Patricia Kienholz
Patricia Kienholz was a candidate for the Position 4 seat on the Spokane Board of Directors in Washington. She ran in the general election on November 3, 2015. Patricia Kienholz lost the general election on November 3, 2015.
Kienholz participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 survey of school board candidates. Her responses can be read here.
Biography
Kienholz is a nonprofit professional and community volunteer. She graduated from the University of Southern California with two bachelor's degrees: the first in gender studies and the second in journalism. She also has post-secondary education in advanced chemistry. She previously worked as a marketing professional for the National Football League in Los Angeles, Calif. She is a single parent to two children.[1]
Elections
2015
- See also: Spokane Public Schools elections (2015)
One of the five seats on the Spokane Board of Directors was up for primary election on August 4, 2015. Incumbent Rocky Treppiedi and Jerrall Haynes defeated Donald Dover and advanced to the general election on November 3, 2015. Haynes then defeated Treppiedi in the general election. The Position 4 seat also joined the ballot in November, since only two candidates filed for the seat. Candidates Paul Schneider and Patricia Kienholz went head-to-head for the open seat, and Schneider won the election. Incumbent Jeffrey Bierman did not file for re-election.
Results
| Spokane Public Schools Board of Directors, Position 4 General Election, 6-year term, 2015 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Paul Schneider |
54.5% | 24,532 |
| Patricia Kienholz | 44.5% | 20,045 |
| Write-in votes | 0.98% | 440 |
| Total Votes | 45,017 | |
| Source: Spokane County, Washington, "Election Results: 11/03/2015-General Election," November 24, 2015 | ||
Funding
Kienholz reported $910.00 in contributions and $278.40 in expenditures to the Washington Public Disclosure Commission, which left her campaign with $631.60 on hand as of August 4, 2015.[2]
Endorsements
Kienholz received endorsements from the following:[1]
- Spokane County GOP
- Dr. George J. Peterson, founding dean, Eugene T. Moore School of Education, Clemson University
- Gary Pollard, chair, City of Spokane Riverside Neighborhood Council
- Alexander Roberts, coordinator for student standards, University of Idaho
- Sheriff Ozzie D. Knezovich, Spokane County Sheriff's Office
Of the Spokane County GOP endorsement, Kienholz stated the following on her campaign's Facebook page:
| “ | I appreciate my recent endorsement from the Spokane County GOP. But, I am also strongly opposed to the politicizing of nonpartisan elections. Thanks Spokane GOP for supporting my candidacy. I promise to do my best when considering the interests of your voters, ALL those affected directly or indirectly by Spokane Public Schools, and especially those impacted most by education funding--students who aren't able to vote for outcomes involving their futures.[3] | ” |
| —Patricia Kienholz, (2015) | ||
Campaign themes
2015
Ballotpedia survey responses
Kienholz participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 survey of school board candidates. The following sections display her responses to the survey questions. When asked what her top priority would be if elected, the candidate made the following statement:
| “ | My top priorities are: (1) closing the remedial course gap for students entering college required to take college-offered remedial courses in mathematics and English; (2) improving and providing for special education, STEM, arts integration, English as a second language, and underserved students; (3) school safety; (4) workforce development.[3] | ” |
| —Patricia Kienholz (2015)[4] | ||
Ranking the issues
The candidate was asked to rank the following issues by importance in the school district, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. This table displays this candidate's rankings from most to least important:
| Education policy |
|---|
 |
Click here to learn more about education policy in Washington. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Improving college readiness | |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Expanding career-technical education | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
Positions on the issues
The candidate was asked to answer 10 questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. The questions are in the left column and the candidate's responses are in the right column of the following table:
| Question | Response |
|---|---|
| "Common Core State Standards (CCSS) are a controversial federally adopted set of guidelines required for states to receive federal funds. In Washington State, those funds total almost a billion dollars. CCSS were formally adopted by the state of Washington in 2010, and fully incorporated for Math and English Language Arts in the 2014-15 school year. Opponents of the standards oppose them for different reasons. The arguments usually fall into 5 camps: (1) those that do not want teacher pay tied to assessments of student performance; (2) those that object to the use of “Integrated Math”; (3) those that object to English reading curriculum adopted under CCSS; (4) those that object to math and English testing applied to students with disabilities, students for whom English is a second language, and underserved students who are harmed by the tests; and (5) those who feel students are tested too frequently and with too much rigor. School board members in Washington State do not have the option of not implementing the CCSS as state law mandates them. (see http://www.k12.wa.us/CurriculumInstruct/CCSS/default.aspx)" | |
