Education, Experience
Graduate of Reading Senior High School, 2yr Business Administration Degree from RACC, 30 Years of service at the US Postal Service
Qualifications
Serve on numerous Boards, Legislative Liason for the Post Office Union, being involved with our community
Campaign Phone
4846383067
As a mail carrier for 30 years, I served my last route for 20 years. I knew the residents. They knew me. They talked to me about things you could never imagine. I listened. I learned. We discussed their situation. I tried to help where I could.
Everyone needs someone who will listen, help them think through an issue and arrive at a conclusion that's appropriate for the circumstances. The residents, students and staff pf the Antietam School District are no different.
Our community needs someone on the ASD Board of Directors who believes that every voice is important. The elderly resident who is struggling to pay the highest school tax rate in Berks County. The teacher whose starting salary is $45,000 and has to buy school supplies for their classroom. The parent who can't get answers to why the child is having difficulties or why no one is addressing a bullying issue. The administrators who feel overwhelmed.
1) Quality of Education. Objective criteria that our educational outcomes have been declining for a decade or more. We need to determine why we are in decline.
2) Affordability. We are he smallest district, with a small tax base, and the highest school tax rate in Berks County.
3) Reform. We need to change a business-as-usual attitude that as created problems.
We lost our largest school facility to a flood. It was insured for a small fraction of it's value.
Yes, we need to offer life skills courses in our school. That will be a challenge for our district because we have a sparse curriculum and little room to expand our offering. Another option is to develop partnerships with business and organizations that can offer opportunities for students to develop practical life skills outside of the classroom setting.
We will need to think creatively in order to satisfy this important need which is lacking in our current curriculum.
We need to revamp our classrooms for the future. The coming decade will provide new learning opportunities with virtual reality, artificial intelligence, instant language translation, remote learning and other emerging technologies.
The ASD has the lowest average salaries in Berks County . The issue for our school district will be finding the financial resources to acquire the technologies and affording teachers versed in the use of them.
Candidate has not yet responded.
Candidate has not yet responded.
Candidate has not yet responded.
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Education, Experience
Business Management Degree/ Employed under PHEAA 2017-2022/IT Law 2022-Present
Qualifications
Ins Producer Life, Health, Accident, Fixed Annuity, P&C/Scrum Master Certified
I bring a strong sense of leadership, logic, problem solving and critical thinking skills to the table. Currently, my daily job functions involve incorporating these skills into solving highly complex issues while designing creative solutions to these concerns. I then direct entire teams in order to build these designs to breath life into them in order for my firm to continue to be prosperous serving our corporate clients.
I truly want to see our community and school district succeed. I would like to be a part of improving the level of education and resources the children in the district receive as to prepare them for life after they graduate and set them up for success wherever life may take them. This would also include restoring transparency, sustainability and affordability to the community as a whole.
Education, affordability and transparency. As a board we need to be committed to bettering education by promoting proper resources, support and success of our students. We also need to ensure this type of growth in education is sustainable from a tax base to the community and that we are open and transparent with all business concerning this.
Yes, I do feel this is needed at school however, I also feel it should be reinforced at home as well. Learning about this in a school setting is a great idea however, applying this in a practical at home setting is also extremely valuable. Bringing back the practical courses that were once offered to work on these skills would be something that could be offered starting in a junior high setting.
As always, these types of technologies have their place for creative elective classes and for class days that must be remote. However, I also feel they can lend to keeping class information fresh, exciting and attention grabbing by using it in classes. For example, ChatGPT can be easily incorporated into a lesson plan as it is interactive and attention grabbing. These technologies lend to proper resource allocation to improve education levels.
Education, Experience
I have a BA in English/Professional Writing from Elizabethtown College. I was elected to the Antietam School District Board of Directors in 2023 to fill a 2-year term, and am running for re election.
Qualifications
My experience is varied: from developing and running meetings and events in healthcare communications to designing educational programs for a nonprofit, to owning my own small businesses, I can bring along pieces of each of them to the board. From budget management and logistics, to educational design, to making a really great cup of coffee if needed, all of these experiences lend themselves to this position. And you know, I’m a mom. And we all know that moms just get it done.
My experience is varied: from developing and running meetings and events in healthcare communications to designing educational programs for a nonprofit, to owning my own small businesses, I can bring along pieces of each of them to the board. From budget management and logistics, to educational design, to making a really great cup of coffee if needed, all of these experiences lend themselves to this position. I've also had 1 1/2 years of experience on the board thus far.
My husband and I have lived in Mt. Penn Borough in the Antietam School District since 2006 as homeowners and taxpayers, and our now our 8th grade daughter and 5th grade son go to Kerry C. Hoffman Intermediate. I have lived, worked, and volunteered in our schools and our community and believe in the power and value of a quality public school education. I believe in our district, in the staff, the students, and in many in our community who support us.
There are many challenges for School Boards and their districts right now. These are just three.
1. Balancing the increasing needs of our students with the services we can provide. Whether they are mental health, educational, or basic life, schools are asked to provide it all.
2. Budgets. Again, balancing the student needs with the constraints of our budget and the taxes a community can bear.
3. AI. How do we teach and ingrain in our students that AI is a tool and not a replacement for ed?
Schools used to prepare students for life skills with required classes in home ec, finances, cooking. Many districts had to make hard choices and opted to eliminate these kinds of courses. From how to open a bank account, to how to interview for a job or how to prepare a simple meal, it may be time to bring back some of these basic life skill classes, adapted for these times and needs of our students.
AI is a tool, and as with any tool, we must teach our students when and how it is appropriate to use it. We must work together with teachers and staff, students, and even parents and guardians to teach them about what the technologies are and how to help guide their students in using it if and when it is appropriate. It is like the wild west out there right now and we need to stay in front of it.
Candidate has not yet responded.
Candidate has not yet responded.
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Education, Experience
I have a BS in Human Development and Family Studies from Penn State University and a Master's degree in Social Services from Bryn Mawr College. I have been employed by the Reading Hospital for more than 19 years.
Qualifications
MSW
I am a Medical Social Worker at the Reading Hospital, where I have worked for more than 19 years. As a social worker, I am constantly problem solving, linking patients with programs that match their needs, and coordinating with our medical team and community agencies to meet the needs of our patients. I am a good listener, and I am very good at working with people to find consensus and solutions to problems. I believe these are all skills that will be useful in a school board setting.
I am running for school board because I believe in the Antietam School District. I am the mother of two recent Antietam graduates and have experienced the school system K-12 for both children. I was raised to believe that a public-school education is critical not only for the individual students, but for a strong community and a strong democracy. If elected, I look forward to serving the community and helping the Antietam School District to move forward into the future.
There are many challenges facing the Antietam School Board. Providing support to students with behavioral health diagnosis, budget shortfalls, and staffing shortages seem to be some of the bigger state-wide challenges. Antietam has additional challenges since its high school was destroyed to a flood less than 2 years ago. I look forward to deliberating with the school board members to determine the best way forward for our small school.
I believe that life skills are important and that some can be taught within the framework of the core classes. Financial literacy can be taught as a part of math. Cooking could be a lesson in measurements and fractions. The need for civic engagement can be taught alongside history.
I would like to hear from curriculum specialists and teachers to find out how they think these technologies can be used in the classroom.
Education, Experience
Antietam Hugh School graduate, BCTC graduate
Qualifications
Buisness owner, experienced team member
Campaign Phone
4842692753
Skills; being a productive member of a team, working through logistics efficiently, creating a plan and executing that plan. Knowledge; I have the knowledge of a business owner and leader, I have knowledge in the realm of construction, demolition, job site efficiency, decision making, leadership, and logistics. Experience; I have the experience of being schooled in the Antietam School District, I have the experience of being an effective member of many groups working towards a common goal.
I’de like to be of service to my school. I feel I have a very solid, balanced perspective. I have a great respect for the school that gave me and my brothers a solid start to our education in the world. It would be my honor to give back to such a great community. Bottom line, I would support anything that our students our parents and our teachers support. I want what is best for them, and would always vote in their best interest. It is the students, parents and teachers, for whom I am a servant.
1, getting our students a permanent building to be educated in. I feel we need to seek out funding to achieve this goal. 2, getting our students the best education possible to benefit the future generation. I feel we must make it attractive for teachers to want to teach at Antietam. 3, the physical and mental health of our students. I feel we need to do everything in our power to provide the students with a good foundation of physical and mental health, good food, good activity, good community.
I feel it is a balance of the school’s responsibility and the parents responsibility to teach our students about issues like cooking financial literacy, household, problem-solving, self-reliance, and community engagement. It’s great for a school to engage in these teachings, but in my experience, people never fully learn these skills until they’re out of school, and forced to practice them on their own. For that reason continued support from the parents as well as community is hugely important.
I currently don’t feel that AI should play a role in the classroom. But I am certainly open to the idea that it could. I just don’t currently see the benefit. I can only see Zoom type classes, being beneficial during a situation like the pandemic we all endured. Other than that situation, I largely support, face-to-face education.
Education, Experience
B.A. in Music from Earlham College, M.Ed. from Alvernia University, ESL and Reading Specialist Certifications from Alvernia, Kutztown
Qualifications
17 years of experience teaching in public schools, including working with others at building and district levels; community volunteer
I am an educator and a parent of current students and one graduate of Antietam. I am also a homeowner, taxpayer, and a member of a society where we expect our citizens to be educated. I have spent my career in public schools. In both professional and personal capacities, I work to find solutions to problems.
I am running because I would like our school district to focus on the needs of the students. Our community has faced numerous challenges, including the loss of a building in recent years. We need to be focused on the future as we work together to find solutions. I believe that effective public schools are essential for a democracy to thrive.
To address financial pressures, we need to continue to work with our state legislators to access state funding, and continue to seek out other sources of funding (such as grants). Second, we need to embrace our community’s rich diversity rather than be afraid of it. Finally, divisions over buildings and parking need to be refocused instead on the needs of our students. It is the role of the school board to weigh the needs of all stakeholders.
Many life skills can be integrated into the curriculum. In fact, making learning relevant for students can help engage learners.
Emerging technologies are already being used in classrooms. Students and teachers all have devices (laptops, chromebooks, tablets) that they use on a daily basis. Use of technology was necessary during the virtual schooling that Covid caused. Even newer technologies, such as AI, are present in schools as well. We should be certain that we are seeking out training for our teachers so that they can assist our students in using technology appropriately.
