Jeff Pollreis
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Jeff Pollreis represented the at-large seat on the St. Cloud Area School District school board in Minnesota. Pollreis won the seat in the at-large general election on November 8, 2016.
Pollreis participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 school board candidate survey. Click here to read his responses.
Biography
Pollreis is the programs and resources coordinator for the Stearns County Sheriff's Department. He has worked in this position since May 1987. Pollreis served as a security specialist in the U.S. Air Force from June 1978 to June 1982. After that, he served as a firefighter and EMT for the Bellair Fire Department from June 1982 to July 1984 and as a dining room supervisor at Crossroads Perkins from September 1984 to May 1987.[1] Pollreis earned his certification as an emergency medical technician from Pinellas County Technical School and his fire fighter certification from St. Petersburg Junior College.[2]
Elections
2016
Four of the seven seats on the St. Cloud Area School District Board of Education were up for at-large general election on November 8, 2016. In his bid for re-election, incumbent Al Dahlgren initially faced eight challengers: Scott Andreasen, Matt Doke, Peter Hamerlinck, Shannon Haws, John Palmer, Jeff Pollreis, Monica Segura-Schwartz, and Ric Studer. Because more than eight candidates filed to run in the election, a primary election was held on August 9, 2016. Doke was defeated in the primary election after receiving the least number of votes. The other eight candidates advanced to the general election.[3][4][5][6] Dahlgren won re-election and Haws, Segura-Schwartz, and Pollreis won seats on the board in the general election.[7]
Results
| St. Cloud Area School District, At-large General Election, 4-year terms, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Shannon Haws |
16.65% | 17,965 |
| Monica Segura-Schwartz |
13.70% | 14,780 |
| Jeff Pollreis |
13.49% | 14,563 |
| Al Dahlgren Incumbent |
13.06% | 14,089 |
| Peter Hamerlinck | 13.01% | 14,043 |
| John Palmer | 11.01% | 11,886 |
| Scott Andreasen | 10.08% | 10,876 |
| Ric Studer | 9.00% | 9,714 |
| Total Votes | 107,916 | |
| Source: St. Cloud Area School District, "Board of Education Minutes November 17, 2016," accessed December 22, 2016 | ||
| St. Cloud Area School District, At-large Primary Election, 4-year term, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Shannon Haws |
16.15% | 2,106 |
| Peter Hamerlinck |
13.57% | 1,769 |
| Monica Segura-Schwartz |
12.32% | 1,607 |
| John Palmer |
12.08% | 1,575 |
| Al Dahlgren Incumbent |
11.27% | 1,470 |
| Jeff Pollreis |
10.98% | 1,432 |
| Ric Studer |
9.77% | 1,274 |
| Scott Andreasen |
8.63% | 1,126 |
| Matt Doke | 5.22% | 681 |
| Total Votes | 13,040 | |
| Source: St. Cloud Area School District, "Official Results: Primary Election - August 9, 2016," accessed October 14, 2016 | ||
Funding
Pollreis reported $525.00 in contributions and $7,752.45 in expenditures to the St. Cloud Area School District, which left his campaign with $7,227.45 in debt in the election.[8]
Endorsements
Pollreis was endorsed by the Service Employees International Union Local 284.[9]
Campaign themes
2016
Ballotpedia survey responses
Jeff Pollreis participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 survey of school board candidates. In response to the question "What do you hope to achieve if elected to the school board?" the candidate stated on September 25, 2016:
| “ | Bring up student achievement levels, improving our communications within the district and parents. Balance the budget. Rebuild the trust that has been lost recently. Hold people, staff, Admin and students accountable.Work hard, Listen and be honest with people about all issues.[10][11] | ” |
Ranking the issues
The candidate was asked to rank the following issues based on how they should be prioritized by the school board, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. Each ranking could only be used once.
| Education policy |
|---|
 |
Click here to learn more about education policy in Minnesota. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| “ | You must mean # 5. Here is a question that is not as simple as a ranking. All areas are important and should be focused on. They build and support each other.[11] | ” |
| —Jeff Pollreis (September 25, 2016) | ||
Positions on the issues
The candidate was asked to answer nine questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. The questions are highlighted in blue and followed by the candidate's responses. Some questions provided multiple choices, which are noted after those questions. The candidate was also provided space to elaborate on their answers to the multiple choice questions.
