All right, welcome everybody. We are live so we're going to get started. If you could take a seat in just about a couple seconds here. >> Uh I'd just like to start by welcoming you everyone. Thanks for coming. My name is Mark Rener. I am the president of Columbia Heights Local 710. Uh the head of the Columbia Heights Teachers Union. To my right is Kristen Sinariello. She is our political officer and we are glad to welcome our two candidates. So according to Minnesota School Boards Association, a school board is a body of locally elected individuals who represent the communities they serve. Their power and authority are granted by the state. Their purpose is to ensure effective, efficient, and equitable delivery of high-quality education to all school district students through the adoption of policy and governance. whose important task is to hire, direct, and evaluate the superintendent. Um, each candidate is going to have two minutes to respond to the questions. There is a green, yellow, and red card right here to let you know when your time is almost up. The red card will be actually a stop card. Um, and I'm going to ask each candidate to respond in rotating order. The first question we'll start with Miss Fodnis Bondis here and this is please introduce yourself and share what your background leads you to believe you would be an effective school board member. >> Thank you for the question. Hi everybody. My name is Jenna Fodnes Bondis. So I am a former educator. I worked at St. Thomas University. I have a master's of arts in teaching English as a secondary language which I think uh is helpful that I know the role of an educator and I have experience working with diverse student bodies. Uh this year and these days I'm a parent of two kids in the district and I serve as a PTO board member. I think that I would be a good fit for this school board because my priorities align with what would be best for our district right now. I want our schools to be safe, welcoming places where students can learn. I've seen firsthand what a challenging year we've had. And I'm very proud of our district for standing up and telling our story. And I want to stand up too with this district, work together, offer my support, make sure that we restore and heal and help ensure that we make thoughtful decisions about the future of the district. Thank you, >> Mr. Davis. >> Yeah, thank you very much. Uh thank you to Mr. Rener and this uh uh Senator Carell and uh thank you for all of you for coming tonight. I really appreciate uh taking an interest in our school district. Uh my name is Adam Davis. Um I'm a lifelong member of Columbia Heights. I'm a 1994 graduate of Columbia Heights High School. And I'm also a music teacher. I teach piano, voice, and drums. And I'm committed to the education of our students. I provide a unique insight to the school board regarding the needs of children and their parents. as an educator, as someone who has been through our school system, as a student, and as someone who has invested in our community, as someone and its outcomes as someone who has lived here all their life. I'll provide leadership, problem solving, and logical thinking skills to the school board. Uh, I volunteer for several community organizations and have been in leadership positions for many of them multiple times. I'm always looking for new ways to be able to give back to my community and this is a natural na next step as an educator, as a former student and as a lifelong community member. >> Thank you both of you. Um, this question has been recently on a lot of our minds here. Given the recent surge in immigration enforcement within the community, what are specific ways you as a board member would support the recovery for students, staff, and families who were impacted? And this time we'll start with Mr. Davis. >> Thank you. I just want to start off by saying that the safety of all of our students is my top priority. I have to say I was appalled by the tactics that were being used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the B Border Patrol by coming onto our school property, circling the schools, their parent drop offs, and the school bus stops. This has created fear and it's broken the trust of federal law enforcement for many in our community. Students must feel safe in order to be able to attend school. And I just want to thank all the teachers and administrators who have worked so tirelessly to protect our students and to just go the extra mile to uh be able to uh take care of our students that uh uh that uh were under so much fear and uncertainty and I thank you for that. >> All right. Um, Miss Fod Bantis, >> um, I want to start by making a broad statement about that that schools are not immigration enforcement agencies. And what I would do to protect our schools first is to stay informed uh so that we know to stay diligently informed. I would make sure that families know their rights. I would make sure that staff know the protocol to follow if immigration enforcement activity comes near or at our schools. I would make sure that families are connected to the the support that they need such as mutual aid funds or assistance through the county. And I would collaborate with other districts. What we've seen this year in Colombia Heights and in Minnesota as a whole is that when we collect our voices, we are