Four Winnetka residents are running for three four-year seats on the board of Winnetka Public Schools District 36. None are incumbents; current board members Betsy Owens, Dana Crumley, and board president Kendra Wallace are not running again. Three of the candidates are endorsed by the Winnetka Caucus.
All four candidates said the board’s plans to tackle student population imbalances at the district’s elementary schools would be crucial in the future, as would a study of their physical condition. They also all emphasized the importance of maintaining or increasing communication with parents and other district residents.
Steve Cirulis
Cirulis, 46, has lived in Winnetka for five years with his wife and three children, all of whom are students at Crow Island School, he said. He is endorsed by the caucus, and is an officer with a national restaurant chain.
He said he’s running as a believer in public education, and the role of a board member is to create the best education and social-emotional experience for students.
“I’m not running because I think things are materially broken. I do see ways in which I can help the district reach its potential to be one of the standout districts in this country,” he said.
“My ability to be fair, to be balanced and to rely on face-based information, to take some of the emotion out of really critical decisions, would serve me well as a member of the board,” he said.
He said the district needs to look at the conditions of its schools, and said it faces a challenge in what he called the oversubscription of Crow Island and the undersubscription of other schools. However, he said, the district has the chance to build long-term strategic plans to tackle that challenge. The need to move students temporarily from Crow Island will be disruptive, he acknowledged, but he said students will still have “an unbelievable education. The district has the chance to make those one or two years the most memorable and impactful of their lives.”
Scott Conine
Conine, 42, has lived in Winnetka for five years, and is the chief operating officer of a Chicago digital marketing agency. He and his wife have two daughters, one at Greeley Elementary School and one at North Shore Country Day School.
He said he is running because he supports the district’s approach to progressive education. He believes the board’s role is to provide “compassionate governance” around key issues facing the district: “If that’s enrollment, curriculum, or fiscal issues … we make sure we provide that governance and maintain fiscal responsibilities to the taxpayer.” He said he’d like to help set a path for the district’s math and reading curriculum.
Conine said he believed the District 36 community is responsive to student needs.
He said he believes the district can and should repay bonds this year to strengthen its financial health and relieve residents’ tax burdens. He believes the board must listen to and analyze community and administration views on balancing enrollment at district schools: “I think there’s an opportunity to see how we could sequence the events.”
“I think another issue that’s compounded when you talk about enrollment is the state of our facilities. They are older buildings and their conditions need to be evaluated,” he said, adding that district HVAC systems must be an important part of that review.
John Griffin
John Griffin, 47, is a Winnetka native who moved back to Winnetka in 2004 with his wife and four children. He is a stay-at-home father who is continuing his former career as an investment manager at home, he said. He is a member of the district’s enrollment balancing advisory committee.
He said he decided to run late last fall because he wanted to give back to the community. He isn’t endorsed by the Winnetka Caucus, but Griffin praised the group and said Winnetka has “four excellent candidates to choose from.”
Griffin said his ability to focus on long-term visions would aid the school board, as would his work experience with municipal bonds and school district finances. He said the pillars of a successful long-term district vision would be providing the best possible education programs, having a good building facilities plan and a sound financial plan: “We don’t have unlimited resources.” Griffin said his experience studying the enrollment balancing issue at what he called a granular level would also help the district.
“While I’m saddened by the fact there’s only a short-term plan right now, I’m optimistic that by developing a phase two process we can resolve the issue in a long-term way.”
Nathaniel Roberts
Nathaniel Roberts, 50, is endorsed by the caucus. He said he is the president of a company whose main assets he sold three years ago. He, his wife and three children – two in District 36 schools and one at North Shore Country Day – moved to Winnetka about five years ago. He said he is a stay-at-home father who has been involved with community Scouting and worked with the Hubbard Woods School PTO.
Roberts said one of his strengths is the ability to listen to multiple points of view, as is his experience with three different style student learners at home.
“I also have served on a lot of boards, and I understand that the role of a board is a lot different than the role of an administrator,” he said.
He sees the district’s important tasks over the next few years as managing finances, including paying off bonds with district surpluses, studying its aging buildings and maintaining high quality education. He said the district’s study of enrollment balance problems “is exactly in the target zone … I don’t know the answer yet, but I think we’re in the process of collecting the information we need to have those complicated discussions.”
Twitter: @pioneer_kathy
