5 Running For 3 Seats For Tippy Valley School Board
November 2, 2018 at 5:54 p.m.
5 Running For 3 Seats For Tippy Valley School Board
By Dan [email protected]
Tippecanoe Valley School Corp. has elections for three seats on the school board.
Seats for Districts 3, 4 and 5 are up for election on Tuesday. District 4 and 5 have two candidates each while Lacey Wise is unopposed in District 3.
In District 4, Tom Bauters faces Kristopher A. Fear. The winner will replace Brian Murphy, who has been on the board for 16 years.
In District 5, incumbent Todd Hoffman faces Craig Durkes.
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Below are the recaps of the contested races:
District 4
Bauters, 55, lives on a farm in Henry Township in Fulton County, and has worked as a CPA for 30 years.
He had five sons graduate from the high school and served on the school improvement steering committee for eight years.
He said he believes his experience as a parent, a CPA and a participant in the steering committee gives him the experience needed to be a school board member.
“Hopefully, I have some tools in my toolbox that I can add value to the school board,” Bauters said.
“We’re entrenched in the community and I just want to give back and help.”
His biggest concern is the “slippage” in enrollment, which results in cuts in state funding.
He said the district needs to focus “on the things we do well, (while) seeing if we can add additional programs in a cost-efficient manner so we can attract other kids.”
While school safety remains a concern, he said he also thinks the school should be protecting students from online threats.
He said he does not have an agenda and thinks, despite the fall in enrollment, the district is moving in the right direction.
He also offered his perspective on the role of a school board member.
“School boards are there to govern, not to manage. I’m not going to get in there and micro-manage. That’s not what I do. It’s not what the board does.”
Fear, 49, said he’s running because he loves the school district and children.
He has three children in the school system and a fourth has graduated.
He is a farmer who lives in Henry Township near Akron.
He said one thing he’d like to see is how the school works with children who have dyslexia, a learning disorder that involves difficulty reading.
He said two of his children have different forms of dyslexia.
He said he’d like to know if the school could provide testing with permission from parents so they and the school can take steps to better serve the students.
He said he would also like to see the school take a closer look at eLearning, a concept in which students receive homework assignments while at home on snow days.
He said he realizes part of the reason the school district has not embraced eLearning is because some residents in the district can’t access the internet from home while others can’t afford internet service.
Fear said he would have a frugal, cautious approach to spending taxpayer money. He also noted that he is a Christian and that faith is important to him.
District 5
Hoffman is finishing his first four-year term and said he has enjoyed seeing some proposals take life and show results.
One of those highlights in the “food to fork” program that was established two years ago.
Hoffman said the food to fork ag program is one of the efforts to improve educational opportunities in agriculture.
“We feel like we should be on the leading edge of the ag programs in this area because we are such a rural school,” Hoffman said.
Hoffman, 55, lives near Rochester, has served as president and secretary and likes being a conduit for other board members in discussions with the superintendent.
He said a top issue for the school district is the need to address falling enrollment and other steps needed to address declining state funding as a result.
“That’s an issue we’re combating every day,” he said.
The other top issue is improving safety issues at the school.
Hoffman said when he ran for the seat four years ago he only planned to serve eight years and that he intends to stick with that goal.
Durkes, 47, lives in Akron. He is the chief operating officer of Insurance One Services, which is part of Crossroads Bank.
He has three children in the school system and one that has already graduated.
He’s been actively involved with his children’s education experience. He served on the Akron parents support group and has been actively involved in extra-curricular activities alongside his children.
“I just want to be able to make a difference for the students,” Durkes said.
He spoke highly of both the administrative staff and the teaching staff.
Durkes said he believes the school is moving in the right direction. As evidence of that, he points out that numerous graduates have returned to become teachers in the district and notes that the district has never had a teacher layoff.
“That’s a bold statement,” he said.
He added, “Valley’s pretty sound and stable and I just want to be there and be on the board to make sure we continue.”
He said he wants to make sure the school system is addressing the declining enrollment, which fell by 62 students in the past year. He said he wants to stabilize that decline and thinks the school should market its ag program and automotive classes to attract students from other districts.
Durkes also expressed an interest at looking into three issues: Staffing for special needs and at-risk students, cell phone service at the high school, which he said can be a matter of safety, and the district’s overall safety plan.
