Phil A. Costello

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Phil A. Costello

Prior offices

School District U-46 Board of Education At-large

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Education

Bachelor's

University of Illinois

Graduate

Illinois State University

Contact

Personal website

Phil A. Costello was an at-large member of the School District U-46 Board of Education in Illinois. He was first elected to the board in the general election on April 7, 2015. Costello did not file to run for re-election in 2019.

Biography

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When he served on the board, Costello's professional experience included working as a certified public accountant, as the superintendent of finance and personnel for a local municipality, and as the chief financial officer of Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois. He served as a member of the Government Finance Officers Association, on the board of trustees of ChildServ, on the board of directors of the Homes for Children Foundation, on the school board of St. Thomas of Villanova, and as the board president of Youth Communication. Costello earned his bachelor's degree in accounting from the University of Illinois and his M.B.A. from Illinois State University. As of 2015, he had two grown sons.

Elections

2015

See also: School District U-46 elections (2015)

Five of the seven at-large seats on the School District U-46 Board of Education were up for general election on April 7, 2015. Four of the seats were up for election to four-year terms. One was up for election to a two-year term.

The seats of incumbents Maria Bidelman, Amy Kerber, Linda Campos-Moreira, Traci D. Ellis and Jennifer Shroder were on the ballot. Bidelman, Kerber and Campos-Moreira did not file to run for re-election. The race for the four four-year term seats featured incumbents Ellis and Shroder and the following six candidates: Lawrence "Larry" Bury, Phil A. Costello, Susan E. Kerr, Ed Novak, Arisleyda Taylor and Jeanette Ward. Two candidates, Cody Holt and Kai Rush, ran for the two-year term seat. Brian Sauvageau filed to run for a four-year term seat but withdrew his candidacy in February 2015. Because of this, his name did not appear on the ballot.

Ellis won re-election to a four-year term. Challengers Ward, Kerr and Costello also won four-year term seats. Holt defeated Rush to win the two-year term.

Results

School District U-46, At-Large General Election, 4-year term, 2015
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Nonpartisan	Traci D. Ellis Incumbent	14.6%	6,155
	Nonpartisan	Jeanette Ward	14.3%	5,991
	Nonpartisan	Susan E. Kerr	14.3%	5,992
	Nonpartisan	Phil A. Costello	14%	5,867
	Nonpartisan	Ed Novak	13.8%	5,796
	Nonpartisan	Lawrence "Larry" Bury	11.8%	4,979
	Nonpartisan	Jennifer Shroder Incumbent	8.8%	3,706
	Nonpartisan	Arisleyda Taylor	8.4%	3,531
Total Votes				42,017
Source: Kane County Clerk, "2015 Consolidated Election Contest Results," accessed April 22, 2015, DuPage County Election Commission, "Election Summary Report: 2015 Consolidated General," accessed April 22, 2015, Cook County Clerk, "Suburban Cook County Election Results," accessed April 22, 2015

Funding

School board candidates in Illinois are only required to file campaign finance reports if they accept contributions or make expenditures in excess of $5,000 in a 12-month period.

Costello reported no contributions or expenditures to the Illinois State Board of Elections in this election.

Endorsements

Costello received endorsements from the following organizations and public officials:

• NewYou46
• Christine Jennifer Winger, State Representative (R) of the 45th District
• Kevin Wiley, Board Commissioner of DuPage County
• Rodney Craig, Mayor of Hanover Park
• Mark Jatczak, Trustee of Wayne Township
• Seth Lewis, Trustee of the Bartlett Fire Department
• Frank Napolitano, former U-46 School Board member and Bartlett Village Trustee
• Kevin Wallace, Village President of Bartlett
• Bill Wright, Streamwood Park District Board member
• James Jones, President and CEO of ChildServ

Campaign themes

2015

Costello highlighted the following questionnaire on his campaign website:

“	Why have you decided to run for a board seat? Almost 77 cents of each property tax dollar funds U-46 and taxpayers are understandably angry when they see their annual bills jump with no accountability. I want to challenge how U-46 operates while ensuring our children receive a quality education. I feel that my professional experience in government finance, youth development, and board leadership makes me a valuable advocate for both taxpayers and students. What do you believe are the most pressing issues facing the district right now? Property taxes. Many residents are paying $8,000 to $12,000 per year for U-46 property taxes, yet they do not see a corresponding educational experience while watching their homes lose resale value. Taxpayers should be proud of their schools in providing a quality education to all of our children to build a better community that attracts new residents and investment. Unpaid bills. The District spends more than it receives in revenue by deferring current bills with debt. U-46 has borrowed $487,000,000 since 1999 taking future dollars out of the hands of teachers and local schools and are now considering adding $40,000,000 in new debt. This pattern is unsustainable and cannot continue. The Board needs to hold the administration accountable for creating responsible budgets and living within its means. Disengagement. Many parents, students, and other stakeholders have expressed a feeling that U-46 is “too big”, indifferent, and generally disengaged from the community. I believe the Board needs a shift in culture to be more responsive and even encourage community engagement especially when facing adversity. What do you believe the role of the board should be, and how do you feel the current board is doing? The primary role of the Board is to ensure a cost effective and quality education for our students. Additionally, the Board needs to act strategically about the District’s vision, expectations, and policies while not interfering with daily operations. Effective Board deliberation requires that each issue is assessed in terms of; pros and cons while calculating costs and benefits. High-performing Boards promote resourceful innovation and weigh the risks of failure. Many on the current Board have not demonstrated requisite financial expertise to understand budgeting fundamentals or challenge tactical plans. Instead, they rely solely on the administration’s conclusions. Obviously property tax increases have been one of the top issues raised by the public this year. What if anything would you like to do, if elected, to lower the costs of running the district? Convert the spending culture from incremental budget add-ons to tested zero-based budgeting principles that examine all non-classroom expenses carefully for creative solutions. Expand the role of individual school administrators and teachers to manage direction and resources while reducing the District’s administration costs. Explore alternative education models outside of the current U-46 options including; charter schools, business partnerships, and vouchers to lower overall costs.	”
—Phil A. Costello's campaign website (2015)

See also

• School District U-46, Illinois
• School District U-46 elections (2015)

External links

• Search Google News for this topic
• School District U-46
• Campaign website
• Campaign Facebook page