Liz Easton for UA School Board - Pencilstorm Interview

There are five candidates running for two seats on Upper Arlington School Board. Pencilstorm asked each of the candidates five specific questions centered around issues that impacted Upper Arlington schools and questions that were being raised by fellow voters. Pencilstorm will be posting their complete and unedited answers individually throughout October and reposting all their answers together before the election. Answers will be posted in order they're received. Our fifth and last candidate, Liz Easton, is featured below.

Liz Easton, Upper Arlington School Board Candidate

Liz Easton
www.lizeastonforuaschools.com

What makes you qualified to have oversight of the $98 million schools operating budget?
As a small business owner, I understand and appreciate the importance of a budget. While our business budget is nowhere near $98 million dollars, I do believe in the importance of using our money in the most prudent and effective ways. Large parts of our school budget are items that fall under maintenance, capital expenditures, salaries, etc. I would listen to experts and also look at past budgets and do comparisons to other school districts. Financial transparency will be absolutely imperative when it comes to spending in our school district.

One priority of our strategic plan is “Whole Learning.” How will you foster whole learning in our elementary schools, middle schools and high schools?
When we talk about "Whole Learning" it not only includes the academic achievements for students but also the personal and developmental needs of our students. It prioritizes the requirements that are needed to improve our children's education and makes certain that each child can reach their full potential. Upper Arlington has a lot of great programs that are diverse in different teaching techniques. Barrington Elementary has both informal and contemporary teaching styles. Wickliffe Elementary offers both progressive and informal instructional programs. Upper Arlington High School utilizes Community School as an alternative to traditional learning. My vision for whole learning is to have more professional development for our teachers, provide key services including counselling and social workers, and use balanced learning styles to help students achieve success.

Another priority of our strategic plan is “Student and Staff Well-being” with a key element of belonging. How will you serve as a role model to our community and create a feeling of safety and connectedness?
We know that teachers have the most impact on student success, and it is important that we are supporting teachers’ social and emotional well-being as it directly benefits our students. We now have an executive director of diversity, equity and inclusion, Mr. Matt Boaz, who I believe will be a great advocate for our students and an important resource for our teachers. It is important that our teachers and students have a safe space to learn, grow and thrive without fear of prejudice or bias. If I am elected to the School Board, I will work to create policies that develop a supportive school and classroom climate and work to build a sense of connectedness, focus, and purpose.

Everyone at Pencilstorm is a musician. To that end, what would you do to support music education at a younger age in our elementary schools?
I am a lover of music and play the flute, oboe and piano. Music and art are crucial for the well rounded education we strive for in Upper Arlington. One of the first things I would do if I am elected to the Board of Education is learn why we disbanded our music programs at the elementary schools. Until 2021, students in our elementary schools had the opportunity to try different musical instruments. This then leads to becoming members of either band or orchestra in the Middle Schools and into High School. In order to have strong music programs at the high school, I believe it is crucial to start in the elementary schools, and I would work to reimplement our music programs at the elementary schools.

Here’s a fun question. If you had a time machine and an unlimited amount of money and could pick any band or performer to play in the new auditorium for our students, who would you pick? Bonus question – who’s the opening act?
Queen with an opening act of Prince. Can you tell I grew up in the 80's?

Pencilstorm would like to thank Liz Easton for taking the time to answer our questions.  Learn more about Liz at her website: www.lizeastonforuaschools.com.

This is our final coverage of Upper Arlington politics and we thank you for your readership. Pencilstorm is an independent news source and does not endorse any individual candidate.

Local UA Politics coverage provided by Wal Ozello. You can email him at Pencilstormstory@gmail.com or try to catch him at Colin's Coffee. 

 Check out coverage of all the candidates we've received responses from by clicking here.

 

Scott McKenzie for UA School Board - Pencilstorm Interview

There are five candidates running for two seats on Upper Arlington School Board. Pencilstorm asked each of the candidates five specific questions centered around issues that impacted Upper Arlington schools and questions that were being raised by fellow voters. Pencilstorm will be posting their complete and unedited answers individually throughout October and reposting all their answers together before the election. Answers will be posted in order they're received. Our fourth candidate, Scott McKenzie, is featured below.

Scott McKenzie, Upper Arlington School Board Candidate

Scott McKenzie
www.MM4UA.com

What makes you qualified to have oversight of the $98 million schools operating budget?
I have worked in education for 42 years as a teacher, guidance counselor, business manager, and as the Superintendent of the Groveport Madison Schools. When I retired from Groveport, I was the chief administrator of a district with an annual budget of $72 million, 75 buses, 500 staff, and 10 buildings.

I currently serve as the President of the UA Board of Education and have served on the Board for four years. In that capacity I am one of two board members who serve on the superintendent’s finance committee and meet regularly with the superintendent and treasurer to review the district’s financial status and outlook. Before joining the board I served on the UA Schools Financial Advisory Consulting Team providing community input and advice to the treasurer.

I’m proud of the financial successes of the district during my time on the board. We are opening our new buildings on time and on budget, and we have used savings from a hiring freeze and other cost-saving measures to postpone levies in 2020 and 2021.

One priority of our strategic plan is “Whole Learning.” How will you foster whole learning in our elementary schools, middle schools and high schools?
“Whole Learning” means providing tailored levels of instruction to meet each individual child’s strengths and weaknesses. To accomplish this, I will continue to support the Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) in the UA Schools. MTSS establishes increasing tiers of instruction for students – classroom instruction, small group instruction, and individual instruction. Teachers proactively assess each child’s needs along multiple axes, tailoring instruction for each child. For instance, a child may be part of classroom instruction for math but need extra help from small group instruction in reading. MTSS is proactive: Teachers continually monitor each child’s progress, adjusting instruction levels as appropriate, rather than waiting until a child falls behind. Elementary teachers are currently being trained in MTSS. We should deploy it to all grade levels in the coming years.

In addition to MTSS, “whole learning” means providing programs for the approximately 20% of UA students who have an individual education plan (IEP). UA Schools offer numerous resources for these students, including specialized language instruction, speech therapists, adaptive PE, and more.

In all cases, I am committed to educating students with special needs in the least restrictive environment. This is not only required by law; it is the right thing to do.

Another priority of our strategic plan is “Student and Staff Well-being” with a key element of belonging. How will you serve as a role model to our community and create a feeling of safety and connectedness?
The importance of serving as a role model to our community has been forefront in my mind as I have presided over board meetings in the last year. Regrettably, school board meetings have involved an unusual amount of divisiveness and emotionally charged rhetoric in the last two years, primarily concerning the board’s measures to mitigate risk from COVID-19. Throughout these difficult times, I have done my best to be respectful of everyone and to seek input from all stakeholders. We have had many long board meetings in which everyone has been given an opportunity to speak, and we have listened actively and carefully to all perspectives. In making decisions, we have tried to act as role models for our students by basing our decisions on evidence, not political rhetoric, and favoring the opinion of experts over personal anecdotes.

Once we move past the pandemic, we need to put in extra effort to find common ground and remember that we all share the same goal: helping our kids grow up to be happy, well- educated, and successful members of the community. There are a range of views in our community, but that shouldn’t stop us from working together to support our schools.

Everyone at Pencilstorm is a musician. To that end, what would you do to support music education at a younger age in our elementary schools?
I am an amateur musician too, and I strongly support elementary music education! Our elementary music teachers are treasures, and I know that music class is one of the highlights of many students’ days. I also want to support our classroom teachers incorporating music in everyday instruction, as some of them already do. When I was an elementary teacher, I would try to incorporate music in my classes. For example, my students and I would make up songs to help remember tricky material. I also encouraged my students to give class presentations and would give extra credit if they used music or another media to make their points.

Here’s a fun question. If you had a time machine and an unlimited amount of money and could pick any band or performer to play in the new auditorium for our students, who would you pick? Bonus question – who’s the opening act?
I would pick the Traveling Wilburys to play for the students. As you may know, this often- overlooked “supergroup” was made up of Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison, and Tom Petty. They made some great music (especially their Vol. 1 album). More importantly, the Traveling Wilburys would, in one group, give our kids several examples of English-American popular music in an incredibly influential period that still resonates today. Our kids would experience classic 1950s-style love ballads from Roy Orbison, the 1960s British Invasion from George Harrison, the 1960s and ’70s political and social upheaval from Bob Dylan, and the 1970s and ’80s “classic rock” stylings of Jeff Lynne and Tom Petty.

