Nikita Kostyuk
Nikita Kostyuk was a candidate for the Trustee Area 7 seat on the Elk Grove Unified School District school board in California. Kostyuk was defeated in the by-district general election on November 8, 2016.
Although Kostyuk identified as a Republican, the school board seat was nonpartisan. The 2016 election was his first time running for office.[1]
Kostyuk participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 school board candidate survey. Click here to read his responses.
Biography
Kostyuk earned a bachelor's degree in government from California State University at Sacramento.[1]
Elections
2016
Four of the seven seats on the Elk Grove Unified School District Board of Education were up for by-district general election on November 8, 2016. In his bid for re-election, Area 1 incumbent Tony Perez ran unopposed and won re-election by default. In Area 3, incumbent Chet Madison Sr. defeated Chris Baker. Area 6 incumbent Nancy Chaires Espinoza also won re-election, defeating challenger Marlon Hill. In the Area 7 race, Nikita Kostyuk was defeated by incumbent Carmine Forcina.[2][3]
Results
| Elk Grove Unified School District, Area 7 General Election, 4-year term, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Carmine Forcina Incumbent |
67.15% | 61,458 |
| Nikita Kostyuk | 32.52% | 29,764 |
| Write-in votes | 0.34% | 307 |
| Total Votes | 91,529 | |
| Source: Sacramento County Voter Registration and Elections, "Official Results General Election - November 8, 2016," accessed December 7, 2016 | ||
Funding
Kostyuk reported $23,115.41 in contributions and $23,071.61 in expenditures to the Sacramento County Voter Registration and Elections, which left his campaign with $82.97 on hand in the election.[4]
Endorsements
Kostyuk was endorsed by the Sacramento County Republican Party.[5]
Campaign themes
2016
Ballotpedia survey responses
Nikita Kostyuk 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 August 11, 2016:
| “ | I want to serve as an advocate for taxpayers, parents, and voters. I want to bring a fresh perspective to the Elk Grove Unified School District. I'm committed to working towards more community involvement in the school board, to protecting taxpayers, and to expanding educational opportunities for students and parents.[6][7] | ” |
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 California. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| “ | .[7] | ” |
| —Nikita Kostyuk (August 11, 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. |
| 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? |
| Yes. |
| What is your stance on the Common Core State Standards Initiative? |
| I am opposed to Common Core. |
| 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. 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? |
| Yes. |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| Yes. |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| Expulsion should be used as an extreme punishment and as a last resort. |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| Parent involvement |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Nikita Kostyuk Elk Grove Unified School District. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Ballotpedia's Biographical Information Submission Form, "Nikita Kostyuk's responses," August 10, 2016
- ↑ Sacramento County Elections, "Qualified Candidate List," August 13, 2016
- ↑ Sacramento County, "Unofficial Results: General Election - November 8, 2016," accessed November 9, 2016
- ↑ Sacramento County Voter Registration and Elections, "County of Sacramento Public Portal for Campaign Finance Disclosure," accessed February 15, 2017
- ↑ Sacramento County Republican Party, "Endorsements 2016," accessed October 16, 2016
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2016, "Nikita Kostyuk's responses," August 11, 2016
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| 2016 Elk Grove Unified School District Elections | |
| Sacramento County, California | |
| Election date: | November 8, 2016 |
| Candidates: | Area 1: • Incumbent, Tony Perez Area 3: • Incumbent, Chet Madison Sr. • Chris Baker Area 6: • Incumbent, Nancy Chaires Espinoza • Marlon Hill Area 7: • Incumbent, Carmine Forcina • Nikita Kostyuk |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |
