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Health & Fitness

Adventures in Politics Or A Story of a Candidacy

Jennifer Crick, a candidate for a seat on the Cary District 26 School Board discusses what it means to be a candidate in a small town, and explains her point of view on the campaign issues.

Driving around town I see them everywhere, splashes of red, white, blue, orange, and white scattered throughout town. They are billboards of sorts; advertising April 9th as a potential date of real change in the Village of Cary. 

One such billboard in particular has my name on it, proclaiming my candidacy for the District 26 School board.  It is a little unnerving to see “CRICK” splashed in red and white throughout this town that I love so well, but, there it is.

It seems I can’t go anywhere, lately, without being stopped and asked about my candidacy for the school board, which is something I am proud of doing, despite the feeling of being vulnerable and overly exposed via campaign signs everywhere you look. 

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I’m proud of my conviction to do right by my kids, and to promote a quality education for all the kids in Cary, and I want to step away from sounding like a politician to get down to the meat and potatoes of what this all means personally.  And though the sign lists three names on it, and I completely support the gentlemen I am listed with, this article is meant to be personal, and I do not want to speak for them. 

Just before Maplewood School closed, my attention was brought to the issues of the district, although, I did not possess the understanding for the scope and magnitude of the issues as I do now. 

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Being involved in the goings on of District 26 has lent me an understanding to the issues that those just starting on their journey may not yet have.  At the time of the school closing debate,  I was mostly concerned that closing a neighborhood school would force students into the remaining schools, thus create a new problem of large class sizes an overcrowding. 

I clearly remember standing in front of Dave Ruelle, board president at the time, and expressing my concern and displeasure regarding the school closing.  I remember Dave agreeing with my concerns. 

Fast forward a few years to continued program cuts, my kids sitting in classrooms of 30+ kids, teachers with no plan time, which continues to astound me that these educational “practices” ever came into being, added to our adoption and adaptation to the Common Core Curriculum, and technology push without a concise, cohesive plan; my concerns for the district and the education of my children and my friend’s children are constantly at the forefront of my mind.

The sign with my name on it says “Accountability."  What on EARTH does that even mean?  It means that when the superintendent is asked to do something, and he says he will do it, it actually gets done. 

For example, back in the Fall when the issue of purchasing more SMART boards for the district came up, I suggested that before we spend any more money we obtain data on test scores of classes with SMART boards and without. 

While all factors that would contribute to test scores can be neither anticipated nor manipulated, there has to be a way to quantify the huge projected expense of such a large technological purchase. 

Members of the administration promised a chart showing how the SMART boards help children learn more effectively. When I am seeking accountability from the administration, it means that when I ask for information and that information is promised to me, I want have that information as soon as possible. I am still waiting for information on the validity of the claim that SMART boards help raise test scores. 

It may be an accurate claim, but before we spent any more money on it, I wanted to see numbers, facts, and irrefutable proof. In speaking with some current board members, this is a real and reoccurring problem with the administration, which leads only to confusion, more questions, and misunderstandings throughout the community.

This segues into the second item listed on the signs, “Transparency."  Transparency means that all relevant information is laid out on the proverbial table for all the bear witness to.  Case in point, at one Community Engagement Committee meeting (of which I proudly am a member), another member asked Mr. Coleman to provide perhaps an informal accounting of the district going’s on via the district website. 

It was suggested it could be called, “Coleman’s Corner”.  This was suggested early in the fall of 2012, and well-liked by all the Board members present, as well as the CEC panel members. 

I have yet to see any such information, informal or otherwise promoted by Mr. Coleman or any district leader.  Questions about our finances are constantly asked at meetings, and the answers are often vague and confusing. 

Listed as my third, but not least priority is “Communication”.  Looking at the website, under “Current Topics”, the ONLY entry was written and posted in June 2012, and it is the Board position paper on why our district did a feasibility study to consolidate with Fox River Grove.

I am confident that in the past 10 months there are many topics the community has been interested in, and would have liked to have had more information about.  Thus, we need the transparency and the Communication of information to all better understand our district, which has been a failure on the part of the current board and administration. 

Somehow, the seed was planted in me that I could make a difference in Cary.  I can help mend the community, and mend the bond among teachers, board members, and transportation workers. 

I want to do that wholeheartedly, to help restore Cary’s educational reputation to what it used to be.  I’ve told friends, I’m just a mom, doing my best to make a difference, and that is what I will continue to be, with integrity. 

I mean, sure, I haven’t been endorsed by any big newspapers, but in the back of my mind I tell myself that sometimes endorsements have been based on inaccurate reporting of committee services rendered, and the reporter doing the endorsement interviews may have  absolutely no say in who the paper endorses, so really, how valid can it be? 

My endorsements have come to me from the people who matter the most to me, in person, from my husband, from my friends, and neighbors, exercise buddies, my church family, and sometimes people I don’t even really know all too well, approaching me with “Thanks” and “We’re voting for you”, because they know me, they know who I am and know I am not afraid to express my concerns and fight for my convictions.  I’m also not afraid to stand up for what I
believe in, and promote the best educational experience for the current and
future students going through the District 26 public school system.

Thus far, my adventures in campaigning have been an interesting ride.  I’m looking forward to the next two weeks.

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