stronger. Thank you. >> Thanks both of you. Um we're moving on to question number three now. Um Miss Fodn Bontis, this one will be for you first. Uh is there a particular issue that motivates you to serve on the board of education? I am passionate about learning and equity for students. I want our schools to be um ensuring that we have equitable practices and good representation for all. And I am passionate about the school's mission statement that each student should belong and succeed. and I want our schools to have rich and robust academic programming. Thank you, >> Mr. Davis. Thank you for the question. Um, I feel like that the issues that would motivate me, um, I'm a music teacher and, uh, so one of the things that motivates me is the arts and, um, I want to be able to, uh, be able to look at all the offerings that are currently being offered and make sure that when we say that our heart is in the in the arts, that we mean that and we're able to back that up with funding. And one of the real challenges that we've had is that uh we've had all of these unfunded mandates that have come from the state level. Uh about 65 of them in the just the last session. And you know the worst part about it all is that most of that came either unfunded or underfunded. And so at the end of the day, while we got an increase in funding, we actually came up short. And it's particularly hard in a district like ours where we have lots of English learners and we don't have the flexibility to be able to allocate those resources where we actually need them. So for myself, one of my passions is to be able to go to the legislature, talk to um members on both sides of the aisle, which I already have existing relationships with, and uh be able to convince them that uh we need uh more flexibility. we need to make sure that the money that's given um goes where it needs to go and that we don't have um all of these um unfunded mandates that um it you you use it or you lose it even if you don't need it in that area. So I think that's important. >> All right. Thank you. Mhm. >> Um so what changes would you recommend to Columbia Heights public schools academic programs and offerings? Um we'll start with Mr. Davis. So I one of the things I will say is that uh the board over the last uh cycle here has uh been able to uh increase our um the amount that uh we have in in reserve our budget reserve and uh and I thank the the the good stewardship of that because that gives us some options and so um I believe that as I said earlier uh I think music would be one area that I would be very much in favor of exploring. Uh another area would be some foreign languages. I believe the only one we teach right now is Spanish and uh you know even when I was uh learning here uh we had uh Spanish and French and German and you know by having such a diverse uh community it's it's surprising that we don't uh have more offerings uh available uh to our students. Yeah, Miss Fodnus Bontis. >> So, I would like to see an increase in gifted programming in our schools. I would like to see all I would also passionate about music and would love if we had a long-term goal of expanding our music program. If we could have an orchestra and or a choir um or band for some of the younger kids or like an introduction to music, I would love that. I would love to see us expand on some of our STEM programming. I would like our such as robotics. Um but mostly to focus on our core academic programming like reading and math. Thank you. >> So this is question five. Um, Miss Fodn Bontis, in what specific ways would you advocate for the district's needs on a legislative level? >> I think that being open for reliable two-way communication with families and stakeholders would be the start. and then uh communicating with and collaborating with other districts with city, county, state legislators to stand up for our district. Um and again by collecting our voices. Thank you. >> Yeah. And Mr. Davis, >> I believe that I could be an advocate uh for the district needs on the legislative level and as I mentioned uh in the previous question that uh I do have existing relationships with members on both sides of the aisle. I think that's very uh valuable when we have such a um closely divided legislature and who knows who's going to have the power in the next session. Um my priorities would would include to um ending those fiscal disparities, um unfunded state mandates, uh maintain our compensatory aid, and I think most importantly here for us is to work for some greater control of our school district to be able to actually uh rule our own destiny here uh rather than having the state tell us every aspect of what we need to do uh in our own district. And I think that's uh incredibly important especially when you know we know that Columbia Heights doesn't have the same challenges as say a Weisetta or a Burnsville. You know you uh need to be able to adapt to that. >> Yes. Thank you. Um okay again this is for you starting Mr. Davis. Um how does the role of a school board member differ from that of a parent, a community member or an administration? Well, let me start off with let's see with a parent. If I'm a parent and I'm at that school at a school, my number one priority is my child, you know, and it's singularly focused on that. As a community member, I'm looking at a bigger picture. I'm looking at my taxes. I'm looking at whether the money is being well spent um and whether I can afford um and to be able to have an overall positive and well educated community. Um, as a admin as someone for administration, it's about the execution of those things and uh, you know, just to be able to uh, make sure that all everybody's uh, priorities are being heard and that we try to balance the needs of of every uh, single um, uh, the balance the needs of every single student so that all the students can succeed. All the students are there and we don't leave anyone behind. I think that that's incredibly important. >> Thank you. And uh Miss Fodnes Montes, before we go on, we have a request that you move your microphone a little closer. >> Sure. >> And uh do you remember the question? You want me to read it again? >> How does the role of school board member differ from that of parent community or administration? >> Okay, thank you for the question. Is that better? Yes, I will. Great. I think >> well a school board member is elected and so is responsible to the public in a different way than those other community members uh parent or a member of the administration. School board members set policies and approve budgets. and schoolboard members are also uh responsible for ensuring that there's an equitable education for all students in the district. Thank you. >> Yes, thank you. This is the last of the prepared questions, but we do have some audience questions over here as well. Um so number seven and we start with Miss Fondis Bontis this time. How would you as a board member explain educational needs of students and the district's financial needs to local taxpayers and community members? >> Thank you. I would explain that public education is the greatest investment that a community can make in their in the prosperity of their future. I would explain that communities that have strong well-funded schools have more jobs and higher property property value. So I would explain the longlasting benefits of having a strong public school in the community. Thank you. >> Yes. Thanks both of you. And um we have so sorry Mr. Davis. Yes. Uh I would explain uh that as a schoolboard member that by starting off by listening by listening to those parents by listening to community members hearing their input. I would always use that as a starting point. Um at that point then we would present those concerns to the school board and to the superintendent. Uh the school board would then make a decision on those items and provide clarity and transparency into that process um and for things that we can um uh implement whenever possible there. I want to see our school district as a viable option for all of our district students. So right now far too many choose to go elsewhere for a variety of reasons and I believe that if we can engage with those parents improving our schools so that Columbia Heights Public Schools is the preferred choice uh that will be my goal and secondly simply being able to better communicate all of the positive things that we are already doing at Columbia Heights Schools because when I go out and I talk to people and I door knock um people don't realize what's going on. If you don't have a kid in in the school right now, you're not paying close attention. You don't know the good things that are happening. And uh it doesn't hurt to toot your own horn sometimes when you are doing something right. And I think that's important. And uh you know I think that um another aspect of it is is uh that what you were mentioning that um a lot of uh the homeowners, the taxpayers don't really realize uh how important it is to have a very um successful school in their district. it does affect um their property values but also affects the next generation. So even if it's not your kid in a Columbia Heights public school uh your kid will be working with that person at a U that's coming out of Columbia Heights. So we want our school to be the absolute best. >> All right. Yes. Thank you both of you for the prepared questions. This is we now start we have some audience questions. So I'm going to read this. We start with you Mr. Davis. Okay. >> What have you done to enhance your own knowledge and skills related to diversity and inclusion and how have you demonstrated that commitment? So I believe that uh you know the best way that you be inclusive is to have an open mind and listen and not making uh snap judgments and calls of that nature and uh keeping that um that uh you just being able to have that conversation. uh and then being able to take that and implementing it, making sure that that everyone does in fact feel included, everyone does feel like that they belong here. Um you know, and so whatever uh group that you belong to, uh we want to make sure that you are included and part of the of of everyone here. That's important for me. Yes, Miss Fodnis Bontest, do you want me to repeat the question or do you have it? It's >> Sure. I'd love it if you repeated the question. >> What have you done to enhance your own knowledge and skills related to diversity and inclusion and how have you demonstrated that commitment? >> Okay. Well, what I have done to enhance my own skills, I I taught for many years in a classroom with students from many language backgrounds. I lived abroad and experienced firsthand what it is to be a learner of a foreign language. um and how I have demonstrated that. Specifically, recently I have been volunteering in the schools to help the teachers who have been so overworked and have gone above and beyond this year. and I have been pulling out the students who are falling behind to help meet that need uh of equity, which is making sure that every student has what they need and that we're breaking down those barriers that are preventing them from being able to learn. Thank you. >> Yes, thank you so much both of you. Um, we're actually going to start this one with you, Miss Fondes Bontes, and this is, as a board member, how will you endeavor to protect and advocate for LGBTQIA+ students and staff? >> I appreciate the question. Thank you. When I hear this question, I think about specific policy items that will protect the LGBTQ community. I think that as a school board member, I would stand against any book bans that seek to diminish representation of LGBTQ members of our community. And I would also um seek to continue our alliance with the Minnesota High School League, which has said that players can play on the team for sports that aligns with their gender identity. Thank you, >> Mr. Davis. So, you mentioned about uh book bands, and I guess I what I would start off by saying is that um I'm not in favor of book bands. One thing that uh that uh we would like to have um is an is to know what books we actually do have. That would be a starting point. Um, so my understanding is that uh our library um has a lot of books that are checked out and they're in currently in the classrooms. And uh so it's not even a matter of whether uh we have books that are good or bad. It's a matter of we don't even have an inventory of that. Uh having said that, um I'm not for a book ban. Um, I'm just I think that it is important for parents to know what we do have and it's important for them to know whether uh the books are age appropriate for their child as well. And I think that's important. But um I think that it's important to make sure that we meet our students, our children where they're at. So wherever they happen to be at at that point that we um don't close that door. we maintain that communication and we make sure that they're um included and we listen and uh it's not about closing any doors, it's about keeping every door open. Thank you. >> Yes, thank you. And we'll keep going with you, Mr. Davis. Um >> what do you believe that teachers need in order to be successful in our district? Well, I think I would start off with uh right now we have 75% of our budget and also our policies um are controlled by the state and things that we can do to give our school district more flexibility back at the local level is going to go a big way because our hands are tied uh as teachers in a lot of ways. Um having said that uh we do have already established curriculums whether at the state level or ones that are put forth uh for for the school board and and what we do want to make sure is that we know that not every child learns the same way. Every child u adapts to it differently. and to make sure that teachers have that flexibility and to be able to have that creativity to be able to uh tailor um those lesson plans in a way that um that uh you know teachers can make sure that no one falls behind that they're that each of the parents or each of the students feel that what they're learning is relevant to them. Miss Yeah, Miss Fodn Bontes, >> thank you. >> Uh, again, I want to say that this year I could see that the teachers of our district are um phenomenal and they put the kids first and they deserve excellent support from the school board. What I think of when I think of supporting teachers is making sure that they have a voice at the table. I think this means communicating with respect and listening openly to the teachers union. I think this means making sure that teachers have the support and the resources that they need. As Mr. Davis said, I think this also means making sure that we have stable funding. I believe that ultimately teachers deserve to be the center of the decision making in their own classrooms. Thank you. >> So Adam mentioned being and living in Columbia Heights his whole life. Um so this is a question for Miss Fondas Bontis. How long have you lived in the district? >> I have lived in the district for about 15 years. My husband bought a house here. Um, I was living in St. Paul when I was teaching at St. Thomas and I moved in when I married my husband and immediately fell in love with the diversity uh of this community and um have no plans to go anywhere else. Thank you. >> And Mr. Davis, you can I mean it was for her, but you can respond also if you'd like. Um, I guess what I would say is that, uh, yeah, I'm a lifelong resident here. Uh, and you know, the diversity that we see right now is wonderful. We have so many, um, so many people that are represented in our community and in our school district. And when I was in school and I graduated in 1994, you know, I kind of was the diversity. Um there were you could count on your hands how many non-whites there were. And I believe right now we're at 16% uh white, 51% uh um uh Hispanic. It's it's a big difference and that's not a bad thing, but it's it's definitely a big demographic change that we've had and uh and I'm u happy happy to see it. Thank you. Okay. What was your position on the recent referendums and bonds that we had in our district? And we'll start again with you, Mr. Davis. So, the most recent, um, uh, bonds that were out there, uh, I personally supported. Um, I feel that uh and I'm more confident about that now because uh our most recent board I think has done a great job in being able to steward that money and where we've actually increased our our um fund balance and we're in a in we're in a really good position to have options. So if we have programs that we want to expand, we have the option. We we're not in that constant cut mode all the time. And uh I think that that's important. Um the you know at the same time you know there are a lot of constituents that I have uh that I know that uh they're not against schools but they're really feeling the pinch. they're on they're uh single moms on a limited income or they're on a they're maybe a senior on a fixed income and as much as they want to help the school um they don't have more to give without cutting something else in their budget and so um I think it's important to make sure that they have that voice that they're also heard in that process but in this particular case yes uh I did support this uh last one, >> Miss Fodnantas. >> Uh, yes. I adamantly supported the referendum that passed. Our district had gone about 18 years without passing a referendum a referendum like that that in increased our budget. Um, and I passionately feel again that public schools are the greatest investment we can make in our community. Um, and so I would continue to advocate that way. Thank you. >> The Trump administration has targeted our community. How do you think the district has managed this crisis? And this is a related question that adds on. If if you don't agree with how the board has managed this, how would you like the board to handle it differently? >> Can you repeat the question? >> The Trump administration has targeted our community. How do you think the district managed this crisis? And this adds on, it's a similar question, and I can repeat it later on. Um, if you don't agree, what would you like the board to handle differently? Okay. Uh so definitely we were in the spotlight this year and we were directly targeted. We shouldn't be targeted for our diversity. We should be celebrating it. Yet we were um our district came together. We told our story bravely and we collaborated with other districts. We quickly organized volunteers to help families. We quickly each school established mutual aid funds to help families and we advocated at the legislative level for our district. I would not suggest that anything should have done been done differently at all. Thank you. Mr. Davis, I'm going to repeat this if you'd like. The Trump administration targeted our community. How do you think the district has managed this crisis? And then if you don't agree, what would you like the board to handle differently? Well, I feel like that uh whether whatever your opinion is on immigration under the circumstances that we went through, I feel that the district did exactly what they should have done. You know, it it was clear that they overstepped. They went beyond the scope of even people who want to have some immigration enforcement. This was not the way to go about it. And uh you know it's it's embarrassing to have seen that right here in our own district in our hometown. Um, and uh, so I would not have under the information that I had, I don't think I would have changed anything with what uh, the district did. I think that they did what they needed to do. >> Thank you. Yeah. Okay, Mr. Davis, we'll start with you. How can our school district respond to drugs and other substances in our schools? I'm so we currently have policies that that dictate that that we don't we have no tolerance for for the drug policy. So I'm not exactly sure what's what's being asked for that. Um, was there any guidance on that at all? >> Yes. I'm sorry. I didn't even see this on the other side here. Um, so many of our students have access to fentanyl, opioids, and other drugs through social media as young as 10. What is your stance on having guest speakers or a panel of speakers to talk to students to educate them? And also, what is your stance on having Nixon Narcan in our schools? So, those are somewhat more specific. Yeah. Okay, that's that's much different. Thank you. >> Uh yes, most definitely. Those are uh issues that are a major problem. I think that we do need to get the word out uh to our students about the dangers uh and uh yes, I would support having Naron Narcan on hand uh for you know if God forbid that that actually happens and we have an overdose. Um so uh yes I would absolutely be in support of having speakers uh come and and speak to uh uh the students about those dangers. Um I know a few uh myself that I could offer in that way as well. So uh of groups that that uh do just that. So yes absolutely. Yeah. Miss Fodn Bontis, the question again was so many students have access to fentanyl and opioids. What is your stance on having guest speakers or a panel to talk to students and to educate them and also your stance on having nlloxxone and narcan in schools and just in general uh response to substances in our school. >> Okay, thank you for the question. So I believe that we have a responsibility to educate our students about the dangers of substances that were mentioned. I would absolutely support having speakers come to educate and empower our students about their health and their well-being in that way. Uh I would support policies that are not tolerant of drug use in our schools. And I would ensure that families have clear communication with school officials about health and uh drug policies. And yes, I would support having Naron available in case of an overdose. Thank you. >> Yes. Thank you both of you. Um, if a transgender student requests to use a different name or pronoun, will you support policies that require staff to respect that request? And we'll start with you, Miss Fondes Bontazi. >> I would absolutely honor and respect a request to be uh called by a specific pronoun that aligns with somebody's identity. Absolutely. Thank you, >> Mr. Davis. >> Okay. Uh, thanks for the question. I think what's important here is that like I said earlier, we meet the child where they're at. Okay. So if they're in that uh you know at the point where that's where they feel that that's is where um if they feel that that's where they're at. Uh whether they're, you know, they that they want to change pronouns with that. I think that's that's important to be able to reflect that. Um what I also think is important though that we include the parents as part of that process to make sure that uh that their parents can be part of that process and not be excluded and it's not just the school district. It needs to be collaborative. >> Thank you. the I was just asked I don't believe we have a limit but we are scheduled to go until 6:30 so you we're okay taking a few more questions yeah >> all right Mr. Davis. >> Mhm. >> ICE is following our school officials. How would you support your colleagues and our students? Okay. So, that's the third question on that. Um, >> it's a big deal and it's a big deal recently. >> It certainly is. It certainly is. Um, so you're specifically asking about staff in this one. I just want to >> and our students. >> Okay. Okay. Uh well, like I I said earlier, I feel that um the way that ICE went about uh everything was absolutely backwards. Um they should not have been going after our schools, our students, our staff. This should not be uh a place that they should be considering that. And uh I would say even doubly so when we're talking about um going after uh people who are not uh criminal illegal aliens but just maybe it has overstayed their time or they're working on their green card. There is somewhere in between. That was not the way to go about that. So um and our staff are our our students should not have had to deal with that. Period. >> Miss Fundes Bontis, >> thank you for the question. I can see this is the heart of the matter and I can say that for me being here in this district this last year, I know why. I felt the pain and the fear and I want to take the opportunity to say again that schools are not immigration enforcement agencies. No child deserves to be afraid in our schools. They deserve to be safe. >> Yeah. >> And I would work as a school board member to implement policies that set up a contingency plan to make sure we know what to do and we are not going to let that happen again. It is not over. I think we have to be diligent and vigilant. We have to stay informed. We have to collaborate with other districts. We have to have plans in place and I would be honored to advocate for our district at the legislative level. Thank you. >> A somewhat related question actually. Um Miss Fonda Bontes here um what can we do to support student families as they are recovering through all of this? And then also there's a request if you what did you do to personally help mutual aid with students. >> Thank you for that question. That's another question that I think is the heart of the matter for our district right now. Our our district will need to address restoration and healing for our community members. I think our students need to be connected with support. Right now, the district has uh has been bringing in therapy dogs to help. I think more programs like this need to continue. Our district has also been connecting families to mutual aid funds and uh county assistance programs. And then I believe it asked what I did specifically this year. I organized the mutual aid fund, our GoFundMe through Highland Elementary, and we very quickly and generously were able to raise over $40,000 to help the families in our districts. And I would be happy to advocate for our district in that way. Again, thank you for the question. >> Yes. Thank you. Uh Mr. Davis, it's two parts. what can we do to support students and families as they are recovering and also if you can tell us what you personally did to help in mutual aid. Okay. I think that the moment that trust is broken, which is what happened here, uh it takes a long time to heal, uh especially when the ones who overstepped are still here. And it's it's going to be ongoing. It's not it's not just a it's not strictly a recovery in this at this point I don't think. Um and it it's frustrating for I know all of our local officials because because it's federal they are limited on what they can actually do and it's just maddening for so many of us like that. I feel that uh we need to continue to uh help out our students, our families that are continuing to be affected by that. I know that the vast majority of the kids have um come back to school in person. There's so I'm very thankful for that. Um, and as far as uh, you know, things I've done personally, I guess one of the groups that I that I help out with, um, you know, we we were asked to make a donation um, for the for that through the Lions and uh, you know, uh, the Lions were very happy to uh, help out um, our community in that time of need. So and uh you know I very much uh want to do more myself personally as well but uh yeah so thank you. >> Thank you. >> All right starting with Mr. Davis again. When discussing divisive concepts or equity what is your definition and how will you ensure students feel welcomed and supported? Could you say that first part again? >> When discussing divisive concepts and equity, I believe it's asking what is your definition of equity and then also how will you ensure all students are feel are feeling welcomed and supported. >> Okay. I think when we're talking about equity, you know, it depends on who you're talking to. People think of drastically different things here. So, if we're talking about uh you know, changing the uh changing everything to fit the needs of the outcome, that's not what we're what we're looking for. But what we are are looking for is for uh students that didn't have the opportunity and and need to get back to an equal footing and to give them extra help. You know, uh that's that's where equity can be important with that. you know, being able to bring that bar up so that nobody um falls behind, falls further behind and actually does catch up and is actually at a level uh playing field so that when they are out into the real world, they actually can compete, they actually can succeed. And you know that's I think is the most important thing with that is making sure that we understand that um you know equity is is uh giving that hand up and not the hand out. You know we're making sure that we make sure that we um are able to help uh every child in that way um and make sure that they are ready to go. Thank you. Uh, Miss Vodnness Bontes, the the question is, "When discussing divisive concepts like equity, uh, what is your definition, I believe, of equity, and how will you ensure students feel welcomed and supported?" >> Thank you for the question. When I think of equity, I think of not every student or every individual having things that are the same, but every individual having the means that they need to reach the same place. So, it means removing barriers for students who have less >> and giving support. what I would do to support equitable policies and make sure that all students feel welcome. I would review our goals. I would review our policies. I would communicate with family members to make sure that they feel welcome. I would review the data. And I would hold the system accountable that equity is one of the principles of our board. Thank you. Okay, this position means that the newly elected board member will be required to hit the ground running. What are your top three priorities and how will you work with other board members to see those priorities through? And again, we'll start with you, Miss Vandes Vandas. >> Thank you. Top three priorities. >> Correct. >> Hit the ground running. Wow. Okay, that's true. Uh my top three priorities, my biggest priority right now would be addressing the funding uncertainty that faces our district. I think we need to communicate with families with transparency about this uncertainty. Um and I think that we need to advocate with legislators and have a plan for uh what would happen if we face some deficits in the future. My second priority would be making uh as I said a contingency plan to keep our schools safe from any further immigration enforcement actions. And my third priority would be uh implementing programs that address restoration and healing for our our traumatized district. Thank you. >> Yeah. Thank you. Um Mr. Davis, the position means you'll be expected to I'm sorry, you will be required to hit the ground running. What are your top three priorities and how will you work with other board members to see the priorities through? >> Okay. I think my first priority would be uh going to the legislature uh actually going down to St. Paul and being an advocate uh for the students, for the parents, uh for the teachers, and be able to uh advocate for all the things we talked about, you know, make sure that we're actually funding all these unfunded mandates or let's get rid of them because, you know, we need to have that local control. if you're not going if you're going to tell us we have to do something but you're not going to give us the money for it. That's the worst of both worlds that and I think that's really important. The fiscal disparities um you know everything from our um I believe it's our lunch program and uh the millions that we're losing because of the way that it gets allocated um with the paperwork. So we got um you know there was a lot of loss in funding with that. Another thing that I would be looking at is uh seeing if we can work with our teachers uh for their next contract that we don't uh one of the things I noted was that uh it was uh signed much later than beyond when the the contract was over. And uh you know there's got to be a way that we can work those things out so that uh we're not always in overtime you know making these negotiations. I think that's very important. And I think the third thing would be just to listen. Um you know I've I've uh always want to be humble. I think that no matter how much you've learned, how long you've been here, how much you've had various experiences, there's always more to learn. there's always more things, more perspectives to hear from. And uh so I want to make sure that I'm an advocate for all of you. So if I haven't talked about what's important to you, I'd love to hear that from you as well. I want to make sure that you're included as part of that conversation. Um everybody uh matters there. Thank you. >> Thank you. Is this the last one? >> There is one more. >> Yeah. Okay. Um, okay. So, the last one, um, and it again, this one is specifically dealing with funding. Um, to wrap up, how will you work as a board member to ensure funding and financial stability, Mr. Davis? >> Well, I think that the first step that that we would need to have is to have a a good fund balance. And I think that that's something that the school district is accomplishing right now. and to maintain that uh that that fund balance. One of the things that's really important to know is that uh while we get all this money from uh various sources, you know, from the state, um it's not always timely. They don't come at the time that you want it to show up. And it's not unusual for a school district to um use that fund balance to cover expenses until the funding that they were promised actually shows up. uh some even float short-term um uh loans until that money shows up. It's not a great way to do things, but when you're at the mercy of another uh body of uh government, you know, sometimes that happens with that. So, I think that uh being able to uh have that available is is incredibly important. Uh was there more to that question? It just said, "How are you going to work as a board member to ensure funding and financial stability?" So, >> okay. So, yeah, and I I think that again going back to making sure that we have more flexibility um being able to actually spend it on the things we need and getting rid of some of those mandates and if they're going to have mandates, make sure that they actually fund it. I think it's just insane that they do that. Okay, Miss Fodn Bontes, again it's how are you going to as a board member ensure funding and financial stability? Okay. >> Uh thank you. Good question. Again, this right now this needs to be a matter of focus for our district. We have financial uncertainty in many areas. We have this uh compensatory aid issue, the special education cross subsidy and we also are facing a reduction in enrollment due to the metro surge. What I would like to do is communicate that with families, advocate on the legislative level, and then carefully and thoughtfully prepare uh about what cuts would be made in a way that would preserve our core academic programming support for teachers and for students. Thank you. >> Thank you. Um, and that was the last question, but we do have time for um some closing remarks if you would like. So, Miss Vaness, we'll start with you. >> Okay. Well, I want to thank everybody for coming and for uh bringing good questions to the table. And I want to again say that it was a very challenging year for our district. I have two kids here and I had to explain uh what a detention camp is to my kindergartenner. I saw the the pain and the fear, but most of all in this district, I saw incredible courage, incredible resilience, uh incredible strength. We we stood strong and told our story, and I would be honored to stand with you, uh and to represent this district. Thank you. Mr. Davis. >> All right. Thank you so much. I really appreciate this opportunity to uh be able to speak to the public and uh uh to uh uh uh local 710 and the teachers and I thank you all uh for giving us this opportunity. I also want to thank my wife Maria and my mom my mom SA for attending. I also see others in the audience. uh some of faces I know, some I don't know, but I I want to be able to meet and uh I thank you all for coming for this wonderful uh opportunity to have uh this interest in uh this uh schoolboard seat. Um, and you know, I just uh want to say that uh you know, it's it's uh something that for me as a teacher, I've just been passionate about. Um, and I'm just thankful for this opportunity uh to and I hope that you uh uh consider me uh for your uh next school board member. Um, you know, we have a really shortened amount of time for this for this race. Early voting is already going. Uh, election is on Tuesday, uh, April 14th. And, uh, so if you want to vote for one of us on the day of, we're at the Highlander Center. if you go early. We're at the NOA County Government Center and uh you know, so I hope that you take the time, learn both about both of us. Um maybe put up one of my gold signs. That would be much appreciated. I saw your blue signs as well. So So thank you so much and I appreciate it. Thank you. >> Yeah. Well, uh thank you. On behalf of Local 710, I'd like to thank Jennifod Nespantis and Adam Davis, the both of the candidates. Thank you for coming. And all of you, thanks for coming to our candidate forum. It is election on April 14th and it is at the Highlander Center. And uh yeah, thanks for coming. Yeah.