| "Yes. Presently, Spokane Public Schools is the only district authorizer of Charter Schools in the State of Washington. We have two charter schools in Spokane: PRIDE Prep Charter School (opening 2015-16 school year); and Spokane International Academy (opening 2015-16 school year). (see http://www.sbe.wa.gov/charters.php#.VbpcJJNVhBd)" | |
| "Yes." | |
| "Standardized tests can underestimate academic achievement of test takers, especially for underserved students and students with disabilities. While standardized tests don't improve student performance they are necessary for providing benchmarks to regulatory agencies seeking to improve the quality of education for our students. The real question is not whether or not standardized tests are 'an accurate metric of student achievement' but rather, is the usage of standardized testing problematic for students, are standardized tests fair and unbiased for ALL students, and especially for underserved students, students with disabilities, and for students for whom English is a second language? Standardized tests are just one of the many available measurements of student achievement, and should be used as mile-markers and not stop signs." | |
| "Equal access to education in k-12 is a Constitutional right. There are many ways policies and procedures can be used by districts to help improve equal opportunities for ALL students. In the past, the education sector implemented inclusion policies to reach students with disabilities. These policies resulted in an increase in inclusion without increasing graduation rates for those students. And, sometimes implementing policies that are untested results in less than desirable outcomes. Paying attention to detail and using data analytics is requisite for our policy process to be effective.
| |
| "District policy should include the provision that expulsion cases will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis by the board; should be used only for serious offenses; and should be a last resort. Expulsion cases should include parent/family input on behalf of students, and should not prevent parents from being included in communications involving their student except in cases where the parent/family representative is not legally permitted to have access to such communications or permitted contact with the student." | |
| "The board should be consistent with state law, should not interfere in the day-to-day operations of the schools they serve, and should have effective policies and procedures, including performance evaluation, peer review, and a solutions strategy that addresses failing schools in the district." | |
| "Merit pay, while supported by many teachers and education experts, has not been shown to improve the quality of education for, or performance of students. Rewarding teachers for doing what they are supposed to do, doesn't seem to make sense to me. Additionally, supplemental spending can be provided for teachers actively involved in activities closing the achievement gap, STEM education, and arts integration. I think it's a better idea to incentivize ingenuity by providing supplemental funding to teachers who are going 'above-and-beyond' the standard." | |
| "Our collective bargaining agreement includes a yearly performance evaluation for teachers. Underperforming teachers should be offered every available resource the district can provide (mentorship, additional training, peer review) to improve performance. Consistently underperforming teachers should work in another field." | |
| "I work to improve community-school board relations by encouraging our community to attend board meetings, by communicating through social media and email, and being available by telephone and in person. I have a presence in the community and work well within the nonprofit, government and private sectors involved in education. As a school board member I'll make myself available to schools, students and parents, helping them understand where our school district is headed, and answer to why our school board takes action. Through transparency and accountability school boards can improve the quality of education for All students." |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms "Patricia Kienholz" "Spokane Public Schools". These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Spokane Public Schools, Washington
- Spokane Public Schools elections (2015)
- Incumbency no guarantee of success in Nov. 3 school board elections (November 6, 2015)
- What happened in Nov.'s top board elections? (November 4, 2015)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Facebook, "Patricia Kienholz For School Board Position 4 - Spokane Public Schools," accessed July 30, 2015
- ↑ Washington Public Disclosure Commission, "Local Candidates," accessed August 4, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2015, "Patricia Kienholz's responses," July 30, 2015
| 2015 Spokane Public Schools Elections | |
| Spokane County, Washington | |
| Election date: | Primary - August 4, 2015
General - November 3, 2015 |
| Candidates: | Position 3: Incumbent, Rocky Treppiedi • Donald Dover • Jerrall Haynes Position 4: Paul Schneider • Patricia Kienholz |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
