D89ForAll represents a Diverse Group of Candidates that are not a traditional slate. These three candidates represent many areas of D89.

The Koger family attends Arbor View and Glen Crest, while the McGee family goes to Briar Glen. Though the Pope family started at Westfield, they are now at Glen Crest.

As a matter of fact, Yannick and Scott only knew one another as Members on the Board of Education. With a Student First approach, Jessica fit right in under the D89ForAll movement. Different schools, different aged kids, different background, brought together by their comment interest in doing right by the students, families, and district.

KOGER:  D89 for all means always doing our best to serve the needs of every single student. It means that policies set by the board reflect our aspirations to help every child reach the best version of themselves.

MCGEE:  What the board can do to promote and enforce these concepts is to balance all the stakeholder needs of teachers, parents, community members without children, and students and ask the key question of how a policy helps students. In addition to having a student first approach, having a non-partisan approach is also key. Board members will have differences of opinions and beliefs;  Diverse perspectives make for a more constructive discussion.  It’s when you lack the ability to set that aside to help make decisions for the betterment of all students that political leanings detract from great board work. 

POPE:  D89 For All means that D89 is inclusive environment for all students, regardless of ethnicity, culture, religion, disability, sex, gender, or any other protected characteristic. I want the school to be a safe and nurturing environment for every child in our district. Specifically, the board must demonstrate a commitment to each and every child that lives in our district. The best way to do this is by setting appropriate policy and providing education to our teachers, staff, and administration regarding our expectations.

Edited to reflect the appropriate candidate response. 

KOGER: One thing that we will change this year is the communication structures with various stakeholders in the community. We will set up meetings with teachers and administration to gather feedback on what is working and not working.

POPE: The biggest change for 2023/2024 is obviously the new superintendent. In that light, I believe that the board will need to work with the superintendent to build new sustainable relationships with all of the stake holders in the district. These include students, parents, teachers, staff, and the community at large.

MCGEE: We will work with fellow board members in reviewing the DLC framework, determine where the miscommunication lies and problem solve ways to fix it. In addition to revamping this current framework, we will work to create new opportunities to communicate with staff outside of this DLC framework, taking any feedback from staff as to what that can look like. 

Edited to reflect the appropriate candidate response. 

KOGER: All community members benefit from a well run school board and high-quality schools. Having high-quality school increases the values of neighborhood homes, increases the desirability of homes in the area for young families, and prepares the next generation of students to be good citizens in our community. 

You should care to vote in this local election, because you deserve the best candidates in the area to serve as stewards of finances and policies for our school district. A large portion of local tax dollars service our schools, and you will want stewards of those resources to ensure our schools remain high-quality and are not underinvested in for the long term. Great schools are a vital part of any community.

POPE:  CCSD89 is the largest line item on your tax bill. Good schools and responsible spending by the schools lead to higher property values and increased satisfaction within the community. As for voting for me, I feel that I bring an inquisitive balance to all board decisions. I am not single issue focused and do not make decisions without weighing the impact those decisions will have on the students and the community.

Edited to reflect the appropriate candidate response. 

Good morning!  

Technology is great...when you know how to use it.  I didn't use it properly and it caused me to misrepresent some of the Community Question Breakfast posts by crediting the wrong candidates with their answers.  I have fixed those posts and they are correct above.

Thank you to the candidates for their understanding and patience.

~Don

KOGER:  Critical race theory is typically a college level course and not taught in junior high classrooms. The instructional materials in our district are focused on delivering a quality learning experience. We accomplish this through providing background information to enable students to make informed judgements and promote critical reading and thinking. We depict in an accurate and unbiased way the cultural diversity and pluralistic nature or American society. And we contribute to a sense of worth of all people regardless of sex, race, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, or any other differences that may exist.

MCGEE:  In seventh grade, students learn about Human Reproductivity and Development.  Part of this unit includes human sexuality including information about individuals who identify as LGBTQ+.  Not only do young people of all sexual orientations, gender identities and backgrounds have the right to quality sexual health information that reflects their own experience, but studies have shown that learning that everyone deserves respect creates a safer environment for all students.  

Sex ed is about health and safety and gate keeping information can be harmful to children, especially when there are so many outlets available for them to learn disinformation (internet, friends, etc). 

We all want students to make healthy decisions. We all want students to feel safe at school and have opportunities for learning.

POPE:  Critical Race Theory (CRT) is a graduate level course taught in universities. Questions about teaching CRT at the elementary (or even high school) level is a political motivated boogeyman meant to distract from the real work that is being done in our schools. It is not being taught at District 89. Age-appropriate discussions of LGBTQ issues can and should be discussed in schools. Students identify as LGBTQ and ignoring these topics only further isolates these students from their peers. District 89 must be open and accepting to all of our students.

KOGER:  Maintaining reasonable per pupil costs per student, making sure the necessary investments in safe and secure buildings is on budget, and adhere to a disciplined approach to investing in students when necessary.

MCGEE:  Additional costs will not be approved without first careful consideration of the reasoning and research/data behind the need for the addition.  The same is true for making any cuts to current services or resources.  

POPE:  The first question should always be “how does this help our students?”. Once we ask that question, we can prioritize fiscal decisions based on what resources we have available and how we feel the community will support these decisions. Negative decisions (reducing programs, offerings, etc.) need to be looked at through a lens of what is least impactful to our students.

KOGER:  My expectations for the new superintendent are for them to actively listen to all key stakeholders, be visible throughout the school system and community, use data and information to understand our district’s situation, and then develop a comprehensive plan to move our excellent school district even further.

The goals of the district remain the same and are aligned to the strategic plan set forth by the school board and co-created with the community. Academic success, social emotional development, find and retain high quality staff, meaningful community engagement, and effective use of resources.

MCGEE:  My expectation for the new superintendent is to take the time to get to know all stakeholders within the community.  An important part of this would include spending time in our schools and asking about what is working well and what they need additional support with.  While the current strategic plan will continue until 2026, as a board member I expect that a new superintendent will provide new ideas for how to make sure that communication within our school district and with the various stakeholders is cle and and productive as well as plan for increasing academic success within various student groups.  These aspects should all be monitored through the superintendent evaluation process.  

POPE:  The superintendent should be first and foremost tasked with building relationships within the schools and community. Building trusting relationships will allow them to better understand the district and to bring forth new ideas that will strengthen the district. The district, as a whole, is high performing and the expectation, however, is that the superintendent will strive to be even higher performing. In education there is never a level of “good enough”, there is always room for improvement and the superintendent should always be moving the goal posts towards higher achievement and growth.

KOGER:  There is a five year strategic plan in place until 2026 that was a comprehensive, community-wide effort to represent the values of the district. I don’t believe the new superintendent has enough context to make wholesale changes to the plan. The school board sets the mission and vision of the district and the new superintendent should focus on listening and learning from all stakeholders how to make that mission and vision come to life in their own unique way.

MCGEE:  The current strategic plan is in place until 2026 and includes the vision, core values and goals which guide school and district improvement. Since it was created with student, family, staff and resident feedback, a new superintendent should be using the strategic plan as a guide for understanding the current work of our district.  Through communications with these same stakeholders, the board and superintendent will need to review current progress with goals and make changes if data supports.  Aligning on values can only be accomplished through clear communication with stakeholders within the whole district.  I will work with fellow board members to ensure creating a detailed plan for communication with various stakeholders is created and monitored for fidelity of implementation.

POPE:  The board is always looking to align with values of the district as a whole. Many times, the loudest voice is not the most prominent voice in the community. The board has to take a broad look at the community and provide ways to listen to all voices to determine the direction of the district. Much of what the new superintendent will be tasked with in the first year is learning the district and the needs and wants of the community.