Issue link: http://accesshealth.uberflip.com/i/469204
7/ TheBucknerClarion.com February 12, 2015 School Board Seats Up Candidates Talk About Vision for District Q: Where did you grow up? A: I grew up in the Buckner area and a 1976 graduate of Fort Osage. I have lived almost all of my life around this area and had one son graduate from Fort in 1999. Currently, my grandchildren attend this district. Q: What degrees have you earned? A: I have an associate degree in Fire Sciences from Penn Valley. Q: How long have you served on the school board and what was your initial motivation to join? A: This is my first term on the board, going on my third year. My motivation occurred after I was injured on a job and my injuries required me to retire. Joining the school board was a way for me to continue performing a public service. Q: What skills or qualifications do you have that have benefited the school district thus far? A: I am a good listener with a fairly extensive investigation background. I'm very good at looking and checking into different things. Q: What is your number one goal? A: I hope to be involved in welcoming the new superintendent and ensuring he is off and running with our support so he can move forward and continue our accomplishments to date. Q: What challenges do you see within the district that you hope to address? How will you overcome this issue? A: I see two big challenges for the district. First, finances with the continuous decline of property assessments. We need to address struggles to maintain the levels we enjoy. Second, in regard to Common Core, we need to provide continuous oversight to ensure no one can dictate what is best for our students. Q: What have your accomplishments been so far during your tenure on the school board? A: Our group of board members has successfully recruited the new superintendent, Dr. Jason Snodgrass, to replace Dr. Mark Enderle after retirement. We feel this is a great achievement as he was the perfect candidate to move the district forward. We are also in the process of finding candidates to replace some of our administrative positions to continue to offer the quality of education we have come to expect. Q: Is there anything you would like to add? A: I am a hometown, honest person who isn't afraid to dig in deep to get results. I think it is important to have someone who represents the citizens that is not only willing to listen to their concerns but able to continuously push in order to achieve the answers or results they expect from the district. It is my responsibility to represent the citizens who elected me and the students we educate. Diana Rice, School Board Incumbent Q: Where did you grow up? A: I am 54 years old and I grew up in the Fort Osage area, attended elementary school at Cler-Mont and graduated from Fort Osage in 1979. My husband John and I have 4 children, Jon who is 30 years old and is an Army Veteran and employed by Ameristar, DJ is 24 years old and is a Mechanical Engineer, Meaghan is 22 years old and is employed by Creative World, and Hannah is 16 years old and is currently a sophomore at Fort. I have been employed with Hallmark Cards for 28 years. Q: Do you possess any college degrees; if so, what type and where from? Fort Osage Board of Education incumbents Kelly Scott (left) and Diana Rice (right) vie for school board seats. Four seats will become available on April 7, 2015. A: Yes, I graduated in 1983 from University of Central Missouri with a double major in Criminal Justice Administration and Corrections. Q: How long have you served on the school board and what was your initial motivation to join? A: I have served 3 terms on the Board of Education, and I am currently the President of the Board. I had been involved in PTA for a number of years serving as President of Elm Grove Elementary and the President of the Fort Osage PTA Council. I wanted to continue to help support our children in the district by being an advocate for children. I feel that serving on the School Board is a way to help support our staff and students. Q: What skills or qualifications do you possess that have benefited the school board thus far? A: My most important skill is being a parent. The children of the district deserve the best education that we the patrons can provide with the available resources. As I have served the district I have become more familiar with school finance and curriculum which help in decisions regarding student achievement. Q: What is your #1 goal to accomplish for the upcoming 2015-2016 school year? A: Financial security. We need to continue to be very good stewards with our patrons' tax dollars. The board and the administration look for opportunities to reduce spending and maintain outstanding educational services. Q: What challenges do you see within the district that you hope to address? How will you overcome this issue? A: Financial funding will always be a concern for the district. I would like the Board and the District to continue to work with our local representative to encourage full funding for our district. Maintain the excellent safe environment for our children. We have made changes to the front entrances to all of our buildings and we should always keep safety as a number one priority. Maintaining our buildings, we do have some older buildings in the district and we need to continue to be proactive in maintenance and upkeep. Q: What have your accomplishments been so far during your tenure on the school board? A: Chromebooks. We have been able to place Chromebooks and iPads in the hands of the students. This allows for the students to learn in different ways. Not all students learn from a lecture; however, the computer has apps and/or opportunities to learn and the students are able to use the computer as an additional resource. Q: Are you involved in any other educational or community-based programs? A: I work with Harvesters' BackSnack program. I have been involved for four years with the corporate committee at Hallmark. We coordinate and participate in putting together food for weekends when students may not have enough food. Q: Is there anything you would like to add? A: I am honored to be a member of the School Board. I would ask for your vote to continue serving the students and the staff of our district. Kelly Scott School Board Incumbent