Two new candidates are running against three incumbents to fill three open seats on the CGSD Board of Education. Terms, which begin in July, are for three years each and are unpaid.
All five candidates have responded to a series of questions regarding the motivation, qualifications and priorities of each.
Responses, below, are presented in the order candidates will appear on the ballot.
Christopher McManus
Altamont
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Principal Budget Examiner
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When deciding to run for a second term, the question for me was whether I added value to the Board process that is unique to the other serving Board members. As a father of two boys currently at the elementary level, my family is invested in the community. This is where we decided to raise our children, where we knew first-hand of the dedication of the teachers and staff at Guilderland. I care about the school community and making Guilderland a place where all our children are supported and can achieve their greatest potential. I became a Board member to give a “voice” to the parents of the District, to listen to all stakeholders, to do my due diligence, ask tough, but fair questions and make an informed decision. In addition, my education and current work experience has served me well in analyzing, developing and implementing the school budget. For these reasons, I have decided to run for a second term on the school board and continue to offer checks and balances in the decision-making process.
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There are several types of experiences that have served me well over these past three years. As a parent, I see first hand the challenges of the current State mandates, the struggle that teachers and staff face when trying to do their best with less and the strain on the working family or parent trying to balance it all. As a M.B.A graduate of Clarkson University and a budget analyst for over the past decade, I have been able to use my experience and knowledge to improve the Budget process over the past three years. In addition, there is experience that comes from serving or attending Board meetings on a regular basis. This affords you the opportunity to see and understand how the process works, the Board responsibilities and the dynamics of the Board.
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There are several challenges ahead for Guilderland. First, with the numerous State mandates and testing requirements, how can Guilderland continue to ensure that it is holding up to its core values and district priorities (healthy, safe and engaged; globally aware and connected; and intellectually and academically challenged) by creating a learning environment that will allow all students to achieve a well-rounded education and to provide the resources necessary to teachers and staff to ensure that this is accomplished? Second, with the restoration of State aid, how will the district use these resources to enhance their core mission and priorities? The Budget process this year focused too much on issues that will have little impact on students instead of discussing where Guilderland should be headed in the next five, ten years and how the Budget moves us in the right direction. Third, how does the District get the community involved in the decision-making process? Less than ten people showed up at the community conversation regarding Budget input this year.
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Challenges should be seen as opportunities. Now that Guilderland is starting to see an increase in state aid, this is the right time to reevaluate where the district wants to head in the next five, ten years. First, the District should reexamine the district priorities and ensure that these priorities are measurable and will serve our students well in the future. Similar to when Guilderland stakeholders came together to discuss how to use extra space at Guilderland, but hold true to our values, a similar process should be put in place. Guilderland should not simply restore previous cuts, but explain to the community through the Budget process how the additions to the Budget are moving the District forward and for which of the District’s priorities these additions are meant to address. Teachers and staff must be given the necessary resources and support. We should have a much more robust conversation instead of focusing on a few small issues. The public sees pages of possible additions instead of how these additions support the overall priorities of the District. The Guilderland community must work together to ensure that we meet the challenges of today and the future needs of our students.
Judy Slack
Altamont
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Retired
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I like being involved with the education of children, and I believe I have been able in 9 years on the BOE to serve our community well.
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My professional life has been dedicated to children and education, as a teacher for 5 years and then as a teaching assistant for 24 years. I believe I have viewpoints and experience that serve the community of Guilderland well.
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The biggest challenge facing our district, besides constant financial concern, is maintaining a quality education for all of our students.
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The best way to meet this challenge of quality is to keep a high quality of staff at all levels and to continue to support them as they help our children. We also need to hire the best teachers from a shrinking pool of candidates. So far, we have been quite successful and our staff is one of which we can be proud.
Timothy Horan
Schenectady
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Elementary school teacher
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The main reason I’m running for the Board of Education is to provide a voice for the classroom and for employees of the district. I’m also interested in being a representative of the community. While getting petition signatures to qualify for the race, it was very interesting to hear comments and concerns from the citizenry. We need ample facts and information so decisions are made based on a full understanding of the impact on students and employees in the district. There is a wealth of knowledge in our district employees. We need to get back to the true shared decision-making days in Guilderland where you would get together and openly talk about problems in order to find solutions. There has been a chill on free speech and free thinking in the district the past few years. There needs to be more free and open exchange in the arena of ideas. That is what education is truly about, and that’s how knowledge becomes power.
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My experience is based on thirty years of teaching third, fourth and, most recently, second grade. All thirty years have been spent in the Guilderland School District. That means I have also been a resident, taxpayer and parent in the district for decades. My wife Barbara has been teaching third and fourth grade for twenty eight years. We met at Westmere Elementary. The rest of our time has been spent at Guilderland Elementary for my wife and Pine Bush Elementary for me. We have two boys who attended Lynnwood Elementary, Farnsworth Middle School and Guilderland High School. They are both attending college in the Rochester, NY area. We have a lot of history, insight and experience in the Guilderland School District which will be a valuable commodity in school board discussions and decision making. My experience also includes leadership positions in the Guilderland Teachers’ Association. My goal has always been to improve the profession and improve the district. This is the same kind of voice and vision needed at the school board level.
