VOTE411 Voter Guide

Experience: Parent of three children who attended public school. Long-time rural resident of Alsea (32+ years). 1 year as ESL instructional assistant. 17+ years of classroom teaching. 9 years in administration - principal, curriculum director. 5 years in administrative and curriculum support. I was a beneficiary, as were my students and their families, my instructional and support staff, and my district, of the wealth of LBL ESD services. Served on other boards of directors. Skills: Familiarity with board meeting structures and procedures for both education and community organizations. Strong communicator - listening, speaking, and writing. Patience. Collaborative. Sense of humor.

The Zone 2 Board position represents rural communities in the western portion of LBL's service district. Smaller districts depend on the myriad of services that the ESD provides. Choosing which ones are most important to me may not reflect the needs of a particular school, district, or teacher. My students and I greatly benefited from the special education consultants guidance in interpreting and implementing individualized education plans (I.E.P.) This example is one of many. The ESD provides quality professional development, specialty services such as financial management and technology support, curriculum materials and guidance and so much more. Each district buys the resources that best fit their needs and those needs can change.

It can be difficult to provide part time services in a large geographic area. Keeping consistent people who provide one on one services to students is a challenge. Hopefully students develop a relationship with an occupational or speech therapist. If that person chooses to go to a job that doesn't require traveling to multiple remote schools, then that student's learning is interrupted. I don't have a solution to this problem, but I hope to learn what the board might consider in addressing this and similar staffing problems.