3 newcomers elected to C.R. school board, ousting pair of incumbents

CEDAR RAPIDS — Three newcomers elected to the Cedar Rapids school board Tuesday felt “mixed emotions” after learning a multimillion-dollar school bond referendum that would have supported facility improvements failed to win voter approval.

Laura Zimmerman and Ashley Burns beat out incumbents, and Scott Drzycimski pulled ahead of two other challengers.

“Mixed emotions tonight. I’m trying not to cry,” Burns said at an election watch party where school officials learned a $117 million school bond referendum failed voter approval. “I am really grateful that Cedar Rapids is looking for some change on the board, that we do see a direction forward, and that we have gotten really close to this bond.”

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“We can unite this bond and pass this thing next time,” said Burns, 32, who works for the Cedar Rapids Public Library and Foundation.

Seven candidates vied for three open seats in the election. The seven-member board serves about 15,500 students in the Cedar Rapids Community School District and school board members are unpaid.

Burns won against incumbent Jennifer Borcherding, 53 to 45 percent.

“One of the most compelling pieces (of the bond referendum) was about ADA accessibility, and that’s not just for our students, but for our community. That’s grandma and grandpa who can’t necessarily get into school to watch a concert, and there are people in this community who voted that down,” Burns said.

“I think the tide has to change, and we have to start looking at this like a community effort again … Even if the bond passed, there still is a lot of work to do, and a lot of community rebuilding that needs to happen,” Burns said.

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Zimmerman, 39, a former teacher, also said she had “mixed emotions” as she learned she was elected to office but the school bond referendum failed.

“I’m honored the community entrusted me with their vote and wanted me to help lead this school board. I am really, really bummed about the bond not passing. I guess that just means I’m going to be ready to listen to more conversations and what we can do for our schools that the community will approve. I’m preparing myself for the road ahead,” Zimmerman said.

Zimmerman won against incumbent Marcy Roundtree, 61 to 37 percent.

“I really do want to hear from teachers, staff, families and the community. This wasn’t it. This wasn’t what they wanted, apparently. I know it was a slim margin, but I’m ready to listen and make it something that fits our community,” Zimmerman said about the bond vote.

In addition to addressing facility needs, Zimmerman said she wants to work with teachers to “make classrooms safer,” build a culture of leadership, and improve staff retention and student and family engagement.

“As an educator myself, when I felt supported by my principal, I was in good spirits. I want to focus on leadership and getting things sorted at the (district office), making sure everyone knows their roles and communicating that to the rest of the staff,” Zimmerman said.

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Drzycimski won 34 percent of the votes against two challengers, Mimi Daoud (34 percent) and David Chung (23 percent). Drzycimski, 51, is the director of public affairs for ITC Midwest.

“The bond failing by such a small margin obviously creates a lot of questions and challenges we’re going to have to start to address immediately,” Drzycimski said Tuesday night.

He said a question for the board will be how to create a “district of choice” as they face increasing competition for students.

“How do we make it so students want to be here, parents want their kids to be in our district, and educators are choosing our district as a place to work?” he said.

“Trust, transparency, those are two things I hit a lot in my campaign. We need to build that,” Drzycimski said.

At the polls

Stephanie Deal, 41, went out to the polls Tuesday to vote for Drzycimski for Cedar Rapids school board. She said she's gotten to know him over the years as their children have been in school together

Drzycimski has a "passion for the growth of our schools and keeping our kids in the district … and using our experiences as parents to make a difference in the community," Deal said from her precinct at the Northwest Recreation Center in Cedar Rapids.

Deal's two youngest children — 17 and 11 years old — are enrolled in Xavier Catholic Schools, a decision the family made a few years ago because of bullying they experienced in the public school system.

She would "love" to put her kids back in public school someday, but improvements are needed, Deal said.

"I don't want to blame the staff because it's not their fault, but the parameters in place to help victims of bullying don't support the victims," Deal said. "It just wasn't a safe environment."

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