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Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
High-quality instruction, staffing and transparency priorities of Cedar Rapids school board candidates
9 candidates vie for four seats in the Cedar Rapids school board election
Oct. 19, 2023 5:30 am
Editor’s note: This article is part of The Gazette’s coverage leading up to the Nov. 7 city and school elections.
CEDAR RAPIDS — If elected to office, the priorities of candidates for the Cedar Rapids school board include high-caliber academic instruction, finding creative ways to recruit and retain educators and building trust between the school district and community.
There are nine candidates vying for four seats in the Cedar Rapids Community School Board in the Nov. 7 election. The seven-member board serves about 15,700 students in the district, and board members are not paid.
All voters within the district may vote in all three races. Incumbents are noted with (i).
Five candidates are running for two at-large seats:
- Richard David, who did not respond to interview requests
- Cindy Garlock (i), 69, retired educator
- Jennifer Neumann (i), 51, chief executive officer of de Novo Marketing
- Don Taylor, 75, retired educator
- Barclay Woerner, who did not provide his age, Amazon Logistics
Two candidates are running for the District 1 seat:
- Stacie Johnson, 60, sustainability manager at Goodwill of the Heartland
- David Tominsky (i), 47, chief relationship officer at NewBoCo
Two candidates a running for the District 4 seat:
- Kaitlin Byers, 36, capital access manager at Kiva Iowa
- Dexter Merschbrock (i), 37, letter carrier for the U.S. Postal Service
The Gazette asked school board candidates in a questionnaire for their top priorities.
If reelected, Garlock said one of her priorities is expanding career pathways for learners by providing more opportunities for students to earn college credit or certifications. She also wants to see more investment in highly qualified staff and to find creative solutions that are “worthwhile and fiscally responsible” to recruit and retain staff
“In the aftermath of the pandemic, employees are looking for more support and appreciation from us,” Garlock said. “That can take the form of better professional development, more administrative support, better peer coaching as well as improved compensation. Meager state funding over the past decade has presented us with a challenge.”
Garlock said she would like to see investment in a “grow our own” program, which would provide training and opportunities for teachers who want to pursue administration and identify and support students interested in becoming an educator.
Neumann said if she is reelected one of her priorities is to stabilize the district and energize educators and staff.
“We need to ensure that we are addressing workforce shortages with quality educators and staff members, reverse declining enrollment and ensure we continue to be on solid financial footing,” Neumann said.
Neumann said she supports Superintendent Tawana Grover in her efforts to “build trust and faith” in the district by communicating more with parents and staff.
Neumann also would like to see more investment in career pathways for students.
“Our facility plans, our programming and our moves to provide more innovative, project based learning that inspire every student to take part in their education and provide a pathway to success after graduation will culminate in better student outcomes and a stronger local workforce and economy,” she said.
Taylor said if elected, his three priorities are to “serve the best interests of the kids, serve the best interests of the system, and facilitate positive change and growth for both kids and the system. I see that being done by promoting collaboration between teachers, kids, administration and community.”
Woerner would like to see student, teacher and staff safety addressed by adding school resource officers — police — back into the middle schools. Officers were removed from Cedar Rapids middle schools in July 2022, a decision made by the Cedar Rapids school board during an audit of the program requested by students.
"The district should provide a safe teaching environment for our children to learn in, and the staff should not be asked to work in unsafe conditions,“ Woerner said.
Another of Woerner’s priorities is to support the “removal of books with pornographic scenes and graphics.” School administrators “should not be forcing these books into our schools,” he said.
Finally, Woerner said the district’s finances should be posted publicly in a way that is “easily understood by the community” to be transparent and increase public trust.
If elected, Johnson said one of her priorities is transparency, honesty and ensuring school board decisions are “not made behind closed doors.” Decisions made by the board should be “easily accessible,” and consultant reports and recommendations should be readily available to the public, Johnson said.
Johnson also would like to see improvements in students’ academic proficiency.
“We have students who are not proficient in reading, science and math and our focus is turned to turf football fields and (building) a new school,” Johnson said. “The district worries about those who fail basic proficiency, but there are many students in the middle, walking a fine line between proficient and non-proficient. My priority for the district is being able to state with confidence: 90% of our 3rd graders read at or above grade level; 90% of our 6th graders are proficient in science and math, and 95% of our 12th-graders are resilient, responsible, resourceful and respectable grown-ups fully prepared for the journey ahead of them.”
If reelected, Tominsky said his priorities align with the district’s recently approved strategic plan, which includes creating more career pathways for students, energizing the staff, stabilizing the district and mobilizing the community.
Merschbrock’s priorities include “safety and inclusion for all” by prioritizing building staff’s ability to build relationships with students. “This will help create an environment where every student is ready to learn to the best of their abilities,” he said.
Merschbrock also is advocating for higher wages for “essential workers,” which he said can be done by studying how the district is spending money to see if it is “necessary and effective.”
“Out of state consultants and new programs should not be funded over paying a living wage to staff that works directly with students,” Merschbrock said.
Merschbrock, if reelected, also would like the district to be more transparent and involved in the community by communicating more openly with the public. “We need to restore trust in the system,” he said.
Byers wants to see the district create “top-notch, equitable learning environments, inclusive of student-driven, real-world learning,” she said.
Byers said she would prioritize hiring and retaining quality teachers who feel supported and valued. “We are making great strides in this space, and I hope to help continue this momentum,” she said. “If elected, I intend to assemble a small committee of educators and administrators (demographically representative of our district) to assist me as I play a role in making decisions that impact them directly.”
Byers also would prioritize school safety.
“Students who feel safe and connected at school are less likely to engage in violent behaviors,” she said. “We can discover and implement new tools, technologies and strategies to mitigate risk and cultivate safe learning environments across the district. I'm also interested in discovering new ways to engage with community partners so we can address some of the growing mental health concerns in our schools.”
Comments: (319) 398-8411; grace.king@thegazette.com
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