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Ashley Strauch
Ashley Strauch was a candidate for the Seat A seat on the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District school board in Alaska. Strauch was defeated in the by-district general election on October 4, 2016.
Strauch participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 school board candidate survey. Click here to read her responses.
Biography
Strauch works as a nonprofit professional with the American Lung Assocation. She obtained a degree in psychology from the University of Alaska at Fairbanks. She has also worked as a substitute teacher for the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District.[1]
Elections
2016
Three of the seven seats on the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District school board were up for general election on October 4, 2016. Incumbent Tom Bartels defeated newcomer Ashley Strauch for Seat A. The seat was left vacant in June 2016, when Lisa Gentry resigned as a result of an out-of-state move. Bartels was selected to fill the seat until the October election. Bartels and Strauch competed for the seat for the remainder of Gentry's term, which ends in 2018.[2] Candidates Larry Morris, Jodi Rhoades, and Sharon McConnell competed for Seat C. McConnell won the seat. Seat D incumbent Allyson Lambert faced Blake Burley and won re-election to her seat.[3]
Results
| Fairbanks North Star Borough School District, Seat A General Election, 2-year term, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Tom Bartels Incumbent |
56.40% | 5,862 |
| Ashley Strauch | 42.35% | 4,402 |
| Write-in votes | 1.25% | 130 |
| Total Votes | 10,394 | |
| Source: Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska, "Election Summary Report," accessed August 5, 2017 | ||
Funding
Strauch reported $1,980.00 in contributions and $1,759.08 in expenditures to the Alaska Public Office Commission, which left her campaign with $221.31 on hand in the election.[4]
Endorsements
Strauch did not received any official endorsements for her campaign during the election.
Campaign themes
2016
Ballotpedia survey responses
Ashley Strauch 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 September 12, 2016:
| “ | I am running because I am passionate about this borough, the schools that we have here, and the amazing educational opportunities that the district offers. I believe that we can navigate the fiscal crises and come out on top, I believe that we need to and can improve teacher and support staff morale and confidence in their positions, and I believe that we can make our district the best place for all of our employees to work in this community. If elected, I want to work on these goals and serve tirelessly as a community servant.[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 Alaska. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| “ | My platform values teachers and support staff in schools as our greatest resource in helping to improve education, as these professionals are a bridge between the student experience and the policy making of administrators. Therefore, this is a top priority for me. We also need people in office who are future-oriented and will work to advocate for school funding and maintain the budget for our district. I have ranked school choice last not because it isn't important, but because the current initiative our board has proposed with k-8 is not viable at this time and I think other options need to be considered in detail and with consultation before any new schools are opened.[6] | ” |
| —Ashley Strauch (September 12, 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.) |
|---|
| No. At this time, I think expansion of our school system is unrealistic. The state of Alaska is facing the greatest budget crises that we have ever had, and it would be irresponsible of us to open any new schools now. We should instead use the funding we have to keep the programs that work alive and to support our teachers and staff in their positions. People are more important than new buildings. |
| 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. Students learn in so many different ways, and too much value has been placed on these tests as measures of school success. The pressure that is exerted on parents, teachers, administrators and especially students for these tests is unacceptable. |
| What is your stance on the Common Core State Standards Initiative? |
| In essence, common core is a good thing. There should be some standards that we place on what we should be teaching or youth. However, as with standardized testing, we put too much emphasis on these standards to the point that we end up hurting ourselves. Measuring a student's success in common core subjects is not the only measure of whether a student is successful. We need to incorporate more qualitative methods into these measurements. |
| 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. Teachers in our state are such a valuable commodity. Many teachers ask for and are held back from continuing education and training once they start their jobs. Every intervention that we can use to help teachers become better should be used before termination. I love the idea of having mentor teachers to help with this as well, as it "takes one to know one." |
| Should teachers receive merit pay? |
| No. Teachers should be paid a fair wage to start with and be asked to work the hours that they are scheduled for, and not more. Merit pay sounds wonderful, but it operates a lot like tips in the restaurant industry and can be seen as an excuse not to pay teachers a wage that works for them. Also, I don't think any standard system for establishing merit pay is feasible. Instead, we need to focus on providing teachers with the wage and resources they need. |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| No. Private and for-profit schools often have their own agenda, which can include religious education and inaccurate science, math, and reading curriculum's. I think the state should lend its support to public schools and the standard of education where we know what is being taught, rather than to numerous other schooling types. That being said, I believe as a district we can look into more options for creating schools of choice, such as magnet and montessori schools which have been popular options for families. |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| Expulsion from our district means that a family must either attend private school or that they must move. Therefore, expulsion should be used only as a last resort. Cases where a student has repeatedly threatened or caused harm to other students, teachers, or staff members after interventions have take place are some of the only situations I see as being reasonable for expulsion to occur. |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| Teachers Teachers are the soldiers on the ground. Every day, they work with our young people on the front lines, responding to new policy and also having direct interaction with students. They have an insider's perspective on what works and what doesn't, making their voices the top priority in any decision we make. |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Ashley Strauch Fairbanks North Star Borough School District. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Fairbanks North Star Borough School District, Alaska
- Fairbanks North Star Borough School District elections (2016)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Ashley Strauch for School Board, "About Ashley," accessed September 8, 2016
- ↑ News Miner, "School board appoints new member to open seat," June 1, 2016
- ↑ Fairbanks North Star Borough, "Official Candidate List," accessed September 6, 2016
- ↑ Alaska Public Office Commission, "Campaign Disclosure:Forms," accessed September 29, 2016
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2016, "Ashley Strauch's responses," September 12, 2016
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| 2016 Fairbanks North Star Borough School District Elections | |
| Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska | |
| Election date: | October 4, 2016 |
| Candidates: | Seat A: Incumbent, Tom Bartels • Ashley Strauch Seat C: Larry Morris • Jodi Rhoades • Sharon McConnell |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional measures on the ballot |
