'Meet and Greet' acquaints public with NCSD school board candidates
NORWICH – The public was formally introduced to four candidates running for two vacancies on the Norwich School Board last night, May 9, at a 'Meet and Greet' event in the Norwich High School auditorium.
Candidates Don Chirlin, Roz DeRensis, Brian Reid, and incumbent TJ Grady each took part in the panel where they delivered opening statements before fielding prepared questions that served to give the public insight on what each candidate might bring to the board should they be elected.
Though of varying backgrounds and levels of experience, the consensus among the candidates was that a successful board member will listen to their constituents as well as contrive ways to get more people in the community involved and aware in the happenings in Norwich City School District.
Chirlin was the evening's first speaker introducing himself as a former teacher for 24 years, as well as a former Norwich School Board member. He was the first candidate to respond to the opening question: “How will you be fiscally responsible?"
“I put a great deal of trust and faith in the person who is putting the budget together,” said Chirlin, who cited his past attendance at each month's Board of Education meeting as his means to assure transparency in the budget process.
“So how would I deal with fiscal responsibility? I don't really deal with it, except for the fact that I hold those accountable who do deal with it – that's my job,” said Chirlin.
DeRensis was next to respond to the question, prefacing her answer by providing background details regarding her history as a grant writer.
“Budget, budget, budget – always refer back to the budget,” said DeRensis, adding that a proper vision is necessary in the process of crafting the budget, and subsequently should be followed accordingly.
She went on to reiterate one of Chirlin's points, which was that only two community members attended the district's budget hearing on Monday, May 8.
“I think educating the public on why, 'why do we need to attend a budget hearing?' is important,” said DeRensis.
Reid said in his response to the question, “It's very important to have a good plan. Having a vision that's both short and long-term is important because when difficult decisions arise – and they do, you need to have something to refer back to.”
Reid also discussed his background as a Vice President of Operations for a global manufacturing company as evidence of his fluency in finance.
Grady, who's currently serving on the school board and is up for reelection, said, “I would 100 percent have to agree with Don [Chirlin]. I think the school actually does a phenomenal job with the budget. On the three years I've been on the board, there have not been any major cuts, nor any tax levy increase.”
Grady went on to say that in his experiences, he's been briefed on finances and the budgets' standing on a monthly basis while serving on the Board of Education, and this allows him the ability to remain in-touch with spending.
Another question the candidates were asked was: “What do you believe is the most serious challenge that the district is currently facing, and what do you plan on doing about it?”
Chirlin asserted that a lack of continuous leadership in Norwich High School is his main concern, as he says it has been without an unabridged principal in recent memory. Chirlin says this lack of a long-term leader contributes to some students' lack of discipline and success.
"Not every student is a great, grade-A student and we need educators that will adjust. I used to claim that I would have some students pass the class just to spite me," said Chirlin.
Grady answered, “I think definitely a huge challenge for all schools: Test scores – that's what everybody looks at at the end of the school year: What are the test scores? So I'm trying to devise ways for us to improve our test scores. How do we do that? By giving our teachers more freedom.”
Reid's response was that the graduation rate is what alarms him the most. He submitted that some kids are unorthodox learners, and educators should take a different approach in teaching them.
As for how Reid plans to deal with it, he relayed an anecdote regarding an instance at his workplace where they invited 20 students to try to solve a problem that his company was facing, and ended up implementing part of a students' solution.
“I can tell you that was the most rewarding experience you can imagine; you open a kid's eyes to something they could never have imagined themselves doing,” said Reid.
DeRensis also responded by citing her concern with graduation rates in Norwich, saying, “We need to enrich a proper learning environment for at-risk students, provide at-risk students with a variety of options and a set of tools to help them graduate from high school. It's important to have teachers that can deal with at-risk students.”
DeRensis added that while this is her main concern, she doesn't think 'the district is broken' or in need of any major repair, but rather that there is an opportunity for growth.
The evening's final prepared question was: “Describe how you view your role as a member of the Board of Education.”
Reid said, “For me, I think the primary role on the Board of Education is to be the voice: The voice of the community, the voice of parents, teachers, and administrators. And to do that, you have to listen. It's not easy to be a voice, to make the tough decisions, but I think that's the primary goal.”
Grady said, “Number one role is to oversee the Superintendent, make sure he is doing his job. But also to be a voice, and be an ear. A lot of the time the community won't talk to the administrators, or teachers – a lot of the time people will go to the board. And it's our job to be that middle ground.”
DeRensis said that while there are a lot of responsibilities associated with being a member of the Board of Education, the main role is to listen.
“I believe, as a public school district, the district should be run by, and have the voice of, the public. My main goal right now is just to listen, and without arbitration, come to a consensus of the people,” said DeRensis.
Chirlin, who was last to respond, said, “I think the easiest thing to say would be to follow the school's Mission Statement, and to follow through with the decisions that (the board) has made. But also I like the idea of being an advocate for the students.”
The upcoming school board election will take place on Tuesday, May 16, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Voting locations are listed as follows:
• District 1 at St. Bart's Parish Center: City of Norwich Wards 1 through 6,Town of Norwich Districts 1 and 2, Town of North Norwich, Town of Guilford, Town of New Berlin 1, and Oxford 1 and 2.
