As my campaign for re-election to our school board is coming
to a close I thought it fitting to spend some time reflecting on the past four
years. . . and what an amazing four years it has been! District 197 is a GREAT school district, filled with wonderful students, truly
amazing staff and leadership that are committed to moving our district
forward. We are a great district . . . .
but of course there is room for improvement.
Any organization (or person for that matter) who doesn’t strive for
improvement every day is missing out . . . . we can always get better! But looking back over the past four years I
am extremely proud of what we have accomplished. Below are just a few highlights I am
especially proud of:
- Our Strategic
Framework! The work conducted in
the Summer/Fall of 2011 with the Strategic Redesign Advisory Council
(SRAC) led directly into our current Strategic Framework. Our district now has a clearly defined mission
and vision as well as specific goals to keep us on the right track. This frameworks ensures accountability
on the part of our district leadership and the best part about these goals
is that they were community driven.
They weren’t decided by the School Board or the Administration but
instead were taken directly from feedback given by our community as to
what is important and what we value.
I love that I can go to any building in the district and see our
goals on the wall . . . it helps all of us know exactly why everything we
do is important . . .it’s all about the kids!
- After having our kids and
our parents and our staff move from building to building for YEARS we
finally have a home for our early learning programs. Our Early Learning and Family Resource
Center opened this fall and it houses our Birth to 3 program, Early Childhood
Special Education as well as our Early Childhood Family Education
courses. This was a particular
passion of mine (and still is four years later). Whatever we can do ensure each and every
child comes to kindergarten ready to learn and succeed is critical. We owe it to our kiddos and our
community.
- Our financial
position. When I started on the
board we were borrowing money from banks to make our bills and had less
than a 2% fund balance in reserve.
The interest we paid on that borrowed money didn’t go to helping
any children in our district and it was a frightening position to be
in. Now, four years later, we are
in a stable financial position and have begun to re-invest in people and
programs that will help achieve the goals mentioned above. Our voters want our district to be
fiscally responsible and I believe we have achieved that goal.
And finally . . . . I am proud of my personal growth over
the past four years. This is a really
hard job . . . I spend a lot of time away from my family and that is a challenge. However this is the hardest job I have ever
loved. I feel I am making a difference
for all the children in our district and I am hoping that you agree. I am asking for your vote on November 3rd!!!
Joanne Mansur