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Tippecanoe Valley School Corp. has elections for three seats on the school board.
Seats for Districts 3, 4 and 5 are up for election on Tuesday. District 4 and 5 have two candidates each while Lacey Wise is unopposed in District 3.
In District 4, Tom Bauters faces Kristopher A. Fear. The winner will replace Brian Murphy, who has been on the board for 16 years.
In District 5, incumbent Todd Hoffman faces Craig Durkes.
[[In-content Ad]]
Below are the recaps of the contested races:
District 4
Bauters, 55, lives on a farm in Henry Township in Fulton County, and has worked as a CPA for 30 years.
He had five sons graduate from the high school and served on the school improvement steering committee for eight years.
He said he believes his experience as a parent, a CPA and a participant in the steering committee gives him the experience needed to be a school board member.
“Hopefully, I have some tools in my toolbox that I can add value to the school board,” Bauters said.
“We’re entrenched in the community and I just want to give back and help.”
His biggest concern is the “slippage” in enrollment, which results in cuts in state funding.
He said the district needs to focus “on the things we do well, (while) seeing if we can add additional programs in a cost-efficient manner so we can attract other kids.”
While school safety remains a concern, he said he also thinks the school should be protecting students from online threats.
He said he does not have an agenda and thinks, despite the fall in enrollment, the district is moving in the right direction.
He also offered his perspective on the role of a school board member.
“School boards are there to govern, not to manage. I’m not going to get in there and micro-manage. That’s not what I do. It’s not what the board does.”
Fear, 49, said he’s running because he loves the school district and children.
He has three children in the school system and a fourth has graduated.
He is a farmer who lives in Henry Township near Akron.
He said one thing he’d like to see is how the school works with children who have dyslexia, a learning disorder that involves difficulty reading.
He said two of his children have different forms of dyslexia.
He said he’d like to know if the school could provide testing with permission from parents so they and the school can take steps to better serve the students.
He said he would also like to see the school take a closer look at eLearning, a concept in which students receive homework assignments while at home on snow days.
He said he realizes part of the reason the school district has not embraced eLearning is because some residents in the district can’t access the internet from home while others can’t afford internet service.
Fear said he would have a frugal, cautious approach to spending taxpayer money. He also noted that he is a Christian and that faith is important to him.
District 5
Hoffman is finishing his first four-year term and said he has enjoyed seeing some proposals take life and show results.
One of those highlights in the “food to fork” program that was established two years ago.
Hoffman said the food to fork ag program is one of the efforts to improve educational opportunities in agriculture.
“We feel like we should be on the leading edge of the ag programs in this area because we are such a rural school,” Hoffman said.
Hoffman, 55, lives near Rochester, has served as president and secretary and likes being a conduit for other board members in discussions with the superintendent.
He said a top issue for the school district is the need to address falling enrollment and other steps needed to address declining state funding as a result.
“That’s an issue we’re combating every day,” he said.
The other top issue is improving safety issues at the school.
Hoffman said when he ran for the seat four years ago he only planned to serve eight years and that he intends to stick with that goal.
Durkes, 47, lives in Akron. He is the chief operating officer of Insurance One Services, which is part of Crossroads Bank.
He has three children in the school system and one that has already graduated.
He’s been actively involved with his children’s education experience. He served on the Akron parents support group and has been actively involved in extra-curricular activities alongside his children.
“I just want to be able to make a difference for the students,” Durkes said.
He spoke highly of both the administrative staff and the teaching staff.
Durkes said he believes the school is moving in the right direction. As evidence of that, he points out that numerous graduates have returned to become teachers in the district and notes that the district has never had a teacher layoff.
“That’s a bold statement,” he said.
He added, “Valley’s pretty sound and stable and I just want to be there and be on the board to make sure we continue.”
He said he wants to make sure the school system is addressing the declining enrollment, which fell by 62 students in the past year. He said he wants to stabilize that decline and thinks the school should market its ag program and automotive classes to attract students from other districts.
Durkes also expressed an interest at looking into three issues: Staffing for special needs and at-risk students, cell phone service at the high school, which he said can be a matter of safety, and the district’s overall safety plan.
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