4 vying for 2 seats on Boulder board
BOULDER — Four candidates are vying May 8 for two, three-year seats on the Boulder Elementary School Board.
Their profiles are listed below.
Candidates were asked to answer the following questions:
1) Why are you running for school board and what are your major qualifications?
2) What would you like to accomplish as a school board member?
3) Do you support the proposed technology levy? Explain your stance. 4) What are your ideas for the school district addressing a projected $80,000 shortfall?
Peg Hasner
Address: 308 N Jackson
Boulder 59632
Education: Attended Boulder Elementary, Jefferson High School, and the University of Montana.
Job: Director of Enrollment for Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Montana
Family: Son: Cody, graduate of Helena High School and attending MSU Northern; daughter: Ryan, fifth grader at Boulder Elementary.
1) Being an active participant in my child’s education process and believing in the value of community service, are the primary reasons I am running for the Boulder Elementary School Board. I am in a leadership position in a large business, which has given me the opportunity to learn and apply the skills necessary for effective teamwork. I understand the need to respect and value differences, adapt to change, and work together with others to find creative solutions to complex challenges. I am responsible for multimillion dollar budgets as well as the associated analysis necessary to achieve cost efficiencies while ensuring quality outcomes.
2) I would work toward reducing education budget expenses while addressing increasing education needs. This will take a dedicated staff and board working as a team to achieve common goals.
I will effectively communicate the importance of up-to-date technology to the citizens of Boulder to ensure adequate funding for this critical aspect of our children’s education.
I will address the safety of children in the schools and outside the school environment, which is an ever-increasing concern.
I will open dialog to identify the priority issues and opportunities for improvements to occur.
3) I support the proposed technology levy. The current technology in the Boulder School System is more than 10 years old. Our students need to be equipped with tools and knowledge that will ensure a successful transition to high school, college, and into their careers. This technology upgrade will benefit not only students, but faculty and parents alike and will allow students to be more productive members of our community.
4)I have not had the opportunity to review the current budget and specifics surrounding the shortfall. In order to successfully address the issues, communication with school staff, school administration, and the board needs to take place to identify a list of potential reductions. Having all affected parties involved will allow for buy-in and understanding of what it takes to fund our children’s education. This process should also identify all impacts and outcomes that are a result of the shortfalls.
Joel Kallberg, incumbent
Address: P.O. Box 729
Boulder 59632
Education: Graduated from high school in Superior, Wis., 1976; bachelor’s degree from North Central University in Minneapolis, 1981; master’s degree from Bethel Seminary in St. Paul, Minn., 1988.
Job: Pastor, First Assembly of God Church; 16 years as pastor in Boulder
Family: No information provided
1) I am running for a third term because I feel in already having served five years as a trustee. I have an understanding of what serving as a trustee is all about. I have served on the negotiations and budget committees for most of my tenure and have gained invaluable experience by serving on these committees. It is also my desire to help make our school a safe and productive place for the children of our community to learn and to grow into healthy, productive adults. I have an understanding of the needs and concerns of the community from my 16 years as a pastor in Boulder.
2) In the five years that I have already served, I have worked hard to help resolve issues and concerns between parents and staff. I will continue to do this. In serving on the budget and negotiations committees, I have endeavored to make sure the taxpayers’ money is used wisely and efficiently to provide our children with an education of the highest quality. I will continue to pursue these goals as well. I have also worked to provide every child in our schools with a safe and healthy environment in which to learn. I will put the students’ rights and needs first.
3) I support the technology levy for the following reasons. First: If we are going to continue to give our students a quality education that prepares them to be productive in the real world, then we must have a plan in place and the funds available to upgrade and maintain the technology needed to keep our students current with the world around us. Second: With our current tight budget these funds will not be available from our general fund. Third: I voted as a trustee to present this levy to our taxpayers.
4) The board has to “wait and see” until we know if and what the legislature may or may not do. If the legislature does not give us more money our options come down to only one, we will have to cut spending. We cannot run the school with an $80,000 shortfall, and we do not have the capacity to raise that kind of funding on our own.
Our budget is already cut to bare bones. For instance, we do not have a school nurse because that position was cut. We will probably have to cut further into our staff positions.
Cynthia (Cyd) Kreizwald
Address: P.O. Box 154, Boulder 59632
Education: Salem, Ohio, Senior High School, graduated 1972; Kent State University, bachelor’s in history, 1977; University of Southern Mississippi, master’s of library science, 1991
Job: Chief librarian, Jefferson County Library System; 30 years of library experience.
Family: two cats
1) I am running because I am interested in providing quality education for the Boulder community. Because of my background as a librarian, I believe that learning is a lifelong process and the foundations for that are laid in the early school years. As a librarian, I have experience dealing with boards, budgets and policies.
