The consolidated election is April 1. Early voting is underway.
Lauren Traut, Patch Staff
OAK FOREST, IL — The consolidated election is April 1, and the Arbor Park District 145 could be shuffled a bit.
Ten candidates are contesting six board seats. Incumbent board members David Rana, Wendy Lux, and Tina Moslander are seeking re-election to maintain their positions. Maryann Ing, who has served for 17 years, is not seeking re-election.
Newly appointed incumbents Cary Reynolds and Adam Malak, who were recently selected to fillvacancies, must also run to retain their seats.
Seeking election for two unexpired seats are Christina Doege, Malak, and Moslander.
Jockeying for four, four-year seats are Rana, Reynolds, Jillian Mulqueen, Sarah Case, Kara Fanelli, and Bradley Popovich.
Find out what's happening in Oak Forestfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The district is made up of four elementary schools: Kimberly Heights School in Tinley Park; ArborElementary School, Scarlet Oak School and Arbor Park Middle School (all of which are in OakForest).
Candidates were provided with a questionnaire. Their answers are now published in candidate profiles.
Candidate:
Kara Fanelli
Campaign website:
parentsforarbor145change.org
Age (as of election day):
41
Town/city of residence:
Oak Forest
School district:
Arbor District 145
Family. (Names, ages and any pertinent details you wish to share.)
Vince Fanelli 40 spouse, Grace Fanelli 16 daughter, Elijah Fanelli 12 son, Scarlett Fanelli 10 daughter, Greta Fanelli 8 daughter
Does anyone in your family work in politics or government? This includes any relatives who work in the government you're running for.
No
Education
Bachelor's degree from Northern Illinois Univeristy
Occupation. Please include years of experience.
Business Owner of Farmhouse Academy
Previous or current elected or appointed office*
N/A
The most pressing issues facing our district are _______, and this is what I intend to do about them.
The most pressing issues facing our district are lack of student services and teacher support. During my time on the board, I intended to advocate for more services that benefits the students in our district such as after school transportation and tutoring and homework help at no cost to the families. I plan to advocate for the teachers by supporting policy that allows the teachers to have more professional input on how to best help their students.
What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?
I will be a unique perspective to our school district that focuses on benefiting the families in our district. I attended Arbor Park school district from 3rd - 8th grade and a lot of the services offered to our students since I was in the district has been taken away. I believe we should be focusing on providing more resources to our students instead of our administrative staff.
If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community or district?
The current school board has failed our students and teachers by not providing checks and balances on our current administration. We lost 35 teachers from our district last school year which included the entire 3rd grade teaching staff. Nothing has been done to improve teacher satisfaction and we are set to lose more great teachers. Our board has not advocated for our teachers which is one reason I decided to run for school board.
Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.
My campaign platform is about creating a better district for our families, students and teachers. Allowing teachers to feel supported in their positions and respecting their expertise will create better outcomes for our students and district families.
What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?
I have been running and managing my own business, Farmhouse Academy, for the last 7 years with a 2nd location opening in May. This experience has provided me with skills in managing finances, employees and customer service. I have learned to compromise when needed and respect each person for their own expertise and contribution. All of these things will help me to be an effective school board member who is able to keep an open mind while making positive change.
Why should voters trust you?
Voters should trust me because I have a true interest in making our school district a safe, positive place for our students and teachers. I attended Arbor Park school district as student and was taught by some of our current teachers. I believe our school district can thrive again and retain and recruit amazing teachers with a school board that shifts its focus to benefits the families and teachers.
If you win this position, what accomplishment would make your term in office a success?
I hope to accomplish policy that benefits our students and families directly including tutoring help for struggling kids, taking advantage of grant funded programs to help provide more resources for our school and improve teacher satisfaction.
What guidance should staff be given for dealing with potential ICE enforcement at schools?
I believe any ICE enforcement should be dealt with by the security team at our schools. Our school security does a fantastic job and should be providing staff with guidelines on how these situations should be handled.
How do you feel about sex education being taught in school? Should an LGBTQ component be included, and why or why not?
I think any sex education provided in school should be age appropriate. I feel as if parent input is important for this part of education and allowing parents to opt out should remain an option including when LGBTQ education is taught.
Should cell phones be banned during school? Why or why not?
I think allowing older children (middle school and up) to have phones with them for purposes of communication for before and after school activities is appropriate. But it is reasonable for the school to require that they be left in the student's locker during the school day so it is not a distraction during instruction. Exceptions should be made for medical circumstances that require a student to carry their phone with them.
When it comes to student achievement, what are schools within this district doing well and what needs to be improved? How can those improvements be made?
In terms of student achievement, our district could use improvement in with allowing teachers to make adjustments to their teaching according to individual students needs. In our school district, our admin tends to be focused on just numbers and test scores which pushes some students (especially those who struggle) to be frustration and discouraged by learning. Our students are not just numbers and creating a positive educational environment starts with trusting our teacher's expertise and allowing them to adjust learning based on individual students needs.
Is there any reason you would not serve your full term of office, other than those of health or family?
No, I intend to serve the full term of office and will be excited to create positive change for our district families, students and teachers.
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