| Should new charter schools be approved in your district? (Not all school boards are empowered to approve charter schools. In those cases, the candidate was directed to answer the question as if the school board were able to do so.) |
|---|
| No. Our district has many charter schools. I think more attention should be focused on improving the public schools. |
| Which statement best describes the ideal relationship between the state government and the school board? The state should always defer to school board decisions, defer to school board decisions in most cases, be involved in the district routinely or only intervene in severe cases of misconduct or mismanagement. |
| The state should defer to school board decisions in most cases. They should be held accountable by the residents of their district |
| Are standardized tests an accurate metric of student achievement? |
| No. They test all students and compare them to other districts while not taking into account the number of students with language barriers. A true measure is obtaining a year or more of grow. |
| What is your stance on the Common Core State Standards Initiative? |
| I do not agree with the Common Core State Standards. They are lacking in some math areas that are required at most colleges. The take away the teachers options for being creative. They will result in teaching for the test instead of true learning. |
| How should the district handle underperforming teachers? Terminate their contract before any damage is done to students, offer additional training options, put them on a probationary period while they seek to improve or set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district? |
| Put them on a probationary period while they seek to improve. Set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district. |
| Should teachers receive merit pay? |
| No. |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| No. Life is full of choices. If one feels their child may receive a better education at a charter school than they have the right to pay for that choice. Public dollars should be spent on public schools. |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| There should be a set of rules that apply to all students. The students should know these from day one and be held accountable. |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| Teachers They are all important. Things areas must work together to achieve the best results. A great teacher can overcome some things but should not have to. We all have apart to give in our childrens education. |
Candidate website
Pollreis highlighted the following statement on his campaign website:
| “ | I was raised with 13 brothers and sisters here in St. Cloud. Coming from a big family has taught me to view money as something one does not waste. A household must have a balanced budget and stick to it. I will pay very close attention to our money being spent.
My whole working life has been spent helping people in one way or another. I spent 4 years serving our country in the US Air Force, 2 years as a Firefighter / Emergency Medical Technician and the last 29 years helping inmates improve their lives and change some of their behaviors that keep them from living a normal life. Most of what I do for the Stearns County Jail revolves around helping inmates. I have seen firsthand how some young adults have struggled in school, hung around the wrong crowd, dropped out and ended up in jail. That is the reason I am running for the District #742 School Board. I want to put myself in a position to affect change on a systematic level while continuing to help people one on one as well. These youth are our future. I say they are the ones who will be helping me as I get older and need medical care etc... I want them to get all the education they can and live a productive life. I feel everyone deserves a chance at a full life. If they are provided the tools and are willing to put in the effort, I know it can happen. Several of my favorite movies are "Pay it Forward", "The Ultimate Gift" and "To Sir with Love". I feel these movies bring out the best parts in all of us. Just imagine if we would all do like the child did in "Pay it Forward" what a great world we would live in. I know this sounds kind of sappy but I am a cup is half full kind of person. When my children were attending Dist. 742 schools I served on the Spirit of North and then Discovery PTA. While at Discovery I helped raise the money needed to put in the playground equipment. I also spent a year teaching chess to students during community education classes. Thanks for taking some time and viewing my site. I hope it gave you a little insight to the kind of person I am. If you would like to hear more or get to know me better I would be happy to meet with you or your group.[11] |
” |
| —Jeff Pollreis (2016)[12] | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Jeff Pollreis St. Cloud Area School District. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ My Run For School Board, "Experience," accessed July 13, 2016
- ↑ My Run For School Board, "My Education," accessed July 13, 2016
- ↑ Minnesota Secretary of State, "Candidate Filings 2016 State General Election: ST CLOUD AREA SD # 742," accessed June 1, 2016
- ↑ St. Cloud Area School District, "School Board Members," accessed June 1, 2016
- ↑ Minnesota Secretary of State, "2016 School District Elections Guide," accessed June 1, 2016
- ↑ Minnesota Secretary of State, "Results for Selected Contests in School District No. 742 - ST CLOUD AREA," accessed August 9, 2016
- ↑ Minnesota Secretary of State, "Results for Selected Contests in School District No. 742 - ST CLOUD AREA," accessed November 9, 2016
- ↑ St. Cloud Area School District, "Election Information and Results," accessed December 8, 2016
- ↑ Service Employees International Union Local 284, "SEIU-endorsed Candidates Do Well In Tues., Aug. 9 Primary," accessed September 22, 2016
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2016, "Jeff Pollreis's responses," September 25, 2016
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ My Run For School Board, "My Views," accessed July 13, 2016
| 2016 St. Cloud Area School District Elections | |
| Stearns County, Minnesota | |
| Election date: | Primary election: August 9, 2016 General election: November 8, 2016 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, Al Dahlgren • Scott Andreasen • Matt Doke • Peter Hamerlinck • Shannon Haws • John Palmer • Jeff Pollreis • Monica Segura-Schwartz • Ric Studer |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |
