{"id":800504,"date":"2019-10-18T15:45:26","date_gmt":"2019-10-18T21:45:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/?p=373199"},"modified":"2019-10-18T15:45:26","modified_gmt":"2019-10-18T21:45:26","slug":"summit-school-board-candidates-talk-teacher-salaries-mental-health-finances-at-election-forum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/local-news\/summit-school-board-candidates-talk-teacher-salaries-mental-health-finances-at-election-forum\/","title":{"rendered":"Summit school board candidates talk teacher salaries, mental health, finances at election forum"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
Ten members of the community are running for the Summit School District Board of Education. Nine of them attended a election forum Thursday, Oct. 17, at Summit County High School in Breckenridge to engage in conversation and debate.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

BRECKENRIDGE \u2014 Candidates for the Summit School District Board of Education took the stage at a nonpartisan election forum Thursday night, fielding questions on important issues surrounding the areas schools, such as teacher retention, improving student performance and district finances.<\/p>\n

The panel comprised nine of the 10 candidates for four open positions on the board. Candidates include Chris Alleman, Gini Bradley, Miranda Fisher, Lauren Gerhard, Stan Katz, Emily Lutke, Gloria Quintero, Consuelo Redhorse, Brooke Shotts and Tim Westerberg. Bradley was unable to attend the forum but provided written opening and closing statements that were read aloud by the moderator.<\/p>\n

While candidates came from different backgrounds and experiences, answers to one of the biggest questions surrounding the school district \u2014 how to attract and retain quality teachers \u2014 were largely uniform, tackling increases in salaries among other solutions.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
Consuelo Redhorse speaks at the election forum Thursday, Oct. 17, at Summit High School in Breckenridge.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cIt is about salaries, but I think we can find a lot of creative solutions,\u201d said Redhorse, a former Summit County Preschool board chair. \u201cWe need to talk to the teachers, we need to talk to support staff to find out what they want. It may be from school to school, it may be different groups of teachers, but we need to have some kind of task force \u2026 to find out what they want.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many candidates addressed reaching out to teachers
\nthemselves to find ways to make the jobs in the county more attractive, including
\nideas such as diving into workforce housing solutions, an increase in
\nprofessional development and mentorship opportunities for young teachers, and
\neven offering outside incentives like free ski passes.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
Miranda Fisher speaks at the election forum Thursday, Oct. 17, at Summit High School in Breckenridge.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cI also feel the wage increase could be incredibly beneficial to retain quality staff,\u201d said Fisher, who serves on the Summit Chamber board of directors. \u201cBut \u2026  money doesn\u2019t just rain from the sky, and we have a budget you have to keep to. So there\u2019s other ways we can get creative. \u2026 I think there\u2019s some cool opportunities to team up with the Summit Combined Housing Authority and think of our benefits packages in a different way to make them a little more enticing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n
\n
Brooke Shotts speaks at the election forum Thursday, Oct. 17, at Summit High School in Breckenridge.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cI had a conversation with an elementary school teacher who told me she has a master\u2019s and 10-plus years in teaching and she makes less than a first-year firefighter,\u201d added Shotts, chair of the Building Accountability Committee at Breckenridge Elementary School. \u201cThese things are super important, and we do need to retain the current teachers we have by giving them a livable wage. \u2026 And just trying to help wherever they need, so they don\u2019t fail or feel overwhelmed and leave after a year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Candidates opened up more when asked about their priorities outside of teacher compensation and retention, noting a diversity of goals each has in mind following the election. For some, the name of the game is increasing student performance.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
Stan Katz speaks at the election forum Thursday, Oct. 17, at Summit High School in Breckenridge.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cI\u2019m running for Summit school board because, simply, I believe we can do a lot better than we are,\u201d said Katz, who served on a board of education in New Jersey for more than a decade. \u201cOn the educational side, our achievements leave a lot to be desired. Our percentile ranks in language arts, math and science range from a high of only around 75% and a very disappointing low of 47%. \u2026 We live in one of the wealthiest counties in the state with a long tradition of supporting the school district. That\u2019s a good start, but we need to be a lot more proactive on the academic side.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n
\n
Tim Westerberg engages in conversation and debate at the Summit High auditorium in Breckenridge, Colo. on Thursday, Oct. 17, 2019.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cMy top priority is high academic expectations for all students, and the support that they need to meet those expectations,\u201d said Westerberg, a former school principal and former Dillon Town Council member. \u201cWith clear, specific student performance expectations that are aimed at or aligned with leading to college and career readiness expectations or standards for each grade level, each course, each semester.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others had more specific priorities, such as the integration
\nof more diverse and substantial curriculum programs into the schools.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
Chris Alleman speaks at the election forum Thursday, Oct. 17, at Summit High School in Breckenridge.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cI think arts integration can help solve a lot of the issues in the classrooms,\u201d said Alleman, president of the Silverthorne Elementary School PTA. \u201cArts integration is not simply teaching someone how to paint or how to sing or what theater is. It\u2019s actually using those art forms as a teaching tool in the classroom to teach science, to teach math, to teach reading, to teach communication and even social-emotional learning. I think I can bring that to the school board with my 20-plus years in the arts.\u201d<\/p>\n

Student health was another big topic brought up by
\ncandidates, with some calling for better resources for students dealing with
\nmental health issues.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
Lauren Gearhart speaks at the election forum Thursday, Oct. 17, at Summit High School in Breckenridge.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cIn order to have successful learners, we need to have clear minds that are focused,\u201d said Gearhart, a coordinator for the Mountain Mentors program. \u201cThey are free of trauma, they are free of stress and conflict. Increasing therapeutic interventions in school has been great with the help of School Based Health Centers. But we need more. We need more access to Spanish speaking therapists; we also need social emotional curriculum interwoven in the schools. \u2026 But in order for us to have success with caring learners, we need to make sure we\u2019re providing opportunities to practice those skills.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others said their main priority was making sure that teachers
\nand the curriculum are able to connect with a diversity of students, both
\nculturally and academically.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
Gloria Quintero speaks at the election forum Thursday, Oct. 17, at Summit High School in Breckenridge.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cI am running for school board because I want to be a megaphone for minorities,\u201d said Quintero, program coordinator for the county\u2019s Youth and Family Services. \u201cLatinos make up 15% of our community, but when was the last time there was a Latino on our school board? \u2026 I\u2019m hoping that my involvement will empower more parents to get involved in their children\u2019s education. \u2026 I believe parents will be more involved when they feel represented.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n
\n
Emily Lutke speaks at the election forum Thursday, Oct. 17, at Summit High School in Breckenridge.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cEssentially make sure that we have opportunities for all,\u201d said Lutke, co-chair for Vail Resorts Epic Promise Foundation. \u201cI will be the first to say I have a lot to learn about what we\u2019re currently doing, the curriculum that we\u2019re offering, the processes we go through for curriculum revision when we\u2019re looking at adding those in. That\u2019s something I\u2019m really excited to dive into to ensure we are offering the best programs for all of our different types of learners, understanding that learning doesn\u2019t come easy to all.\u201d<\/p>\n

With four open seats, it\u2019s up to the voters to decide Nov. 5 who is the best fit. To learn more about the candidates and their positions, visit summitdaily.com\/election<\/a>.<\/p>\n

via:: Summit Daily<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ten members of the community are running for the Summit School District Board of Education. Nine of them attended a election forum Thursday, Oct. 17, at Summit County High School in Breckenridge to engage in conversation and debate.Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com BRECKENRIDGE \u2014 Candidates for the Summit School District Board of Education took the stage […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[99],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-800504","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-27 06:42:59","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSMT The Mountain","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/800504","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=800504"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/800504\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=800504"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=800504"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=800504"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}