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Carolyn Waibel
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St. Charles Community Unit School District 303 Board of Education At-large
Carolyn Waibel was an at-large representative on the St. Charles Community Unit School District 303 Board of Education in Illinois. Waibel won a first term in the at-large general election on April 4, 2017.
Elections
2017
Four seats on the St. Charles Community Unit School District 303 Board of Education were up for at-large general election on April 4, 2017. Incumbents James Gaffney and Edward McNally and newcomers Heidi Fairgrieve and Carolyn Waibel won seats on the board. Candidates Lara Kristofer, Eric Missil, and Denton Morris were defeated in the race.[1]
Results
| St. Charles Community Unit School District 303, At-Large General Election, 4-year terms, 2017 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Edward McNally Incumbent |
19.25% | 3,479 |
| Carolyn Waibel |
16.62% | 3,003 |
| James Gaffney Incumbent |
16.18% | 2,923 |
| Heidi Fairgrieve |
13.76% | 2,487 |
| Lara Kristofer | 12.83% | 2,318 |
| Denton Morris | 12.09% | 2,184 |
| Eric Missil | 9.28% | 1,677 |
| Total Votes | 18,071 | |
| Source: Kane County Clerk, "2017 Consolidated Election Contest Results," accessed May 1, 2017 | ||
Funding
Waibel reported no contributions or expenditures to the Illinois State Board of Elections in the election.[2]
Endorsements
Waibel was endorsed by the local teachers' union.[3]
Campaign themes
2017
Waibel participated in the following survey conducted by the Kane County Chronicle. The questions provided by the Kane County Chronicle appear bolded, and Waibel's responses follow below.
Why have you decided to run for election/reelection in the St. Charles School Board race?
| “ | The source of my motivation for running for school board is my passion for caring about what is best for the community. I have lived in this community for almost 40 years. I attended St. Charles schools and was very involved, culminating in my election as St. Charles (East) Student Council President. I graduated from University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana with a degree in Communication. I came back in the mid 1990s as a guest speaker to St Charles East, was a former PTO President at Ferson Creek Elementary, and currently serve as Commissioner for city of St. Charles Mental Health Commission, Commissioner for city of St. Charles Youth Commission and Member of Mid-Valley Mental Health Partnership for Kane County. These committees serve our youth and our disadvantaged. I believe I can be helpful to the current board in place with my vision of wanting what is best for the community. This includes all stakeholders – students, parents, teachers, business and the rest of the community. My desire to be a public servant in helping others coupled with my business and communication background, lends itself to a dialogue with all parties.[4] | ” |
| —Carolyn Waibel (2017)[5] | ||
What project most needs to be completed in St. Charles School District 303? And how would you work to ensure the project is actually finished and done well?
| “ | The Thompson-Haines construction project will need to be completed over the next several years and our focus as a community needs to be on the transitions for the students, parents and teachers from both Thompson and Haines. We need to focus on making the middle school experience safe for the students and faculty during the construction. It is important that we are proactive and put in place procedures and processes to ease anxiety for students with building transitions, extracurricular changes, and social and emotional interruptions and changes. We need to seek input from our parents and teachers to project and prepare for the students emerging needs. We need to gather feedback from teachers and parents on committee in every phase of construction starting now, on what is needed in the new buildings, all the way up to the last phase of construction. Also it is important to create a unified culture for the new school that represents the history and future of both Thompson and Haines.[4] | ” |
| —Carolyn Waibel (2017)[5] | ||
What experience and/or strengths would you bring to the board if elected/re-elected?
| “ | The first strength I bring to the board is to communicate effectively and openly. My education, business background and practical experience have given me the skills to add to the team with strategic planning, communication, negotiation, and mediation excellence. I would seek input, be candid and provide an effective sounding board for student, parent, faculty, administration and community feedback to build trust. I view myself as a facilitator in providing consistent improvement in strengthening the bond between parents, teachers and students. The second strength I bring to the board is parental involvement. I have been active in the PTO and serve on committees for the city and county. All of these committees have given me insight as to what is important to the youth in our area and bring awareness to the struggles that many students face in their daily lives. This is valuable insight to share with the board. Lastly, my corporate experience as a Director in Sales and Marketing brings experience of fiscal responsibility, budgeting and strategic plans to the table. It is important to be specific about where the dollars are being spent and clearly communicate that information to the community.[4] | ” |
| —Carolyn Waibel (2017)[5] | ||
Are you generally in favor of increasing school spending, lowering school spending or maintaining school spending – keeping in mind that such decisions can affect local homeowners and the taxes that they pay? Please explain your answer.