For the opening act, I would pick Aretha Franklin. Her music is amazing, and her empowering messages (“Respect,” “Think”) are spot on for our kids.

Pencilstorm would like to thank Scott McKenzie for taking the time to answer our questions.  Learn more about Scott at his website: www.mm4ua.com. Look for responses from future candidates in the coming days. Pencilstorm is an independent news source and does not endorse any individual candidate.

Local UA Politics coverage provided by Wal Ozello. You can email him at Pencilstormstory@gmail.com or try to catch him at Colin's Coffee. 

 Check out coverage of all the candidates we've received responses from by clicking here.

 

Carol Mohr for UA School Board - Pencilstorm Interview

There are five candidates running for two seats on Upper Arlington School Board. Pencilstorm asked each of the candidates five specific questions centered around issues that impacted Upper Arlington schools and questions that were being raised by fellow voters. Pencilstorm will be posting their complete and unedited answers individually throughout October and reposting all their answers together before the election. Answers will be posted in order they're received. Our third candidate, Carol Mohr, is featured below.

Carol Mohr, Upper Arlington School Board Candidate

Carol Mohr
www.MM4UA.com

What makes you qualified to have oversight of the $98 million schools operating budget?
In my 8 years of service on the UA Board of Education, I have served six of those years on the Treasurer’s Finance Committee. I have worked with our Treasurer, Andy Geistfeld, over changes that have made a huge difference to our bottom line and to the efficient running of the District. The Treasurer has changed over to a modern payroll system. We have changed our investments for short term funds from a straight money market account into laddered funds using a specialist investing company, Meeder Investments, who works with public entities like ours. Andy Geistfeld has been a hard working Treasurer who year after year has gotten it right when it comes to the five year forecast, and who has found efficiencies to save the district money. We have made the tough choices of value engineering during the building process to come in on time and on budget. I have been working with Treasurer Andy Geistfeld for 8 years, and you just do not find public servants of his quality at other districts.

One priority of our strategic plan is “Whole Learning.” How will you foster whole learning in our elementary schools, middle schools and high schools?
I like programs that have a low bar to entry and that raise students’ horizons. For example, the UA Idea Day selections gave choices to everyone at an entry level to try something new. A few I remember: edible art/cookie frosting; building and operating drones as a business; using an Arduino to make a model parking spot sensor. Following the UA Idea Day outside-the-box thinking, the current program I am excited about at the elementary level is Explorations, which every two weeks gathers an entire grade level to do a learning project. I also like that Explorations is happening districtwide, so every student can have the chance to find a passion they never knew about before and that could become their career.

Another priority of our strategic plan is “Student and Staff Well-being” with a key element of belonging. How will you serve as a role model to our community and create a feeling of safety and connectedness?
I serve on the Student and Staff Well Being Committee as a UA Board Member representative to the committee. Even within this committee, we model a wellness activity at the start of each meeting, whether a quick prompt such as “share a word that has helped you get through the week so far”; or a quiet reflective gathering activity. You may not know I went back to Capital University to get my nursing degree while serving on the Board. Every single class started with a centering, a five minute quiet guided meditation, or other wellness break. This was done intentionally, to model the nurse’s “gathering moment of calm” before seeing each patient--so that it became second nature to us. 

In my role as a Board Member, I advocate for and support programs that help with student and staff wellness, from Start with Hello, to Ferris the facility dog [https://www.arlingtonian.com/archives/24446], to having the arts, music, and physical education at every level of our schools. Even giving all elementary grade level teachers a common planning period every two weeks will aid in staff wellbeing, because crucial human connections and support among peers can be made. This may seem obvious, but is one change that has been put into place districtwide this year.

Everyone at Pencilstorm is a musician. To that end, what would you do to support music education at a younger age in our elementary schools?
General music is part of every elementary school curriculum. Our Centennial was celebrated by a song composed by elementary students in a composition club. Exposure to different styles of music such as Taiko drums or guitar playing; or singing together at a Town Meeting, Chautauqua, or Tremont-a-palooza, all help form community, togetherness, and the emotions that make a whole person. Staff creating a music video can model for students the creativity and fun of making music together. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CJ8jXV2HJg]

Here’s a fun question. If you had a time machine and an unlimited amount of money and could pick any band or performer to play in the new auditorium for our students, who would you pick? Bonus question – who’s the opening act?
For my dream performance, I would want The Ramones to play UAHS auditorium. They could play Rock n Roll High School, Sheena is a Punk Rocker, and get the entire student body bopping. You at PencilStorm know The Ramones were hardly trained musicians. They took the last name Ramone but were not all brothers. They reworked the same basic song into many hits. So let me say a word for the Punk ethos. There’s no one path to start a band, you just have to do it. Play music. Have fun. Entertain people and change their mood. You might be a DJ, a party band, or you might be Walk The Moon [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JCLY0Rlx6Q],

Pencilstorm would like to thank Carol Mohr for taking the time to answer our questions.  Learn more about Carol at her website: www.mm4ua.com. Look for responses from future candidates in the coming days. Pencilstorm is an independent news source and does not endorse any individual candidate.

Local UA Politics coverage provided by Wal Ozello. You can email him at Pencilstormstory@gmail.com or try to catch him at Colin's Coffee. 

 Check out coverage of all the candidates we've received responses from by clicking here.

 

Nidhi Satiani for UA School Board - Pencilstorm Interview

There are five candidates running for two seats on Upper Arlington School Board. Pencilstorm asked each of the candidates five specific questions centered around issues that impacted Upper Arlington schools and questions that were being raised by fellow voters. Pencilstorm will be posting their complete and unedited answers individually throughout October and reposting all their answers together before the election. Answers will be posted in order they're received. Our second candidate, Nidhi Satiani, is featured below.

Nidhi Satiani, Upper Arlington School Board Candidate

Nidhi Satiani
www.teamsatiani.com

What makes you qualified to have oversight of the $98 million schools operating budget?
In healthcare and public health, large budgets are the norm. There are many tools we use to ensure the money is being spent prudently. We use logic models to align the financial and human resources to a stated goal. If that goal is not being realized, this tool allows us to identify the barriers so changes can be made instead of just eliminating both the program and its goals in a zero-sum fashion. Another tool is human-centered design. This allows us to ensure the way we eliminate barriers will not create additional ones. Afterall, a school can never be better than the people working in it. My approach is more proactive and thus fiscally responsible.

We are so lucky to have a budget this size. Unfortunately, the budget decisions over the past several years have reflected a zero-sum bias. We created and eliminated a community school and math plus program in high school, IB program and mandatory exploratory arts in middle school, and instrumental music options in elementary school, just to name a few. These programs were created with a goal in mind. By eliminating these programs, we also abandoned those goals. An all-or-nothing approach is not the only answer.

One priority of our strategic plan is “Whole Learning.” How will you foster whole learning in our elementary schools, middle schools and high schools?
A whole-learning approach calls for engaging students’ cognitive, identity, and social-emotional development. We can do this through meaningful service-learning opportunities, project-based learning, and collaborations with the community to deepen the learning of academic content areas. The Board, through work on the Teaching and Learning Committee, can ensure these opportunities are incorporated into our existing curriculum. For example, my 9-year-old is deeply affected when we see a person holding a “homeless” sign. We often talk about this as insight into his personal values. Leveraging this to introduce financial literacy concepts with Junior Achievement at the elementary level, or social studies concepts through service-learning opportunities with the MidOhio Food Bank at the middle school level, or math and physics concepts through projects with Habitat for Humanity at the high school level would all be effective ways for him to deepen his learning throughout his K-12 experience. One way to scale this personal understanding is by creating spaces for our teachers to help students identify their own deeply held values. Then, students can participate in service projects that allow them to see how their education can scaffold on their personal values and impact their ability to make a difference in the world.

Another priority of our strategic plan is “Student and Staff Well-being” with a key element of belonging. How will you serve as a role model to our community and create a feeling of safety and connectedness?
A focus on well-being underscores the importance of student mental health on academic achievement. The 2019 OHYES! Survey indicates many of our students are struggling. They are getting less sleep, less physical activity, are more anxious, and more depressed. We have students who have attempted or seriously considered suicide. And, this is before the pandemic.

We must prioritize a social emotional curriculum that builds safety and connectedness. Emotional First Aid is a skillset that can give our students effective ways to handle the bee stings of friendship - like not getting invited to a party - so students develop resilience instead of feeling inadequate for not “getting over it.” Trauma informed care training for teachers and staff can also create a culture of safety, empowerment, and healing. It has been successfully used in many settings such as hospitals and public libraries. These are a few examples of how I would work toward ensuring our students and staff have the tools they need for self-care.

Regarding the role model aspect, I strive to lead by example, never prioritizing one group of students over another. Through my campaign, I have shown the thoughtful approach, transparency and accessibility I value in our elected officials.

Everyone at Pencilstorm is a musician. To that end, what would you do to support music education at a younger age in our elementary schools?
In my detailed process for choosing a school for my children, UA’s offering of music education in elementary school was a significant factor. I was privileged enough to go to a public school for the arts where students studied one or two arts for the five years they were there (dance, drama, keyboard, or visual arts) in addition to a strong music education program - orchestra starting in 4th grade, band starting in 5th, and choirs starting in 6th. The loss of instrumental music at the elementary level is a mistake that must be reversed - not only for the 4th grade children who were looking forward to it but for the culture within our schools.

The value of music education is deeper than a once per week “special.” I would love to see more collaboration in our elementary schools - e.g., music teachers working with the primary teachers to develop a deeper understanding of math concepts and reading fluency. Schools that have integrated the arts into the curriculum have shown improved student performance and a more positive school environment. Especially at the elementary level, it is so important that our students maintain their curiosity and wonder. Incorporating music can do this.

Here’s a fun question. If you had a time machine and an unlimited amount of money and could pick any band or performer to play in the new auditorium for our students, who would you pick? Bonus question – who’s the opening act?
There is more division within our community now than there ever has been. Looking through history, we can see how music is a power that can heal division. To leverage this power, I would invite Bruce Springsteen. His music and lyrics not only epitomize the American dream, his story allows many types of listeners to connect with him. I also appreciate how his life shows that financial success and fame are not protective against mental health struggles. Aside from his musical prowess and personal story, his philanthropic efforts also make him a good choice for someone to perform for our students. He uses his success to lift the people and communities around him.

For the opener, I would choose the cast of Hamilton. Their groundbreaking and innovative approach to music, choreography, and casting increased the appeal of Broadway to broader audiences. And, it’s a really fun show!

Pencilstorm would like to thank Nidhi Satiani for taking the time to answer our questions.  Learn more about Nidhi at her website: www.teamsatiani.com. Look for responses from future candidates in the coming days. Pencilstorm is an independent news source and does not endorse any individual candidate.

Local UA Politics coverage provided by Wal Ozello. You can email him at Pencilstormstory@gmail.com or try to catch him at Colin's Coffee. 

 Check out coverage of all the candidates we've received responses from by clicking here.

 

Lou Sauter for UA School Board - Pencilstorm Interview

There are five candidates running for two seats on Upper Arlington School Board. Pencilstorm asked each of the candidates five specific questions centered around issues that impacted Upper Arlington schools and questions that were being raised by fellow voters. Pencilstorm will be posting their complete and unedited answers individually throughout October and reposting all their answers together before the election. Answers will be posted in order they're received. Our first candidate, Lou Sauter, is featured below.

Lou Sauter, Upper Arlington School Board Candidate

Lou Sauter
https://lousauterforua.com/

What makes you qualified to have oversight of the $98 million schools operating budget?
I have been a successful business owner for over 21 years. I have navigated various economic crisis’s through a conservative approach to spending. The 2007 economic crisis and the COVID crisis were tough on everyone, and many small businesses weren’t able to withstand it. The decisions I have made for my business over the years helped me not only withstand it but come out of it stronger.  

Nearly all my employees have worked for me for more than 15 years. On March 13th 2020 when people were laying off employees I evaluated my business and realized we were on strong financial ground. I called and employee meeting because they were all scared. Missing a paycheck meant they would be homeless. I went to my restaurant supply store and filled my walking freezer with food. I told my employees that I could promise them a 40/hr work week paycheck for at least 6 months and I had enough food for everyone to eat. Many of us can’t understand this but for them, they were petrified, and I had to take care of them.  I am proud to say that was a promise I kept. 

