Weston County School Board #7 Election: Julie Sindlinger

NLJ: Please tell us why you want to hold this office, and what you intend to accomplish if elected. Please be specific about your goals and objectives, so our readers can measure your progress over the course of the term. Also tell us what qualifications and characteristics you possess that will help ensure that your stated goals can be achieved. (The same question was posed to all candidates for the General Election.)

Julie Sindlinger
When I think of education in Upton I immediately think of teachers who care for our children as if they were their own and of a community pulling together to support them. The teachers are our greatest gift. We need to put the control back in their hands. They are the ones with the answers to raising our children’s competency scores back into the 80th and 90th percentiles. 
In recent years however, the teachers have been removed from the active goal-setting process and these scores have dipped down as low as around 7 percent. Few know that because we are not transparent. When the scores drop, we suddenly start reporting numbers in terms of “growth percentage” instead of the actual score because we don’t want to admit it. We cannot fix what we don’t own. Let me repeat that, we cannot fix what we don’t own. I will not hide these scores or make excuses. In order to find a better path, we have to understand what is going on first.
The teachers in Upton have been customizing what is needed for each child since the beginning of time. “Customizing learning” doesn’t mean we have to place the kids on computers all day. That was an unfortunate result of inadequate planning beyond their control, and from placing expectations on them without providing proper guidance, tools, and resources. I would like to see us pause and re-focus with the teachers leading the way. Teacher leadership will find the solutions to these issues, and as a result proper technology in the classrooms will organically happen. We need to provide them support, resources, and the framework for success.  
Where do I see opportunities? There are many more than I can list in this short space. Foremost, I do not believe we have the right strategic goals in mind. Our District’s Mission Statement is “Learner Centered-Future Focused.” While I understand the intent, where in that statement does it state what quality of education, or standard of education we will commit to providing? Not a single word regarding it and it’s evident with our kids. There are tough decisions to be made and I am ready to help make them so we can get back to business.  Transparency and dialog are lacking but once the accountability and expectations are clear and being followed through on, these will come more naturally. I have degrees in accounting, project management and my master’s degree in business administration, focus is in human resources. With my skills and background, I can provide strong support to the district in pulling everyone together to achieve this.  
My overall philosophy is one of building blocks on a SOLID, BROAD educational foundation. We can’t run without first learning to walk. Our job as a district is to expose kids to many things from the fine arts to industrial technologies and everything in between. Let’s give the teaching staff the reins back, provide them guidelines to work within, give clear and attainable strategic end goals that matter, the resources to achieve them, keep measuring our progress, and move forward properly as a cohesive team. I would be honored to serve you.  Please vote for Julie Sindlinger for Weston #7 School Board Trustee in November. Go Bobcats!