| “ | Once elected I would keep the continuity of the current board of generally maintaining budget spending as they have done a good job of being good stewards of taxpayer dollars in recent years. It has allowed them to come into these construction decisions with a robust budget. Even though the decisions for school improvements have been made, and the budget will look different in the next board cycle, the guideline still makes sense. The question of limiting property tax levies most likely will be made for us soon at the state level however, and will be taken out of the hands of the municipalities. Illinois lawmakers are making decisions currently to freeze property taxes, which will change our dependence on them. We must remain steadfast in our conservative budgeting and wise spending while being active with educators in lobbying lawmakers, particularly our local representatives, to take a strong look at the funding formula which relies so heavily on property taxes.[4] | ” |
| —Carolyn Waibel (2017)[5] | ||
What types of new technologies (computers, other devices/software) or styles of learning (such as blended learning) should the district focus on and/or implement in coming years?
| “ | It is important that the district continue to stay up to date with technology and devices as they have been, such as the example of Chromebooks in the middle schools. What is equally important is that the technology that they do have for each education level, be available across each school so that every student is getting the same opportunity for exposure to technology regardless of their geographic location. With technology ever changing, we want to make sure we are focusing on the infrastructure of meeting basic education needs especially at the elementary level. We need to make sure our kids have the fundamentals of reading, writing, math, science and social studies through any technological instrument before they advance through the next grade levels.[4] | ” |
| —Carolyn Waibel (2017)[5] | ||
What differentiates you from the other candidate(s) running for this seat?
| “ | I am a passionate advocate for the kids, for their safety, social, and emotional well-being and helping them manage our changing culture. My unique perspective and my experience for the last four years serving on mental health committees in the area have provided me insight to the current challenges the St. Charles student population is currently facing with mental health, one of the top five health problems in the U.S. today. Also I know I can continue to add value to the community with my business and communication experience, and with the vision to continue to make St. Charles the leader in education and development as we know it to be. I bring fresh ideas and new perspectives to be creative and innovative to help lead our community forward. I can lead us to be open and honest with communication, educate all parties on the reasons why decisions are made and collaboratively integrate other municipalities in projects. My background in communication, active listening, and conflict resolution can be utilized with working together with parents, teachers, business, administration, community and municipalities to set up strategies and set the tone on where the district is going.[4] | ” |
| —Carolyn Waibel (2017)[5] | ||
Outside of politics, what are some of your other interests?
| “ | My passion lies in helping families who have children in need of advocacy either for special needs or mental health. I have a unique perspective through life experience, as well as from serving on these committees, to touch the lives of others with what I have learned to help shape and change the trajectory of the lives of kids for the better. It is my steadfast belief that we are bestowed gifts of knowledge in this life and it is our responsibility to share that to help that of our fellow neighbor to help ease their life. There is no greater gift than to be able to help a child by simply communicating your knowledge or story and connecting them to someone who can help them in their journey. Family is also very important to me as I enjoy spending time with my son heading to sports events, museums, church, garden or spending time outdoors. We also have many other family gatherings and holiday traditions we enjoy.[4] | ” |
| —Carolyn Waibel (2017)[5] | ||
Why should people vote for you in this race?
| “ | It is my greatest honor and duty to give back to the community I have called home for almost four decades. I am proud and humbled to be a civil servant and to serve our youth through the commissions with the city and county. I hope for the chance to give back in a larger capacity and be able to touch the lives of many more families and children through the St. Charles School Board. I truly care about our community, the people in it and especially the futures of our kids. We are so very blessed here in St. Charles, a city that has a strong and highly respected school district. I know I can continue to build on those achievements in this district, and with your vote, to accomplish new heights in education.[4] | ” |
| —Carolyn Waibel (2017)[5] | ||
See also
- St. Charles Community Unit School District 303, Illinois
- St. Charles Community Unit School District 303 elections (2017)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Kane County Clerk, "2017 Consolidated Election Results," accessed April 5, 2017
- ↑ Illinois State Board of Elections, "Candidate Disclosure Search," accessed April 4, 2017
- ↑ Northwest Suburban Education Coalition, "School Board Candidate Endorsements," accessed March 29, 2017
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 Kane County Chronicle, "2017 Election Questionnaire: St. Charles School Board candidate Carolyn Waibel," March 1, 2017
| St. Charles Community Unit School District 303 elections in 2017 | |
| Kane County, Illinois | |
| Election date: | April 4, 2017 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, James Gaffney • Incumbent, Edward McNally • Heidi Fairgrieve • Lara Kristofer • Eric Missil • Denton Morris • Carolyn Waibel |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |
