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Joseph Toepke
Joseph Toepke was a candidate for at-large representative on the Columbia Public Schools Board of Education in Missouri. The general election was held on April 5, 2016.[1] Toepke lost the election.[2]
Toepke also unsuccessfully ran for a seat on the board in the general election on April 8, 2014.
Biography
Toepke's work experience includes serving as a human resources manager. He also served with the United States Army.[3]
Elections
2016
Two of the seven at-large seats on the Columbia Public Schools school board were up for general election on April 5, 2016. Incumbents Jan Mees and James Whitt defeated challengers Paul Rainsberger, Sarah Dubbert, and Joseph Toepke to win additional terms.[1][2]
Results
| Columbia Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 3-year terms, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Jan Mees Incumbent |
36.53% | 12,505 |
| James Whitt Incumbent |
23.30% | 7,974 |
| Sarah Dubbert | 18.39% | 6,295 |
| Paul Rainsberger | 13.23% | 4,527 |
| Joseph Toepke | 8.56% | 2,929 |
| Total Votes | 34,230 | |
| Source: Boone County Clerk, "OFFICIAL REPORT April 5, 2016, Municipal Election," accessed April 20, 2016 | ||
2014
- See also: Columbia Public Schools elections (2014)
Toepke was opposed by incumbents Helen Wade and Jonathan Sessions and challenger Paul Cushing for three at-large seats in the general election on April 8, 2014.
Results
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Helen Wade Incumbent |
32% | 8,143 | |
| Nonpartisan | Jonathan Sessions Incumbent |
29.5% | 7,508 | |
| Nonpartisan | Paul Cushing |
21.7% | 5,521 | |
| Nonpartisan | Joseph Toepke | 16.8% | 4,288 | |
| Total Votes | 25,460 | |||
| Source: Show Me Boone, "Summary Report," April 11, 2014 | ||||
Funding
Toepke did not report any campaign contributions or expenditures to the Missouri Ethics Commission.[4]
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify any official endorsements for Toepke in the election.
Campaign themes
2016
Ballotpedia survey responses
Joseph Toepke 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 February 9, 2016:
| “ | I hope to change the conversation about education and be a true champion for the teachers. We need to look more at STEM school models for those who will not be going to college and would be better served on those career paths. I see less and less return on investment for college education in many fields. Since college ed is ridiculously expensive and campuses rout with liberal brainwashing, we must look to other ways to train our nations future.[5][6] | ” |
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 Missouri. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| “ | It is not the achievement gap. Achievement stems from a lack of opportunity. We must address the ways community can step in and help with early opportunity gaps. The result will be a closing of the achievement gap.[6] | ” |
| —Joseph Toepke (February 9, 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.) |
|---|
| Yes. Due to "no child left behind", Class within a class and even the idea the putting all students together we will close the achievement gap is ridiculous. There needs to be programs and places that challenge the brightest of our childrens' minds instead of trying to make everyone a mediocre same level. |
| 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 only intervene in severe cases of misconduct or mismanagement. |
| Are standardized tests an accurate metric of student achievement? |
| No. 1) Any given day a child can have an off day. Or a child who has test anxiety or comes from a low income (low opportunity) background may not perform to the level the child is actually capable of. 2) there are far too many test already. It is more important for districts to use their own tests to determine student competency levels that provide immediate feedback to the teachers and allow interventions before it is too late. |
| What is your stance on the Common Core State Standards Initiative? |
| The principle is understandable but the product, the way it was derived and cramming it down the district's throat is totally unacceptable. There are better ways to come to the same program that would be more "palatable" to districts. |
| 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? |
| Set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district. How about we pay teachers more for what they have to do and deal with. Provide mentoring and professional development opportunities. Exhaust every reasonable method then place them in a probationary period and move them to a different school or grade level. If the school can demonstrate the due diligence to rectify the teacher and no improvement after the probationary period, the teacher's contract should be terminated. |
| Should teachers receive merit pay? |
| Yes. Teachers should receive merit pay and a host of other incentives. Increased pay for increasing their own education. Also they should get additional pay to perform professional development courses both during and out of regular school sessions. |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| Yes. Parents and students should always be given a choice. But if Public education was the absolute best it could be, there would be fewer students going to private and charter schools. |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| Our district set up a special location with intense mentoring, counseling and other methods while continuing to instruct the material during the time the student is removed from his/her regular classroom. Once the student demonstrates they can return to the regular class, they are sent back. |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| Teachers A quality teacher with the support of a good administration and proper curriculum, technology and teaching aids makes all the difference. Take away the teacher and make anything else the priority and you will have a lot a great things with a mediocre teacher and not see anything but a lot of wasted resources and money. |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Joseph Toepke' 'Columbia Public Schools'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Columbia Public Schools, Missouri
- Columbia Public Schools elections (2016)
- Columbia Public Schools elections (2014)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Columbia Public Schools, "Board of Education Candidates for April 5, 2016, Election," accessed January 20, 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Boone County Clerk, "SUMMARY REPORT April 5, 2016, Municipal Election," accessed April 5, 2016
- ↑ LinkedIn.com, "Joe Toepke," accessed February 18, 2014
- ↑ Missouri Ethics Commission, "Candidate Information," accessed February 13, 2014
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2016, "Joseph Toepke's responses," February 9, 2016
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| 2016 Columbia Public Schools Elections | |
| Boone County, Missouri | |
| Election date: | April 5, 2016 |
| Candidates: | At-large: Incumbent, Jan Mees • Incumbent, James Whitt • Sarah Dubbert • Paul Rainsberger • Joseph Toepke |
| Important information: | What was at stake? |
| 2014 Columbia Public Schools Elections | |
| Columbia, Missouri | |
| Election date: | April 8, 2014 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Paul Cushing • Incumbent, Jonathan Sessions • Joseph Toepke • Incumbent, Helen Wade |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