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There are many challenges that trickle down from the federal and state level. The issue of high-stakes testing would be one example. There are other challenges that are consequences of our ever-changing society. Drug use has been a longtime problem in our society. In conversations with students, employees and residents, drugs appear to be a major problem at the middle and high school levels. Many challenges facing the district are ones that are cyclical or have been around for years. Impacts on time, class size, teaching assistant numbers, improving communication while getting proper information for decisions, and engaging and empowering employees to improve district morale would be examples of other challenges facing the district.
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Not to be a broken record, but there is a wealth of knowledge and creativity in the talent pool of Guilderland employees. Why not start with the folks who are in the trenches and have the most face time with students on a daily basis to address a lot of the district challenges? There is beautiful contract language that speaks to “mutual understanding, cooperation and effective communication between the district and the GTA.”
There is further language that states “anything that affects curriculum should be a matter of study and research, with both teachers and administrative staff equally involved.” The road maps to shared decision-making are right there in agreed upon contract language. However, there are too many speed bumps and dead ends with current district problem-solving. Why not engage and empower all employees to bring their insight and ideas to the table? Recognition can only bring loyalty. As for the drug problem, the district has a zero tolerance policy, so vigorous enforcement of that policy would be a good place to start. This can also be an opportunity to engage district staff and the community to confront the challenge head on. There are many law enforcement officials in the community who could be fantastic resources too. No doubt it’s an uncomfortable issue. But, it is fight that’s necessary to provide a safe educational environment for students and employees.
Sean Maguire
Guilderland
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Director of Economic Development
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I am running for a seat on the Board of Education because I love our community and want to play an active role to ensure that we continue to provide the best educational and life experiences we can for our children. By having two young children, Emily who is in 3rd grade and Jack who will attend kindergarten in the fall, I have a huge stake in the education system. I believe that parents must play an active role in their child’s life and I want to advocate and speak on behalf of our families, bridging any gaps we have. In addition, community service has always been a major part of my life. From being a Volunteer Firefighter to a County Planning Board Member to a PTA Member, I have always had a passion to help our community. Becoming a member of the school board seems like the perfect fit for me.
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I have professional and personal experience that I believe will be helpful to the Board of Education. I have nearly 20 years of professional experience in economic development, planning, and public administration. As an economic developer, I am engaged in efforts to improve both our local economies and communities. One component of this is building community capacity to adapt to economic changes. Our education partners are critical in these efforts. Our schools are charged with preparing our children to succeed in life. I want to be sure that our community is as prepared as possible to respond to changes in our economy and workforce. That means that in addition to educating our students on the basics, we also must prepare them to be problem solvers and be adaptable to on-going changes. I also understand how important strong schools are to the success of any community. People are drawn to successful schools for their children and employers want successful schools and other quality of life amenities to attract the best and the brightest.
Being a dad of two young children provides me with a wealth of personal experience. I am extremely involved in their development, academically and emotionally. I understand family dynamics and how that plays a role in our community. I struggle to help them with their common core homework like many other parents and truly see how different things are today from in years past. -
I believe that one of our biggest challenges is that our teachers do not always have the tools and resources necessary to meet the academic and social-emotional needs of our students. Our educational system has changed and it is not only about teaching math, or language, or history. Our teachers help our students develop the necessary skills to be academically and emotionally successful. This is significantly different than years ago. Therefore, we cannot always do the “status quo,” we must evaluate what we have done in the past and how we should change it for the future. The cost of an education has changed, not only in the increased cost, but where the costs are allocated. It is imperative that we be creative to ensure we meet the needs of our children with the resources we have. Although that can be challenging I believe it can be done.
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I think that we must be creative, solicit ideas, listen to the public and work collaboratively with partners when needed to achieve our goals. Collaboration and shared ideas can be extremely valuable when working towards a common goal. For example, I applaud the partnership that the School Board developed with Albany Medical Center to replace the high school scoreboard. That allows the District to keep resources available for the core mission of education. I also appreciated the number of community members and elected officials that offered to work with the school board to help stabilize the Cobblestone Schoolhouse. There is a saying that “it takes a village to raise a child” and I believe that we are a diligent, motivated, and passionate community that when working together can raise and educate all of our children.
Allan Simpson
Altamont
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Accountant
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Provide public service to community.
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My accounting and business background will provide an other view from which other members of the board may not have.
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Maintaining the rich curriculum Guilderland currently offers with the financial limits created by the tax levy.
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Fiscal management.