2) I have no agenda other than I want the best possible educational environment for the students.
3) Yes, I do support the technology levy. It is not sufficient to merely provide computers without the means to upgrade technology infrastructure as needed.
4) I am willing to consider the possibility of cutting staff to meet the projected shortfall.
Nicole Palmer
Address: P.O. Box 387, Boulder 59632
Education: Woodward High School, Woodward, Okla., 1987; attended Ricks College, Rexburg, Idaho
Job/volunteer work: Stay-at-home mom. Active in the Parent Teacher Group, served as president for five years. Previously a substitute teacher. Worked as the Adm. Asst. for the 21st Century Learning Center (after school program) for one year. Also chaired numerous fundraisers and volunteered in classroom.
Family: Married to Shawn Palmer, have three daughters attending Boulder Elementary: Shaelie, eighth grade; Chantel, seventh grade; and Mickenzie, fourth grade; and have an 18-month-old son, Seth.
1) I am running for the school board to help our school reach its highest potential, to be able to work with administration and staff and other school board members for the best possible learning environment for our students. I feel that I am qualified for this position because of the amount of time I have spent working for and volunteering in the school and the experience I have had with our staff and students, and the personal experience that I have with my own children attending the school.
2) I would like to continue the work that has been done by our school board, to work on fair policies, positive reinforcement for our student behaviors and performance, and to make sure that the school is fair to all students — ones that struggle and ones that excel. I would like to serve as a support for our staff, students and parents and community.
3) I do support the proposed tech. levy. I have seen and used the computers that have been available at our school. Our students cannot be up to date with current technology on these machines. They are machines that the state surplused because they were out of date. Our students cannot even save information to a CD to take their work home with them. Many times their work is lost because the machines shut down on them in the middle of their assignments. If we are going to educate our students in the tech. rich world we live in, we need to keep our computer labs and equipment up to date, so they will have a fair chance to learn the skills they need to go on in life.
4) This school has struggled each year I have lived here with a shortage of budget. I personally know how hard it is for our students to get a good education on the small budget we have. Our school has cut and cut and cut programs. We don’t have a real art program, teachers have to provide many of their own supplies for projects, and we don’t have a school nurse anymore. We have text books that are more than 12 years old. We have excellent teachers, we don’t want to lose them. All Montana children should have the opportunity for equal education.
Their profiles are listed below.
Candidates were asked to answer the following questions:
1) Why are you running for school board and what are your major qualifications?
2) What would you like to accomplish as a school board member?
3) Do you support the proposed technology levy? Explain your stance. 4) What are your ideas for the school district addressing a projected $80,000 shortfall?
Peg Hasner
Address: 308 N Jackson
Boulder 59632
Education: Attended Boulder Elementary, Jefferson High School, and the University of Montana.
Job: Director of Enrollment for Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Montana
Family: Son: Cody, graduate of Helena High School and attending MSU Northern; daughter: Ryan, fifth grader at Boulder Elementary.
1) Being an active participant in my child’s education process and believing in the value of community service, are the primary reasons I am running for the Boulder Elementary School Board. I am in a leadership position in a large business, which has given me the opportunity to learn and apply the skills necessary for effective teamwork. I understand the need to respect and value differences, adapt to change, and work together with others to find creative solutions to complex challenges. I am responsible for multimillion dollar budgets as well as the associated analysis necessary to achieve cost efficiencies while ensuring quality outcomes.
2) I would work toward reducing education budget expenses while addressing increasing education needs. This will take a dedicated staff and board working as a team to achieve common goals.
I will effectively communicate the importance of up-to-date technology to the citizens of Boulder to ensure adequate funding for this critical aspect of our children’s education.
I will address the safety of children in the schools and outside the school environment, which is an ever-increasing concern.
I will open dialog to identify the priority issues and opportunities for improvements to occur.
3) I support the proposed technology levy. The current technology in the Boulder School System is more than 10 years old. Our students need to be equipped with tools and knowledge that will ensure a successful transition to high school, college, and into their careers. This technology upgrade will benefit not only students, but faculty and parents alike and will allow students to be more productive members of our community.
4)I have not had the opportunity to review the current budget and specifics surrounding the shortfall. In order to successfully address the issues, communication with school staff, school administration, and the board needs to take place to identify a list of potential reductions. Having all affected parties involved will allow for buy-in and understanding of what it takes to fund our children’s education. This process should also identify all impacts and outcomes that are a result of the shortfalls.
