New School Board Selection Process Benefitted from Public Input

Among the three nominees to be elected to the Valparaiso School Board, one issue was clear: the school board needs to be more open to the public. Luckily, the selection process for electing school board members has changed, creating a system for public input.

For the selection process, public input was sent in, and the selection committee whittled the public’s concerns down to several questions, centered around a common theme. These questions ranged from what part of the school system should select the new high school coach to what kind of accountability was required for superintendents.

Candace Shaw was the first candidate interviewed. She thought the school board should be expanding communication with parents via a school newsletter, a sentiment the other candidates shared. But parents were not the only group with whom Shaw wanted more communication. Teachers, Shaw said, “These are the people who are educating our children—we need to listen to them."

The second interviewee, James Jorgensen, was asked similar questions, though additional questions regarding his profession and possible conflicts of interest. Jorgensen alleviated any concern by candidly announcing his resignation from the Redevelopment Commission (RDC) if we was elected to the school board—a move that demonstrated his desire for a better, more accountable school board. He also linked his experience with the RDC to the importance of education in the region, because by keeping more well-educated people in the area, it would be better for the area’s economic viability.

Jorgensen said he was “impressed with the new selection process” and like the other candidates, he communicated a pledge for a more “open and welcoming” school board, one that would potentially meet in varying schools three or more times a year to get a better understanding of the public’s desired direction for the future of Valparaiso education. Jorgensen believes building and determining community consensus on the importance of education was the most critical task of the school board.

Tom Sanders, running to be re-elected on to the school board, teleconferenced in from Alaska for the meeting. Sanders had a stellar record of service to the school board in the past six years, missing only a couple of meetings. He brought the point of view of a person of business, “with the perspective of someone with a family.” Sanders felt that the board should communicate to the public more via press releases, a position unique among the three candidates. He does “believe in informal and formal communication” with teachers, but would have left much of the formal communication to each school’s respective administration.

In the end, Jorgensen was elected to the school board. The current board members believed that all three were “excellent candidates”, but Jorgensen was elected by a count of 5-1, with one absent. All of the candidates understand there is a new desire to communicate with the public more often, but Jorgensen was most adamant on specific measures that should be implemented within his term. The current board members believed that all three were “excellent candidates” and seemed to really enjoy utilizing the new selection process.