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Apache Junction Unified District (4443) {_getChooseLabel(this.selections.length)}

School Board MemberSchool board members are elected for a four-year term by voters within the school district during the general election in even-numbered years. Qualifications include living in the district for at least one year, being a registered voter, and a candidate may not be an employee of the district when assuming office or have a spouse or dependent employed by the district.School board members are nonpartisan and are responsible for broad, forward-thinking, and decisive action in all areas that affect students and staff in their schools. School board members have no individual authority, but their authority rests in casting a vote at required governing board meetings.Responsibilities of the board include hiring and evaluating the superintendent, providing input in budget development to ensure funding is provided to meet goals and monitoring and approving the budget, setting salaries for employees, approving purchases, establishing and approving policies, approving curriculum materials, adopting the school calendar, reviewing regulations for compliance with policy, approving personnel actions based on superintendent recommendations, closing or constructing schools; assessing board effectiveness, monitoring progress toward goals.Why you should care:The school board’s role is to advocate for public education in the community and ensure the school district is well run. The board, as a whole, monitors performance to meet academic, financial, and operational goals. The collaborative decisions made by school board members will affect children and their parents, the livelihood of school district employees, and the economic well-being of an entire community. This position is unpaid and requires time, a willingness to learn about issues affecting the school district, and a passion for a positive culture and public education system committed to providing the best and most appropriate education for all children.For additional information:https://www.azk12.org/media/yjvlpkfo/district-school-board-duties.pdfMiembro de la junta escolarLos miembros de la junta escolar son elegidos por un período de cuatro años por los votantes del distrito escolar durante las elecciones generales en años pares. Los requisitos incluyen haber vivido en el distrito durante al menos un año, estar registrado para votar y un candidato no puede ser un empleado del distrito al asumir el cargo o tener un cónyuge o dependiente empleado por el distrito.Los miembros de la junta escolar no son partidistas. Estos son responsables de acciones amplias, progresistas y decisivas en todas las áreas que afectan a los estudiantes y al personal de sus escuelas. Los miembros de la junta escolar no tienen autoridad individual, mas bien, su autoridad se basa en emitir un voto en las reuniones requeridas de la junta directiva.Las responsabilidades de la junta incluyen contratar y evaluar al superintendente, brindar aportes en el desarrollo del presupuesto para garantizar que se proporcionen fondos para cumplir con las metas y monitorear y aprobar el presupuesto, establecer salarios para los empleados, aprobar compras, establecer y aprobar reglamentos, aprobar materiales curriculares, adoptar el calendario escolar, revisar los reglamentos para el cumplimiento de las políticas existentes, aprobar acciones de personal basadas en las recomendaciones del superintendente, cerrar o construir escuelas; evaluar la efectividad de la junta, monitorear el progreso en función de las metas.Por qué debería importarle:El papel de la junta escolar es interceder por la educación pública en la comunidad y garantizar que el distrito escolar esté bien administrado. La junta, como un todo, supervisa el desempeño para cumplir con las metas académicas, financieras y operativas. Las decisiones colaborativas tomadas por los miembros de la junta escolar afectarán a los niños y sus padres, el sustento de los empleados del distrito escolar y el bienestar económico de toda una comunidad. Este puesto no es remunerado y requiere tiempo, disposición para aprender acerca de los problemas que afectan al distrito escolar y pasión por una cultura positiva y un sistema de educación público comprometido con brindar la mejor educación posible y la más adecuada para todos los niños.Para información adicional:https://www.azk12.org/media/yjvlpkfo/district-school-board-duties.pdf

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    Gilbert Cancio
    (NON)

  • Candidate picture

    Chelsea Connolly
    (NON)

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    Cami Garcia
    (NON)

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    Bill Kell
    (NON)

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    Sandra Leen
    (NON)

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    Craig Musser
    (NON)

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    Judy Williamson
    (NON)

Biographical Information

What is your vision for your local school board; in particular how will you create an environment that values a diverse student population?

What qualities, skills, and expertise will you prioritize as you recruit and/or evaluate the district superintendent?

How will you address the costs of special education evaluations and proportionate share services for ESA students, and what policies and pricing would you set regarding ESA students participating in sports at your district’s schools?

What are your local school district's three most pressing issues, and how would you prioritize them when preparing the school budget?

What role should the school board play in curriculum development?

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Campaign Email camigsells@gmail.com
Qualifications and Experience I have served on the board for 8 years and am seeking for re-election for the third term.
Organization Memberships and Affiliations President of Black and Gold Youth Football 15 years. Vice President of AJ Little League 3 years. 3 years as a Football team mom. PTO & Boosters for many years which intern raises money for the kids.
Community Service Lots of volunteer hours given back to the kids of AJUSD with the involvement of the organizations listed above.
Occupation Broker/Realtor of Western Lifestyle Realty
Education Two years at MCC community college. 1993-1994 Medical Assistant Certificate, 2004-current Owner of a Real-estate Brokeragee
Creating a school culture that allows students, peers, staff, and our families to feel safe, cared for, and supported will create an environment that will enable our district to thrive. My vision for our board is to create an environment where students with diverse backgrounds and different perspectives can still join together to think and problem-solve together.
A successful Superintendent needs to have strong communication and collaboration skills in order to team build and problem solve. We need a leader that can build relationships and have the ability to make decisions and problem solve to drive our district. A good evaluation process adopted by the board to give the tools to evaluate all of the areas while running a district is also important.
Special education cost is funded by local, federal and state. Schools are responsible for paying a portion in order to make sure our students are getting the resources they need. The ESA funding is based on our states average per student funding. This figure is derived from taking the operational budget and diving it into the total number of students. The education eligible expenses is customized along as students are enrolled in the core subjects. I do believe that ESA students participating in sports at our district should be allowed. We have a "Pay to Play" fee that we charge in order to play in a sport to help cover expenses. every student that plays will pay this fee. I believe these services such as sports allow the students to not only enjoy the physical activity but build self -confidence, life skills and teamwork!
Student Achievement Ensuring the health and safety of students and staff Maintain the districts Financials

When prioritizing the school budget, we must first review the previous Year's budget and then set the goals and a plan for future years. The budget should be focused on optimizing student achievement, long term financials, developing the budget, evaluating the budget and adjusting accordingly. The budget plan has to be sustainable.
I believe this is a critical responsibility of a school board. We approve curriculum that will be implemented across the school district. Then the district leaders and educators lead the decision as to how the instructional materials are taught. Local school boards need to always make sure they are consistent with state policy to always improve our student achievement for college readiness.
Campaign Email lush15vett@gmail.com
Public Policy Priorities Parental rights, traditional education, anti woke
Qualifications and Experience 30 years of retail grocery management.
Organization Memberships and Affiliations GOP Precinct captain
Occupation Retired
Education Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting
Grade schools to emphasize individual goals.
Budget hawk
Monitor the current appropriations.
Getting student scores out of the basement.
Monitor & increased emphasis on stem.
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