Joel Kallberg, incumbent
Address: P.O. Box 729
Boulder 59632
Education: Graduated from high school in Superior, Wis., 1976; bachelor’s degree from North Central University in Minneapolis, 1981; master’s degree from Bethel Seminary in St. Paul, Minn., 1988.
Job: Pastor, First Assembly of God Church; 16 years as pastor in Boulder
Family: No information provided
1) I am running for a third term because I feel in already having served five years as a trustee. I have an understanding of what serving as a trustee is all about. I have served on the negotiations and budget committees for most of my tenure and have gained invaluable experience by serving on these committees. It is also my desire to help make our school a safe and productive place for the children of our community to learn and to grow into healthy, productive adults. I have an understanding of the needs and concerns of the community from my 16 years as a pastor in Boulder.
2) In the five years that I have already served, I have worked hard to help resolve issues and concerns between parents and staff. I will continue to do this. In serving on the budget and negotiations committees, I have endeavored to make sure the taxpayers’ money is used wisely and efficiently to provide our children with an education of the highest quality. I will continue to pursue these goals as well. I have also worked to provide every child in our schools with a safe and healthy environment in which to learn. I will put the students’ rights and needs first.
3) I support the technology levy for the following reasons. First: If we are going to continue to give our students a quality education that prepares them to be productive in the real world, then we must have a plan in place and the funds available to upgrade and maintain the technology needed to keep our students current with the world around us. Second: With our current tight budget these funds will not be available from our general fund. Third: I voted as a trustee to present this levy to our taxpayers.
4) The board has to “wait and see” until we know if and what the legislature may or may not do. If the legislature does not give us more money our options come down to only one, we will have to cut spending. We cannot run the school with an $80,000 shortfall, and we do not have the capacity to raise that kind of funding on our own.
Our budget is already cut to bare bones. For instance, we do not have a school nurse because that position was cut. We will probably have to cut further into our staff positions.
Cynthia (Cyd) Kreizwald
Address: P.O. Box 154, Boulder 59632
Education: Salem, Ohio, Senior High School, graduated 1972; Kent State University, bachelor’s in history, 1977; University of Southern Mississippi, master’s of library science, 1991
Job: Chief librarian, Jefferson County Library System; 30 years of library experience.
Family: two cats
1) I am running because I am interested in providing quality education for the Boulder community. Because of my background as a librarian, I believe that learning is a lifelong process and the foundations for that are laid in the early school years. As a librarian, I have experience dealing with boards, budgets and policies.
2) I have no agenda other than I want the best possible educational environment for the students.
3) Yes, I do support the technology levy. It is not sufficient to merely provide computers without the means to upgrade technology infrastructure as needed.
4) I am willing to consider the possibility of cutting staff to meet the projected shortfall.
Nicole Palmer
Address: P.O. Box 387, Boulder 59632
Education: Woodward High School, Woodward, Okla., 1987; attended Ricks College, Rexburg, Idaho
Job/volunteer work: Stay-at-home mom. Active in the Parent Teacher Group, served as president for five years. Previously a substitute teacher. Worked as the Adm. Asst. for the 21st Century Learning Center (after school program) for one year. Also chaired numerous fundraisers and volunteered in classroom.
Family: Married to Shawn Palmer, have three daughters attending Boulder Elementary: Shaelie, eighth grade; Chantel, seventh grade; and Mickenzie, fourth grade; and have an 18-month-old son, Seth.
1) I am running for the school board to help our school reach its highest potential, to be able to work with administration and staff and other school board members for the best possible learning environment for our students. I feel that I am qualified for this position because of the amount of time I have spent working for and volunteering in the school and the experience I have had with our staff and students, and the personal experience that I have with my own children attending the school.
2) I would like to continue the work that has been done by our school board, to work on fair policies, positive reinforcement for our student behaviors and performance, and to make sure that the school is fair to all students — ones that struggle and ones that excel. I would like to serve as a support for our staff, students and parents and community.
3) I do support the proposed tech. levy. I have seen and used the computers that have been available at our school. Our students cannot be up to date with current technology on these machines. They are machines that the state surplused because they were out of date. Our students cannot even save information to a CD to take their work home with them. Many times their work is lost because the machines shut down on them in the middle of their assignments. If we are going to educate our students in the tech. rich world we live in, we need to keep our computer labs and equipment up to date, so they will have a fair chance to learn the skills they need to go on in life.
4) This school has struggled each year I have lived here with a shortage of budget. I personally know how hard it is for our students to get a good education on the small budget we have. Our school has cut and cut and cut programs. We don’t have a real art program, teachers have to provide many of their own supplies for projects, and we don’t have a school nurse anymore. We have text books that are more than 12 years old. We have excellent teachers, we don’t want to lose them. All Montana children should have the opportunity for equal education.
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