Vote for no more than three candidates for Coopersville Public Schools - School Board Member, At Large, for a 6-year term.School board members are elected officials responsible for the governance, policy-making, and oversight of local school districts, focusing on student achievement and welfare. Their primary duties include hiring/evaluating the superintendent, adopting the budget, setting district goals, and approving curriculum. They also ensure all actions follow state laws.
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Campaign Phone
616-402-1817
Age
56
I have served on the Coopersville Area Public Schools Board of Education since 2019, helping govern through the COVID pandemic, a superintendent search, contract negotiations, annual budgets, policy updates, and long-range planning. My experience includes setting and reviewing policy, establishing priorities, providing financial oversight, and holding the superintendent accountable for results while respecting the proper boundary between governance and administration. I also bring more than 30 years of engineering and business leadership experience in strategic planning, operations, problem solving, and organizational improvement, helping me evaluate complex issues and make sound, long-term decisions for the district.
The district’s biggest challenges are continuing to improve student achievement, attracting and retaining excellent people, maintaining enrollment amid declining school-age populations, and protecting long-term financial stability. We are making good progress through professional learning communities and a culture of collaboration and achievement. We must build on that progress with measurable outcomes, disciplined financial stewardship, strong leadership and succession planning, and excellent programs that make families and staff choose CAPS. Good governance means stability without complacency, continuous improvement, thoughtful long-term planning, and a willingness to change when evidence shows a better path.
I believe school board members should be visible, accessible, and engaged in the life of the district. My family has had a student at CAPS in nearly every school year since 2003, including our three children and seven foreign exchange students. That experience gives me more than two decades of perspective on how the district has grown and changed. I regularly attend activities from athletics and musicals to FFA and robotics, supporting students and talking with parents, staff, and community members. You learn things in the stands, hallways, and community that never appear in a board packet. Those experiences inform my decisions, while my role remains focused on policy, accountability, and the long-term interests of all students.