Decisions made when everything is going well protect you and your employees when things are tough.

One priority of our strategic plan is “Whole Learning.” How will you foster whole learning in our elementary schools, middle schools and high schools?
The current plan to teach the “Whole Child” is laid out in the strategic plan. It states, “we pursue equitable practices that cultivate the diverse gifts, talents, interests and identities of every child as they learn how to serve, lead and succeed”. Our job as board members is to provide the administration and the teachers with what they need to be successful. 

What I think we need to do is give the teachers more freedom to decide what they think is best for each child and room. I have been involved in Coaching for nearly 20 years and I quickly learned that each kid is different, and the best part of coaching is figuring out how to communicate to different kids to get the best out of them. It changes with each kid and each team every year. I don’t think I would have been so successful if a governing body mandated that I instruct a certain way.  

One thing I do not support is the schools focus on limiting or removing anxiety from schools. Sending emails out saying we can’t let kids use middle school lockers because many kids have anxiety over remembering the locker combination is harmful to creating a self-sufficient child who can survive outside of your home.  

We must challenge kids more and provide resources to help them succeed. But life is hard, challenging and full of stress and anxiety and not introducing children to these things so they learn to deal with it while they have their parents with them to help guide them is harmful in the long run.  

You don’t want your child to first experience social and emotional challenges when they go to college and no support staff there to guide them.

Another priority of our strategic plan is “Student and Staff Well-being” with a key element of belonging. How will you serve as a role model to our community and create a feeling of safety and connectedness?
Nobody running for school board today has as much experience working with kids as I do. I always take the responsibility of being a positive role model seriously and embrace it. I do that because growing up in UA I was surrounded by the most amazing role models to help me become the man I am today. 

But we must not forget that you can never make everyone’s well being be realized. It’s a fantasy approach to make people feel good. Every decision has a reaction to it. “Johnny” might feel uncomfortable with what makes “jimmy” feel comfortable. So, we make a decision for “Jimmy” and we feel so special that we made “Jimmy” feel good, but that decision made “Johnny” really uncomfortable and now what do we do?  

Our strategic plan needs to be more about improving the academics in our schools. You should go back and read some of the Strategic Plans from prior years when our school was the top district in the area and always in the top 15 of the state. And then read this Strategic Plan we are currently operating under, and you will quickly realize why we have dropped to the 67th ranked school district in Ohio (last reported in 2019).  

If you think this plan is what our community needs, if you think we are heading in the right direction then you have two incumbent candidates to vote for. But if you think dropping from 26th in 2014 to 67th in 5 years is clearly heading in the wrong direction then I encourage you to vote for someone who is committed to changing that. I have made changing our failing direction the key element of my campaign.

Everyone at Pencilstorm is a musician. To that end, what would you do to support music education at a younger age in our elementary schools?
Yes, I can remember hauling my Cello to Greensview growing up. Luckily, I lived 3 doors down from the school. I was always tall and so my music teacher told me I had to play the Cello because I could carry it. I really wanted the play the violin because Charlie Daniels released the song “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” when I was nine and the violin was the closest thing to the fiddle so I could jam that song. But I was tall and strong enough to carry the Cello so my dreams we dashed by my height and strength.  

Our music and theatrics programs are great programs and we should continue to support them.

Here’s a fun question. If you had a time machine and an unlimited amount of money and could pick any band or performer to play in the new auditorium for our students, who would you pick? Bonus question – who’s the opening act?
Easy question, Opening act “The Foo Fighters” Main act “The Beatles”. I am adding that listening to Mozart or Beethoven would have been my answer, but you said it was for the students and I don’t think they would appreciate it as much as I do now.

Pencilstorm would like to thank Lou Sauter for taking the time to answer our questions.  Learn more about Lou at his website: https://lousauterforua.com/. Look for responses from future candidates in the coming days. Pencilstorm is an independent news source and does not endorse any individual candidate.

Local UA Politics coverage provided by Wal Ozello. You can email him at Pencilstormstory@gmail.com or try to catch him at Colin's Coffee. 

 Check out coverage of all the candidates we've received responses from by clicking here.