Karelia Stetz-Waters
Karelia Stetz-Waters was a candidate for Zone 1 representative on the Greater Albany Public Schools school board in Oregon. Stetz-Waters was defeated in the by-district general election on May 16, 2017.
This candidate participated in Ballotpedia's school board candidate survey. Click here to read her responses.
Biography
Stetz-Waters' professional experience includes working as an instructor at Linn-Benton Community College. She received her master's in English from the University of Oregon and her bachelor's in literature from Smith College.[1]
Elections
2017
Three of the five seats on the Greater Albany Public Schools school board in Oregon were up for general election on May 16, 2017. Zone 1 incumbent Sandi Gordon filed for re-election and faced two challengers: Karelia Stetz-Waters and Jennifer Ward. Ward successfully ousted the incumbent. Two candidates filed for the open Zone 2 seat: Eric Aguinaga and Kim Butzner, with Butzner winning the seat. For the At-Large Number 2 seat, incumbent Micah Smith defeated Matthew Prudell and Katie Winder.[2][3]
Results
| Greater Albany Public Schools, Zone 1 General Election, 4-year term, 2017 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Jennifer Ward |
40.88% | 2,671 |
| Sandi Gordon Incumbent | 37.96% | 2,480 |
| Karelia Stetz-Waters | 19.18% | 1,253 |
| Write-in votes | 1.97% | 129 |
| Total Votes | 6,533 | |
| Source: Linn County, "Election Summary," accessed June 12, 2017 | ||
Funding
The filing deadline in Oregon for a campaign transaction is typically no later than 30 calendar days. However, beginning on the 42nd day before an election day and through the date of the election, a transaction is due no later than seven calendar days after the date it occurred. The dates for the beginning and ending of the seven-day reporting period for the 2017 Oregon school board elections were:[4]
- April 4, 2017 (Seven day campaign finance reporting begins)
- May 16, 2017 (Seven day campaign finance reporting ends)
A school board candidate in Oregon must form a candidate committee unless he or she meets all of the following conditions:[5][6]
- The candidate elects to serve as his or her own treasurer.
- The candidate does not have an existing candidate committee.
- The candidate does not expect to receive or spend more than $750 during a calendar year (including personal funds).
A candidate committee must file a Statement of Organization with the Elections Division of the Oregon Secretary of State within three business days of first receiving or spending money. A form including campaign account information must accompany the Statement of Organization.[5][7]
Candidate committees that expect to receive or spend $3,500 or more in a calendar year are required to report all transactions. A committee that does not expect to receive or spend this much is still required to file a Statement of Organization and designate a campaign bank account, but does not have to file transactions. Instead, they must file a Certificate of Limited Contributions and Expenditures.[5][8]
Campaign themes
Ballotpedia survey responses
Karelia Stetz-Waters participated in Ballotpedia's 2017 survey of school board candidates.[9] In response to the question "What do you hope to achieve if elected to the school board?" the candidate stated on May 2, 2017:
| “ | I have taught at community college for 14 years, both in programs that transferred to universities and in trade programs. I believe I know where students need to be when they graduate from high school, and I'd like to help them get there.[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 Oregon. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| “ | These are all incredibly important issues, and the School Board's role should be determined by the needs of the community.[11] | ” |
| —Karelia Stetz-Waters (May 2, 2017) | ||
Positions on the issues
The candidate was asked to answer eight 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. I believe our school district is small enough that charter schools are not yet needed to meet the needs of our student population. |
| 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. |
| Are standardized tests an accurate metric of student achievement? |
| No. As a community college instructor who has worked with industry partners, I hear many employers complain that their students are very good at taking tests but not good at handling real-world problems, being creative, or thinking on their feet. I also see students who think of education as a boring chore they must complete in order to get a good job. Both of these problems stem, I believe, from the over-emphasis on standardized tests. |
| 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? |
| Offer additional training options. Offer additional training options. 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. Ideally, I'd like a "maybe" category. I would support merit pay depending on how it was administered. I'd love to see initiatives that promoted innovative teaching. I would not like to see merit pay being used in ways that encouraged grade inflation, punished teachers in low-income areas with larger classes, or lead teachers to focus all their energy on standardized tests. |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| No. Public school is a foundation of American democracy. The voucher system will quickly lead to poor schools being underfunded while rich kids use tax payers money to go to their own elite schools. Moreover, with an increasingly global economy, students need to be prepared to work in a diverse environment. They will not gain these skills if they self-select into private schools where all students fall within a similar demographic. |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| I would want to learn more about each individual school's policy and justifications for expulsion. In general, I believe expulsion should only be used in cases where a student poses a threat to the safety of others. |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| Student-teacher ratio Even great teachers with wonderful parents and intelligent administrator can fail their students when they have too many. |
Candidate statement
Stetz-Waters provided the following statement to the Albany Democrat-Herald:
| “ | Teaching at LBCC, I realize I have a good idea of where our kids need to be when they graduate from high school. I work with students in our trade programs (like welding and automotive) and with students headed to Oregon State University and other universities. I also realize the vital importance soft skills, like good communication and responsibility, play in our kids' success.[11] | ” |
| —Karelia Stetz-Waters (2017)[12] | ||
See also
External links
- Greater Albany Public Schools
- Karelia Stetz-Waters 2017 campaign website
- Karelia Stetz-Waters 2017 Facebook campaign page
Footnotes
- ↑ Facebook, "Karelia Stetz-Waters for School Board," accessed April 28, 2017
- ↑ Linn County, "Election Summary," accessed May 17, 2017
- ↑ Linn County, "County Clerk's Office," accessed March 22, 2017
- ↑ Oregon Secretary of State, "Oregon Elections Calendar," accessed April 17, 2017
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Oregon Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance Manual - 2014," accessed January 13, 2014
- ↑ Oregon Revised Statutes, "Chapter 260, Section 043," accessed January 13, 2014
- ↑ Oregon Revised Statutes, "Chapter 260, Section 039," accessed January 13, 2014
- ↑ Oregon Revised Statutes, "Chapter 260, Section 057," accessed January 13, 2014
- ↑ Note: The candidate's answers have been reproduced here verbatim without edits or corrections by Ballotpedia.
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2017, "Karelia Stetz-Waters's responses," May 2, 2017
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Albany Democrat-Herald, "Two newcomers challenge GAPS incumbent," April 26, 2017
| Greater Albany Public Schools elections in 2017 | |
| Linn County, Oregon | |
| Election date: | May 16, 2017 |
| Candidates: | Zone 1: Incumbent, Sandi Gordon • Karelia Stetz-Waters • Jennifer Ward Zone 2: Eric Aguinaga • Kim Butzner |
| Important information: | What was at stake? |
