintendency, um, and also getting a degree in in superintendency. Um, before making my way back on the western side of New York, um, uh, I took a short stint in Holland, Michigan as a superintendent. um that was not the right time or space for me and so moved into Rochester as a chief academic officer and now I serve in Rush Henrietta as a deputy superintendent. So all of that to say plenty of time in education. I'm very interested um in serving the East Ronquent community on the other side of board governance and not in that superintendency role. Um one because I have three children in the district. They are in fifth, sixth and seventh grade and I am very involved with them and the all of their friends in the worlds that they live mostly
006around sports um but some with theater um and I work on policy right now in my current role and so that shift will be pretty easy taking updates from NISPA um and understanding budget and really this the role of board governance different from the role of working in a district or working for a school but always been passionate around public education um and community engagement and specifically really um bringing the schools in the community together and that partnership. So strong advocate for those um who I serve my own children but all all children K12 and Eastern. Thanks Shenie Kim. Hi folks I'm Kim Lasher um and give you a little background. I'm a lifelong Lancer. Uh attended schools in East Randoquay and graduated from Eastridge in 1984. Um I am married to wonderful man Bob
00737 years. We raised two sons uh in the district and uh both graduated from Eastridge. Um I'm currently the customer care manager for Wegman's Food Markets and um I um am number two on the ballot. So, um I'm asking for or I'm seeking reelection for my schoolboard seat and uh I ask that on May 20th you please get out and vote for our budget which um I support 100% and please vote for me. I'm number two on your ballot. Thank you. Thanks, Kim. Jeff, good evening. Um my name is Jeff Petri. I'm uh number two on the ballot here. I have uh lived here in the district for about 45 years now. um raised uh four children here. Um uh along with my uh wife Lori. Um my uh profession for 50 years has been
008uh technology and uh software development. Um many times as a software consultant. So I've worked for most of the major corporations here in Monroe County in the area. um here in the district. Um I started my uh political career, I guess I could say, with uh Eastridge Parents for Music. Um I got nominated as a vice president for that organization and spent a few years there and uh before coming to the board. Um and was also uh a mentor on the uh robotics team at Eastridge. Um I've served in two uh blocks uh on this board. Uh one in the 90s and then uh I took 10 years off and uh again in in 2000. So I'm uh seeking reelection uh this year. I'm number two on the ballot. Um I ask for your support
009and also please uh support the budget for us. Thank you very much. Thanks Jeff and Jess. I'm uh Jessica Koopa. Sorry, is that not my term? Sorry. I u number three. I said I'm Yeah, I'm number three. So Jeff's three. My apologies. Um I'm Jessica Krupa. I am number four on the ballot. Um I have lived in Eastern for 18 years. My husband and I moved in right before my oldest daughter was born. Um she is a senior. I also have a son who is a freshman up at the high school at Eastridge. I am in my just finishing up close to my 23rd year of teaching. I'm a physical education teacher for the little kids K through three at a neighboring Monroe County school. Um, very similar to our demographic here in Estrano, just
010a larger district. So, um, I've enjoyed my time teaching. I have a lot of experience with kids and also uh you know have my own two kids that are in the district. So that gives me a unique perspective coming into the reelection. I'm seeking my third term. So I would appreciate your support. Thank you. Thanks Jess. Okay. Now it's time for the question and answer portion of the evening. A reminder that answers should not exceed two minutes. When there are 30 seconds remaining in the candidates's allotted time, a 30- second notification will be shown to the candidate, the yellow card, and when time is up, the second notification will be shown. Okay, for the first question, we're going to begin with Kim. Question number one, please share what inspired you to run for the East
011Arandquite Board of Education and the unique perspective you bring to the role. Thank you, Amy. So, what inspires me is sort of my north stars, the children of our district. So, they've always been um what inspires me. Um, I originally, um, sat in different PTAs and PTSAs through the district. And when I was a the PTSA, um, president at the high school, I used to come to board meetings. I sat at board meetings for two years and got very interested um, listening to what the district was doing and I shared back that information um, as board president. after sitting uh two years um and listening to meetings, I decided to run for the board because I felt that was a good um way for me to volunteer for all the children of the community. So
012to answer the second part of the question, what gives me a unique perspective I think is I I'm a lifelong Lancer. I've attended the schools. I understand the schools. I'm also a parent who raised two children in the schools. was also involved in many uh east rand quite um uh groups, parents for music, um sports boosters, um I've sat on a lot of safety committees and whatnot. I think it gives me a perspective to look at different lenses of the needs and concerns of the community and um I will be remissed if I don't mention my years of board uh service too. I think that that has given me a wide lens of uh seeing what's important to our community and for our uh students, our staff, and a community all together. So, thanks, Kim.
013Jeff, same question. Well, first of all, I guess I'd say um I put four fantastic children through the system. So that's one thing that uh kind of brought me to uh to this board. Um I first joined the board u many years ago um during a very difficult time in our district when we had um opposing political groups fighting for control over the school district. Um at that time uh the unique skills that I brought uh to this was the ability to run successful uh political campaigns uh several years in a row. uh that conflict uh eventually faded and uh allowing our district to return to a more uh normal state which I think is something we're all very proud of. Um as Kim was talking um I did remember that one of the things
014that did bring me to uh to the school board was I was on the parents for music and we had a big field competition every year and we didn't have lights on the football field. So, one of the things that brought me here was somebody had to come up here and get lights on the football field. And that was one of the first projects I did um many many years ago. That football field is gone now. It's been replaced with a brand new football field. But that was one of the things that initially brought me. Um, I can say this, I'm one of the I'll say more senior people uh on the board and uh uh I think uh my experience across different industries outside of education uh I often see things differently. I've also
015always said that this is a unique uh opportunity uh to see how a now a$und00 million operation works from the inside. And uh who wouldn't find that very interesting? So thank you. Thanks Jeff. Jess. All right. So what inspired me was very similar to Jeff and and Kim. Starting out when my oldest was school age at Hollandale serving on PTA there. Um sitebased teams helping out at different activities and events. And as they got older and their friend groups grow and your circle grows, you become more involved in all different aspects, not just what your own kids are involved in, but what their friends are involved in. Um, and once my daughter hit middle school, she kind of started not wanting, you know, mom around at PTA all the time. And so I started thinking
016about what are other ways that I could also volunteer my time, have a positive impact and advocate for students. Um, and so I decided to run for the school board. Um, one of the unique perspectives I think that I have is being a PE teacher, I teach over 400 kids in a building. I have to be a really great listener. I have to make connections with all 400 plus of those kids so that they can build a rapport and a relationship with me. So, I think that those are some skills that I use here. being a really great listener both on the board out in the community um you know to all the different stakeholders that we support. So on top of having to be a good listener as a mom and a teacher you
017know I think that helps me here in my role as a board member. Thanks Jess. Thanks Shaneie. Hello. Thank you. Um really similar to everyone else. You have students in the community and you start to build your circle. I moved here three years ago um from Illinois and really chose Eastanquite to move to by suggestion of folks that I worked with in Rochester um surrounded around the diversity of the community and really that everyone telling me it's a great place to be and great place to raise your kids. So that drew me to the community and since I have been drawn into many other circles around the community really comes from a deep commitment to serve um to provide public service and kind of a a civic responsibility not only to support my students but
018all students. Um I'm very passionate about public education. I worked outside of it for one year of my career and I thought what in the world is this? um who was a charter and so very very passionate about public education um and the opportunities it provides students um and making sure that all students have access and community engagement that that aligns with that. Um I understand the diverse um needs of our students and families. My own children are um diverse um they do not look like me. So I as a parent have to fight and advocate and advocate in different ways um than maybe most. I bring unique perspective not only from my educational career that I talked of earlier but really a personal passion for um community engagement and relationships. The I believe the
019passion between building community and collaboration with the school board and district is vital to all student success. Thanks Shady. Okay, next question. and we'll begin with Jeff. Jeff, what are your top priorities if elected to serve on the board of education and how do you plan to address them? Thank you, Amy. Um, I guess my top priority at this point is is always continuous improvement uh for our school district. Um, I serve with nine other people that work collaboratively uh to decide what our priorities are going to be as we move forward into the future. Uh I can give you a few examples from the past. Um I presented the first long-term technology uh plan to the board um that laid out a 5-year investment in computers for the district. This was some 30 years
020ago, and the district has continued to make these investments in technology for our staff and students. And I like to think that I contributed to that that uh commitment. I also spent several years traveling to Albany to advocate for uh modifications to the building aid formulas. Uh at the time uh Pittsford was receiving more uh building aid than we were. Um and over the years uh that situation has eventually uh corrected itself. Uh there are many challenges coming such as uh cell phone restrictions uh artificial intelligence, cyber security, building security that will all involve technology solutions and I feel I can uh contribute to that. Uh fortunately we have some very uh talented and capable staff uh in our technology arena that will help us implement the changes that we will need along these lines
021in the future. Thank you. Thanks Jeff. Jess. Um, my top priority, uh, kind of I'm sure everybody's going to have a similar priority is the students and the students as a whole person. So, I think for us, um, continuing to give them the rigor and the programs and pathways to find what they enjoy and what they want to be as a learner is really important. And I think we are really like right in the midst of some really great work. work and I would love to continue the opportunity to keep working on that with the board and the district. Um I also feel like we are doing a really great job focusing on the social emotional aspect of our students. I think that keeping that as a priority and making sure that that's at the
022forefront of our decisions and how we, you know, assist them in navigating through their day, not just academically in the classroom, but how they're feeling, what's going on with them. Um, I think we've set up some great things um, in that area as well. I think that supporting AVID and having AVID at all different age levels is going to be a huge advantage for our students. I think we all we always see how great it is the middle school and the high school. We see what great things they produce and and what great skills they leave Eastern with. I think we'll be even more shocked and surprised and excited about those things happening for our our little kids, our younger ones that are really going to start being real inquisitive and really start, you know,
023wanting to learn more at that age. Thanks, Jess. Shaneie, thank you again. um pretty similar but I would say you know enhancing the work that has already been done in Eastern quite around the same social emotional learning mental health supports AVID um program. I was really happy to see that when we first got here and Duran Eastman was starting um some AVID work because uh I came from a school that had AVID when I was a middle school assistant principal in Chicago and it's just incredible work. So that is one piece and then continuing high expectations and high quality instructional core. Um the district's doing a great job with that, but I think continuing the efforts to ensure that that's happening in every class every day. Um and then the last piece is strengthening community
024engagement. I think the district's doing a great job. I get talking points daily. I have a teacher who reports to me daily and I get all my newsletters and everything through talking points. Um, and it's it's a great use of communicating. And I think communication is an area that we all can improve on all the time. And as an educator, we hear it all the time that we're never communicating enough. And so, I think that's a constant journey to continue to evolve. Um, I like that. Uh, we talked about cycle of continuous improvement. I think that's the work, right? The work is never done. and always continuing to reflect on what's been done well, what can we continue to do better, and really helping just push so that all s all students and families get
025the same level. Um, to do this, I would just collaborate with the board members. I was shocked and appalled to see nine board members, and that's a pretty big-sized board for the size of a district, but really communicating with them, educators and stakeholders, and then as we review policies, um, making changes that are necessary to reflect the values and meet student needs. Thanks Shenie Kim. Thanks Amy. So we have um a lot of priorities as a board and I listed actually five that I wanted to talk about tonight. They're in no particular order but um of course excellent education for all students. Um preparing them not only for things we think of like college but also maybe vocation or something they want to do beyond the halls of Eastridge. Preparing them to be um good
026citizens in general. budget. We review and present a budget every year to the community. That is a huge priority for us, very important one. Um, safety is always a priority and that encompasses safety of course of our buildings from outside threats, but also when I think of safety, I think about creating uh safe learning environments for all in our classrooms. Um Jess had mentioned this, you know, addressing um those and promoting social and emotional uh learnings for our students um through that improve mental health for our students is always a priority, something that we're talking more and more about as a board. Um and last but certainly not least, hiring and retaining excellent staff. I think it's key to uh continuing to do what we need to do in our district to educate our kids.
027Um you asked how I would address that. I would address it like we do all our priorities or goals for the district um as a nine um board member team really as we call ourselves along with working with our superintendent and our administrators. Um some of us advocate at the state and federal level. Some of us sit on various committees but we all work together as a nine-person board to um address um our priorities and goals. Thanks. Thanks Kim. Jess, we're gonna begin with you next. And actually, Kim had a perfect segue. Thanks. Yeah, I don't know how that happened. Toss it up nice for me. Okay. The question is, how will you advocate for our district at the state and federal levels to secure necessary funding and support? Well, I think that's something that
028as a board um and as a community people are talking about all the time. The budget funding, state funding, federal funding, cuts to funding. It's constantly in conversations. We see it constantly in the media. We see it in pretty much anything that we're doing if if we're, you know, looking at a school district. And I think that as a board member, it is important to advocate for those things. I think that the nine board members that we have do a great job. Everybody has a little bit of a different role in how we advocate. Um, we have some people that go to Albany and they advocate and they are the boots on the ground people. We have board members that uh send emails. We have board members that go to um, you know, have conversations
029with some local politicians and people that way. I think the biggest thing is having conversations around it, knowing what our priorities priority is as a district and making sure that as a whole we are doing the things um to make sure that we have that funding or that we're advocating for that funding. Um I've been to conferences and you know different workshops and things around advocacy. Um so something that we all focus on and that we're all going to continue to work on. Thanks Jess. Yep, Shaneie, same question. Um, so I I think in all ways possible is really the best answer, right? Um, we we have to always advocate for the district um at at local, state, and federal levels. Um, funding is necessary. Foundation aid formulas are are are a thing that confuse
030some of us some of the time and other time it makes sense. Um, and it's supposed to be there to help us all of every district get what they need based on our district size and population and and all the different variables, but it always it isn't always enough. Um, so I'd say any and every way possible with um the Monroe County School Board Association, New York State School Board Association, Board of Regents, and and considering there's a nineperson board. Um, and this is my first time running. Um, I would have to kind of see where I would fit in with who attends what functions and who is on what committee. um and really thinking about what how I would best support the whole team. But really in that supporting the super superintendent and her
031strategic planning goals and vision around what we need to advocate around is the best way to do it. Um and then I think that's it. But just really, you know, obviously building bridges too. I've been to a few events this year. We're meeting legislator legislators and assemblymen, senators, US reps, inviting them into our schools. um but also getting out to events where they are to advocate on behalf of the district. Thank you, Kim. Thanks, Amy. Um not to repeat what Jess said, but it's different ways we advocate uh through the board. We have um something that's a legislative breakfast every year we attend where we get to um talk with our um local leaders. Um we also have a legislative liaison to the board um that uh does outreach and of course um traveling to
032Albany as Jess said. One of the things that come to mind, we work collaboratively sometimes with other groups. Um years ago we were not getting our full uh foundation aid and one of our board members, Carol Watt, spearheaded um the board um taking on a letter campaign and we worked with EITA and um advocated for uh full fun um full foundation aid and um so we all advocate different ways. again, you know, just mentioned a couple of them and I won't repeat everything, but um we do advocate at the state and the federal level and it's important to do so to make sure that um we are getting our uh what we need for our students and keeping our uh local leaders ab breast of our concerns and issues uh within our schools. Thanks, Kim
033and Jeff. Well, I I guess I'll be the the wet blanket here. uh because there's there's not much a single person can do uh in in the areas of state and federal uh um aid. Uh and I guess I'll I'll steal a phrase, it takes a village. Um I certainly fought for building aid for a long time. Uh as Kim mentioned, uh Carol Watt on our board uh fought for years for f financial uh the foundation aid uh and was successful, I might add. Um, so it's not impossible. Uh, the dirty little secret here is that for us to receive more money at the state or federal level, it requires somebody else to lose money. There's very rarely more money provided for education. Um, so you can imagine the conflict that that generates at the
034legislators. If for for us to win something, somebody else in the state has to lose. Um, we are fortunate, however, to have close relationships with both of our uh uh state and federal representatives. Um, we're very lucky, for example, I've known uh Congressman Morelli for many years now since he was uh in the state assembly and uh uh he lives here in the district. So, it's something that uh we have good good communications with him as well. So, thank you. Thanks, Jeff. Okay, the next question we're going to begin with Sheney. How does the role of a board member differ from the role of a superintendent? Uh, so they're completely different. Uh, the superintendent's job is to be the chief education officer and run day-to-day operations and administration and educational uh, instructional leadership. Uh the
035board's role really is to support that um by way of policy, by way of budget, by the way of advocacy um and really work together to support the community um in their interest and in their vision, but also to work handinand uh with the superintendent in that work. Um but really they're very different roles. The board hires the superintendent to run the district and then we get to help in policy, budget, and governance. Thanks, Sheni. Kim, same question. Feel like I'm going to be a broken record here, but uh board members set, review, and ensure policies um and making sure that they're in compliance with law. Uh we hire a superintendent. We evaluate our superintendent. We review and create district budgets. Uh we review and help implement the district's vision, mission statements. Uh and of
036course we represent our community. Superintendent uh like Cheney said is the CEO like she's responsible to run our district. Uh she does the daily operations of the district. She carries out uh the goals of the district. So very different roles. However, we do work close handinand um with our superintendent. Thanks Kim. Jeff, a lot of similar themes. Yep. Totally different. Uh I can describe what my beliefs are. Um uh first, the board hires a superintendent. Um I consider the superintendent our CEO and we charge her to run the operations of the district. Uh much like the Senate has advice and consent over things, we have oversight over things like hiring and the budget. And I personally think uh that she should be given the freedom to run the district as her experience dictates. Uh I
037believe board members must never interfere with the operations of the school district. Um our communication always goes in both directions. Uh Superintendent Gro keeps us informed about issues in our school buildings and we try to keep her informed about things that we hear in the community. Um this works very well for us. Um, I think Superintendent Grow is perhaps uh the best Superintendent we have ever had. Uh, which is difficult for me. Um, as I'm very fond of Dr. Josephine Kio. Um, they both steered our district through very difficult times with uh, politics and COVID and uh, I'll be forever grateful u to have been able to work with those two wonderful leaders. Thanks, Jeff. Jess. Okay, let's see if I can say that in a totally different way. Um, I think we've kind of
038nailed down the two different things. Um, I definitely think that the board obviously we have a totally different side of things. We don't see the day-to-day. We don't talk about um, you know, those types of things. We oversee those things through our superintendent. So, making sure that what's done daytoday in the buildings is up to policy, that the programming and the staffing and the resources and all of those things that we do are geared towards making our students successful and reaching those goals. Um, you know, people had said it's the governing body and those kinds of things. Uh along with Jeff, I also that was another one of the things that I was very excited about when I came on to the board because uh Miss Grow was also coming on at the same time
039and I did not have kids in the in the middle school or the high school at that point and there wasn't a single person that I talked to who didn't have great things to say and I was excited to be able to jump on board so to speak at that same time and really, you know, keep the trajectory going in a positive direction. Thanks, Jess. Yep. Okay, for the next question, we'll begin with Kim. How would you handle a difficult situation reported to you by a student, family member, staff, or community member? So, I always say you have to listen to their concern. Uh, really listen to them. I, as Jess mentioned, I think being a good board member, you have to listen to your community, any of their concerns. Um, once you hear them
040out, I always ask what their expectation is, what they're looking for. Um, once I have a clear understanding of that expectation, then it's easy for me to help guide them either to maybe a teacher they need to speak to or a principal. Um, I know I I've had folks in the past call and say, "I really would like to speak to the superintendent about this," but I'm just going to say this, the superintendent always isn't the best person to speak to about an issue. um sometimes the folks right in your the building where they're experiencing the issue um are the best people to help them with that. So again, I would just say listen um and help guide them and and make sure you know to follow up with them to make sure that whatever
041issue they were having is resolved uh to see if they you can help them any more than you already have. Thanks, Kim. M Jeff. Um I guess I'll state for the record I am a firm believer in the uh chain of command and as such uh it starts with me notifying our uh school board president and then the superintendent. Um we can then work together as a team to decide to decide what the best path forward is for whatever this issue is. Um, it's important to understand that as a schoolboard member, I have absolutely no authority whatsoever. I am one of nine member policy board that has no individual power in these situations. There is a lot the district can do to resolve very difficult situations within our community. But we we are ultimately guided
042by our schoolboard policies. A key responsibility of this board is to review and update our policies uh which we do regularly. Thank you, Jess. All right. So, this happens often as we who are on the board know. Um it can happen at Wegman's. It can happen at a sporting event. It can happen in your driveway. It can happen when you're mowing your lawn. Um, so I think, uh, like I said before, for me being an an active listener, listening, um, I think that kind of probably says something about us as a board that if we do have lots of people coming to ask questions that we are approachable and that we are, you know, problem solvers. So those are two things that I feel like we are pretty good at. Um, so obviously you're listening
043to whatever the problem or issue may be. Um, and then kind of a combination of what Kim and Jeff said. There's asking for what they've done so far, I guess, is usually what I say is, you know, who have you talked to so far besides me? Um, and then that chain of command comes in and, you know, you give them that, okay, well, if you've talked to the teacher or has your child advocated for themselves or all those types of things. Um, and then obviously after that conversation, again like Jeff said, our policy is as a board is that we, you know, obviously let our board president know of the issue and we um contact our superintendent so that no one is ever blindsided, right? We are a whole group. We all want to be
044um advocating in the right way and problem solving in the correct way. So um just keeping everybody in the loop is something that we really focus on. Thanks, Jess. Shaneie. Well, I think it's been said really well so far. Um, but I would just say that um it's always sensitive because whoever the wherever the situation lies with the person bringing it to you, for them it's a very big situation um typically and so it requires some empathy, discretion and adhering to established protocols andor policies. So I think listen listening actively is is key and then thinking through next steps. Um, I think always including your board president and superintendent if that's the level it rises to. If it's as simple as maybe you should just check in with the with the principal, that's next step.
045I think that's part of what Kim was saying of, you know, like kind of figuring out exactly what the next steps are. But I think if the issue is is large enough, it needs to be brought forward to the superintendent and the board president. Um, and then just always following appropriate channels of of Eastern. every district has their own channels and policies um and procedures, but I think following those um is really important. And then just making sure that um things are acknowledged, they're addressed and or resolved. And I may not know whether it's resolved or not. And that's okay. Um my job as a as a board member would be to just share and bring things forward and then let the district do their job. Thank you. Okay, we are going to move into
046audience questions and we have quite a few so bear with me on this. Um, as I stated earlier, there will be some questions for all of you and there will be some questions for one or more of you. Okay. Okay. So, for our first audience question, we're going to begin with Jeff. Are you planning on serving the district for more than three years or is this a stepping stone for a town or state seat? Thank you for the question, whoever that was. Um, wow. How do I answer that one? That's a good one. Um, my uh youngest just graduated uh from uh Eastridge uh two years ago. So, um, I I've had the honor to be on this board, excuse me, for each of my children. And, uh, it's been a a great honor. Uh,
047oh my god, moving up to another political post. Uh, I I think not. Uh, Jeff, it's not my question. Just Okay. I've uh uh looking forward to retirement in a few years and uh you know that's what I plan to do. So thank you Jess. Same question. Um no uh this this just this part of it seems very much outside of my comfort zone. Um I just kind of lead with kids first. I lead with my heart. I lead with um you know what I think is best for our district. So, I really have no ambition beyond this. Um, this meaning the board, but when I say it this, I'm talking about the candidates night and the voting and all that other stuff. It's, yeah, this is plenty. I'm all set. Shaneie, I would answer
048it the same way. Uh, when somebody asked me when I was in high school, would you ever be a teacher? I said absolutely not. And I went through that whole process. And honestly, if you asked me the same question about school board a couple years ago, I would have said the same. Um, but as a parent and being entrenched in the community, it seemed like the right thing to do now. Um, I have no intentions of going anywhere soon. I have a fifth grader, so I have at least six more years in the district till all of my littles get out and graduated. Um, but that doesn't mean I might not serve past that. Okay, Kim. My heart belongs to East Randquay. I don't plan on running for any other board but this board. Okay,
049the next question is for Sheney. Sheney, as deputy superintendent of Rush Henrietta, you're required to attend board meetings. As with East Randquite, you're required to attend board meetings. Missing a board meeting is a challenge for a board member who will feel the disconnect even after talking to other board members and the superintendent as to what occurred at the meetings. Also, boards are five, seven, or nine members for a reason. If a vote is 44, for example, the vote fails and does not come up for a vote again. Additionally, board members have to attend trainings, events, seminars, conferences, etc. Some of these will likely have conflicts with timing in both districts. How are you planning to balance being a board member? Um, so I've already started to plan for that uh with my superintendent. Um, we
050have switched some of our meetings for next year. They're every three every third week next year. So, there's a lot less conflicts. This board starts at 6:00 p.m. Ours starts at 7. So, there's a little bit of of wiggle room in there, but not a ton. Um, but also some of the events that we attend are um the same. So, like NISCUS for example, or NISBA, not Niscus, NISSBA, MCSBA, the Marone County School Board Association, the lunchons, the legislative breakfast. Um, so I would be wearing two hats essentially maybe but in one space and being able to kind of navigate both. And so where it might be difficult, I think it will also give me an added lens on both sides um and actually grow grow my capacity and competency overall um to be able
051to support Eastern quite uh in in a different way than what I support my current district where I work. Okay. Thank you. For the next question, it's for all four candidates and Jess, we'll begin with you. Okay. Where have you worked in the past decade? What was your position, your greatest accomplishment, and why did you leave? Oh, um, let's see. In the last decade or two plus, I've worked in the Rush Henrietta Central School District as a physical education teacher. Um, my biggest accomplishment, oh my gosh. every kid that leaves my elementary school probably. Um, being able to still connect with a lot of those kids. Um, I've gone to weddings, bridal showers, baby showers. I have students of students that I had. Um, so to me, seeing kids 5, 10, 15 years later in
052Wegman's, um, I always joke around that one of my superpowers is remembering names. So whether it's their first name or last name, it really throws them off guard when you know their elementary school PE teacher remembers their name. They're like, "Oh my gosh." Um, so yeah, that's I I would say that was my biggest accomplishment and I haven't left. Thanks, Jess. Yeah. Can you repeat the question? Yes, of course. Where have you worked in the past decade? What was your position, your greatest accomplishment, and why did you leave? Uh, so the past decade, it's been a little bit, but um I guess the the two biggest accomplishments, Buffalo Public Schools, I was a transformation school turnaround principal and we moved out of um the lowest designation within 18 months. So that was a huge accomplishment.
053And I left there actually to go to Walkegan to move up in leadership where I became an assistant soup of school leadership and development. Um and there we transformed the whole district, 15 of the elementary schools um to good standing or above and we had a um blue ribbon school. So that was my most proud moments in the last 10 years. Okay, Kim. So for the last actually it's almost 13 years I've worked for Wegman's. I started out part-time in their uh pharmacy support center and I am now the current uh customer care manager for Wegman's Foods. Um my position again customer care manager but I I think working for Wegman's I always I tease I always say you know I two things I love in life is East Rhonda Quite Wegman's and I will
054say that Wegman's has high values um and high standards and they're very caring to work for and those are the same values that I have. Um, my biggest accomplishment there, um, probably have not yet to do, but I will tell you, we just rolled out, um, our new app, our Wegman's app. That was a huge undertaking. Um, and I would say um, my biggest accomplishment to date is probably handling thousands of customer uh, issues and leaving our customers happy and satisfied. Thanks, Kim. Yeah. Jeff, could you repeat that again? I I love Wegman's, too. I'll start with that. Where have you worked in the past decade? What was your position, your greatest accomplishment, and why did you leave? Why? Well, I haven't left. Um, I've been uh with Bosch Security Systems now for the last
05510 years. um as a uh senior software engineer. Um h biggest accomplishment probably uh my latest is uh we have a new product that came out uh last year and I was uh part of a team that got it through uh what they call UL uh certification um very exhaustive testing that uh it has to go through through uh United Laboratories to get certified. So uh that was a biggie. Um, I guess I guess that's it. Um, I'm still with them. We'll be with them for I'm pretty sure till I no longer need employment. So, all right. Thanks, Jeff. Shaneie, we have another question for you. In your position, you have the advantage of knowing all about education, but that does not mean you understand the role of a board member and can actually be
056and can actually be a disadvantage in the role. Can you please address this concern? Um, I've been attending board meetings probably since my principal ship in Buffalo and so seeing many different boards in many states actually. Well, three states. Um, I think I've had the understanding of seeing high functioning boards and seeing some tumultuous boards. Um, so I think board communication is really important and and the way that the board communicates with superintendent um is key to the success of the school district but also the board as a functioning board. Um, so you're right, it is a different view and it's a different angle. Um, but I know the view and I know the angle and I I know how to stay in my role and in my lane. Um, so I don't think it'll
057cause an issue. Um I being on the other side as I sit around this table um as a deputy superintendent um you don't want to be caught in those moments of surprises or situations as a school district and so I would never do that to the school district either as a board member of the school district. So I hope that answers the question. Thanks Shenie. Okay, the next question is for all four of you. We're going to begin. Sorry, Shane. I seem I seem to be calling your name quite a bit. Okay, we're beginning with you. Um, the next question is, what do you think about parental rights? I guess it's hard to answer without knowing exactly in what circumstance. But as a parent, [Music] um I I believe, you know, as a parent, we
058have rights and we have situations. I'll say in one thing, in the medical field, it does baffle me when I go with my 13-year-old and they say, "Sorry, you can't access their records anymore until they give you permission." Um but I think uh working in many school districts across uh I believe we have a lot of guardians um we have a lot of legal situations that come up in our schools and in our systems around who has rights who doesn't have right to communicate and really it comes down to whatever custodial rights we have or legal papers we have um and how to address that. So I don't know if I'm answering this question right but I'm going to leave it there. Kim, same question. Can you repeat it like what do you think what
059do you think about parental rights? I think as a parent I have a right to be invested in my child's education. I guess that would be my my first thought about that. And again, not knowing the context of the question. Um, I think while we all have rights as parents, I also believe that um, I don't know, for an example, if if my son was in school and wanted to uh, talk with his counselor and didn't want me involved in that, I would be okay with that. Sometimes kids need, you know, people to talk to or someone to listen to them um, besides their parents. Um, I guess that's all I'm going to say without the context of it. It's hard to really answer that question. Okay, Jeff. Yeah, that is a fun one. Uh,
060as a parent, um, I guess I', I guess I'd have to say, uh, I believe in, uh, full transparency, uh, with parents. Um and I think uh ultimately uh the parents um should have final say in um issues that affect their student. Okay, Jess, I guess I'm going to look at it from not a parents perspective and from a board member's perspective because I guess that's what we're doing up here is sitting here as a board member. So, um, trying to take the fact that I'm a parent is a little tricky out of the situation, but, um, I would say that as a board, we have policies. We have laws that we have to abide by that are handed down to us from the state and the federal um, levels. And I think as a
061board, we do our best to always listen and and as a parent, you're going to advocate for what you think is best for your child. And I think that as a district and as parents, we have to find a happy medium if there's something that we don't agree upon or if there's something that um you know, if that is the case that we can come to an agreement obviously um while staying within policies and laws that are put upon us as a board and it is a district. The next question is for all four of you and we're going to begin with Kim. New York State has historically been a leader in protecting marginalized students. How would you leverage state laws and resources to shield our district from potential federal policies that conflict with our
062community values? I think as a board we do that now. we you know we take care of our our our students. Um so as a board I think collectively do the same thing that we always do. We advocate and uh make sure that we're protecting all children. Um I know there's a lot of stuff going on at the federal level and it's a little bit scary, you know, within a a district um such as our own. I will tell you at least the nine board members currently sitting um we protect all our students. Um we advocate for all our students and we will continue to do so. Thanks Kim. Yeah Jeff I guess I'd say with a lot of the interesting reports we get from around the country in K12 education. One of the things
063that I am particularly proud of with this school district is not seeing any of that. Um I think uh our staff and our uh administration and leadership are very good at avoiding um situations that are in conflict. And I um think our uh our administrative staff and leadership uh make the right decisions whenever any of those conflicts come around. So that's um just something that I guess I believe and I'm proud of in this district that that we can avoid a lot of the craziness that um we often hear about on the news in other districts. Jess, can I question please? Thank you. New York State has historically been a leader in protecting marginalized students. How would you leverage state laws and resources to shield our district from potential federal policies that conflict with our
064community values? Sure. Thank you. Um I think that as a board I don't know as though any of us are experts in the law or um in some of those bigger things. I think as a district that's why we have different people in different positions. Um I feel like as board members our job is to ask questions, ask for clarification, um support what the superintendent and the um you know officers of our district are trying to implement, trying to maintain and just working together off offering support and what we can do also as a board on our side of the table advocating from that level. Thanks Jessie. Um yeah, everyone else has answered this kind of similarly but I think um for us to leverage state laws and resources we would seat to the guidance
065and and expertise of the district and the superintendent. um they will be getting reports frequently from the state and from the county um district superintendent. And um our job is really to help support, advocate, and protect ourselves locally um as some of the federal decisions may not um actually get to us locally, which is good, which we've seen so far. And we've been able to keep things local and stay focused on what's best for our own students and our own districts. Okay. Thank you. The next question, Sheney, again is for you. The other three candidates detailed how they've been involved in East Ronda quite schools. How have you been involved in the East Ronda schools? Um so probably not as much as as any of the three other candidates. This is my third year in
066district. Um I have fre I have just started to attend like PTA. Um but also evening events have been tough but I also coach in the in around quite so I've been coaching little leagues baseball and softball. Um my son is in the play this this year now doing some of the the stage set. So I'm helping support whatever volunteer they need for that. Um, but it is it's a journey moving and getting reestablished. And so, um, I'm starting to do more and more daily, but um, definitely not as much as the three folks next to me as this is my first time running for board, but also um, really starting to get engaged with my students and their friends differently than we have when we first got here. Thank you. Okay, the next question
067we're is for all four candidates. We're going to begin with Jeff. Jeff, what concrete steps would you take to protect the rights and dignity of LGBTQ plus students and staff, especially in the face of increasing hostility? H I think we have many programs that um within our district that are uh designed to avoid any uh I guess what I would call bullying of um of any class of student that we have. Um it's not just uh the LGBTQ students. It's uh it can be um my children are Asian. So, you know, the uh that is a a subclass that uh obviously can uh can can have some some bullying associated with it. So I think it's something in our district that we have to pay attention to all every student and make sure that they
068are protected and uh given um you know the attention and the rights that that they deserve. I think basically it's just like any student that we all they all have the same rights and we need to uphold those rights. Thank you Jeff. Jess repeat the question again. Sure. Sorry I get sidetracked in my head. What concrete steps would you take to protect the rights and dignity of LGBTQ plus students and staff especially in the face of increasing hostility? Thank you. So I think the biggest thing is just being educating ourselves, educating everybody that's involved in the schools. That could be your cafeteria monitors, your bus monitors, um the teachers, administrators, security officers. um so that we are continuously learning um you know ways to support students that are in that LGBTQ plus community. Um I
069definitely think that as a district we support all students, but I will say that there have been obviously more things in the news and that we've heard about locally with students who fall into that subcategory and who are struggling. So, I think as a district, we owe it to all students and their families to find ways to support them. Shenie, same question. I I think as a board member, um, it really comes down to policies and procedures. Um, there are policies, there are are different groups and and things within the district that create ally systems for students, but we also have dignity for all students. um where if any bullying is reported, it gets investigated to detail. Um so as a community member, as a board member, really supporting through policy and making sure policies
070are aligned to all means all um to all student groups and that we make sure we ensure you know those safety procedures, policies and all the guidance that that is given to us is followed. Um, but we also support the district with their procedures and what they do. Um, if there's anything that needs to be investigated or different situations that come up. Um, but really, um, our role as as board members is to ensure that the policies are written to support, um, and ensure that they're they're followed through with administrative guidelines and the procedures of the district. Thanks, Genie. Kim, I don't want to be a broken record, but that's what I said. We set our policies to make sure all students are uh respected and cared for. Um we're not going to tolerate any
071bullying no matter what uh group um you identify yourself. So I think as a board member um you can help by setting policy and uh making sure that um your policies meet all students uh needs. Um, as a community member and somebody that cares, I I I'll just say that the world needs to be kinder. You know, we just we need to be kinder. That's all I'm going to say. Thanks, Kim. Almost got through it without crying. That's a perfect note to end on, unless we have another community question. Are we all set here? We're We're done. We're done. We're done. Okay. So, we've reached the end. I know you can all breathe now, right? Okay. So, we've reached the end of the question and answer portion of the program. I have to thank all
072four of our candidates for your thoughtful answers and responses to all of the questions. Thank you for that. So, let's move on to the closing statements. Each candidate will now have up to two minutes to make their closing statement. The statements will be given in ballot order this time starting with Sheney then Kim, Jeff and Jessica. So we will start with Sheney. Thank you. Um I guess first of all thank you for having the opportunity for people to meet me tonight as I am the only person that's new to the to running for board in East Ranquite Central School District. Um so I thank you and appreciate the opportunity. I am number one on the ballot. I didn't say that at the opening, so I will say it now. I am number one on the
073ballot. So, if interested and and you think I'm a good candidate to support your beliefs and what you believe a good school board member should be, I would appreciate your vote. Um, in closing, um, if chosen, I will always serve and honor the diverse perspectives of all the families and students in this school community. Um, I'm a firm believer of of that. I'm an advocate of public education and very passionate around high expectations for all. Um, and really pushing to continue to move the district in the direction it's going. Um, but supporting the board, the working with the board in um, conjunction, but supporting the superintendent and all the strategic plan initiatives that are set. Um, but really looking to serve in a capacity where I can really help support the school community and serve
074Eastern Quite Central School District. Thanks, Shaneie. Kim, so again, I'm uh seeking reelection. I'm number two on the ballot and I will tell you if you honor me by um supporting me, I promise to continue to care, to listen, to advocate. Um as I said, my heart is Eastern quite um I believe in supporting not only our students but our staff so they can educate our students. I believe in working very closely with the eight other members of this board and with our superintendent to um deliver what our our community uh children need. Um and that is a solid education of caring um loving people who believe in high standards and the success for each of our students. So I would appreciate your support on May 20th. I'm number two on the ballot. And um
075Lancer Pride, Jeff. Okay. Um numbers. So uh I've put uh four of my children through this district. I've been living in this district for some 45 years. I've been serving on this board for some 20 years. Um it's been a great honor for me to do this. Uh I uh certainly ask for your support uh in this run. um so that I can serve another uh three years on this district. I guess the good news is uh I won't need any training to do this. I've been doing it for a very long time and and uh I I I I I get the job. So uh I'm number three on the ballot. Uh and I ask for your support and I also ask for uh the support of our budget this year. Thank you very
076much. Thanks, Jeeoff and Jess. All right, so I'm number four on the ballot. Um, I just wanted to say thank you um to everybody that showed up tonight and thank you to anybody that watches this and the Eastern Kuwait um community members that have supported me over the last six years that I've been on the school board. I've enjoyed my time. I would love to continue to serve. If you feel as though I'm a good fit or continued fit for the district, please come out on the 20th and vote. And yep, I'm number four. Okay, that concludes our program for this evening. Thank you to each of the candidates for being here, being present. Um, we appreciate all of your responses. A reminder to the community that the budget vote and schoolboard election is Tuesday,
077May 20th from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the Eastridge High School. Thank you so much and have a great evening. Thank you. [Music]