• District 2 at Plymouth Firehouse: Towns of Plymouth and Smyrna.
• District 3 at Preston Firehouse: Towns of Preston, Pharsalia, and McDonough.
Grady Thompson Photo
(L - R) Norwich School Board candidates Don Chirlin, Roz DeRensis, Brian Reid, and TJ Grady take part in a 'Meet and Greet’ panel ahead of Monday, May 16’s election.
Candidates Don Chirlin, Roz DeRensis, Brian Reid, and incumbent TJ Grady each took part in the panel where they delivered opening statements before fielding prepared questions that served to give the public insight on what each candidate might bring to the board should they be elected.
Though of varying backgrounds and levels of experience, the consensus among the candidates was that a successful board member will listen to their constituents as well as contrive ways to get more people in the community involved and aware in the happenings in Norwich City School District.
Chirlin was the evening's first speaker introducing himself as a former teacher for 24 years, as well as a former Norwich School Board member. He was the first candidate to respond to the opening question: “How will you be fiscally responsible?"
“I put a great deal of trust and faith in the person who is putting the budget together,” said Chirlin, who cited his past attendance at each month's Board of Education meeting as his means to assure transparency in the budget process.
“So how would I deal with fiscal responsibility? I don't really deal with it, except for the fact that I hold those accountable who do deal with it – that's my job,” said Chirlin.
DeRensis was next to respond to the question, prefacing her answer by providing background details regarding her history as a grant writer.
“Budget, budget, budget – always refer back to the budget,” said DeRensis, adding that a proper vision is necessary in the process of crafting the budget, and subsequently should be followed accordingly.
She went on to reiterate one of Chirlin's points, which was that only two community members attended the district's budget hearing on Monday, May 8.
“I think educating the public on why, 'why do we need to attend a budget hearing?' is important,” said DeRensis.
Reid said in his response to the question, “It's very important to have a good plan. Having a vision that's both short and long-term is important because when difficult decisions arise – and they do, you need to have something to refer back to.”
Reid also discussed his background as a Vice President of Operations for a global manufacturing company as evidence of his fluency in finance.
Grady, who's currently serving on the school board and is up for reelection, said, “I would 100 percent have to agree with Don [Chirlin]. I think the school actually does a phenomenal job with the budget. On the three years I've been on the board, there have not been any major cuts, nor any tax levy increase.”
Grady went on to say that in his experiences, he's been briefed on finances and the budgets' standing on a monthly basis while serving on the Board of Education, and this allows him the ability to remain in-touch with spending.
Another question the candidates were asked was: “What do you believe is the most serious challenge that the district is currently facing, and what do you plan on doing about it?”
Chirlin asserted that a lack of continuous leadership in Norwich High School is his main concern, as he says it has been without an unabridged principal in recent memory. Chirlin says this lack of a long-term leader contributes to some students' lack of discipline and success.
"Not every student is a great, grade-A student and we need educators that will adjust. I used to claim that I would have some students pass the class just to spite me," said Chirlin.
Grady answered, “I think definitely a huge challenge for all schools: Test scores – that's what everybody looks at at the end of the school year: What are the test scores? So I'm trying to devise ways for us to improve our test scores. How do we do that? By giving our teachers more freedom.”
Reid's response was that the graduation rate is what alarms him the most. He submitted that some kids are unorthodox learners, and educators should take a different approach in teaching them.
As for how Reid plans to deal with it, he relayed an anecdote regarding an instance at his workplace where they invited 20 students to try to solve a problem that his company was facing, and ended up implementing part of a students' solution.
“I can tell you that was the most rewarding experience you can imagine; you open a kid's eyes to something they could never have imagined themselves doing,” said Reid.
DeRensis also responded by citing her concern with graduation rates in Norwich, saying, “We need to enrich a proper learning environment for at-risk students, provide at-risk students with a variety of options and a set of tools to help them graduate from high school. It's important to have teachers that can deal with at-risk students.”
DeRensis added that while this is her main concern, she doesn't think 'the district is broken' or in need of any major repair, but rather that there is an opportunity for growth.
The evening's final prepared question was: “Describe how you view your role as a member of the Board of Education.”
Reid said, “For me, I think the primary role on the Board of Education is to be the voice: The voice of the community, the voice of parents, teachers, and administrators. And to do that, you have to listen. It's not easy to be a voice, to make the tough decisions, but I think that's the primary goal.”
Grady said, “Number one role is to oversee the Superintendent, make sure he is doing his job. But also to be a voice, and be an ear. A lot of the time the community won't talk to the administrators, or teachers – a lot of the time people will go to the board. And it's our job to be that middle ground.”
DeRensis said that while there are a lot of responsibilities associated with being a member of the Board of Education, the main role is to listen.
“I believe, as a public school district, the district should be run by, and have the voice of, the public. My main goal right now is just to listen, and without arbitration, come to a consensus of the people,” said DeRensis.
Chirlin, who was last to respond, said, “I think the easiest thing to say would be to follow the school's Mission Statement, and to follow through with the decisions that (the board) has made. But also I like the idea of being an advocate for the students.”
The upcoming school board election will take place on Tuesday, May 16, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Voting locations are listed as follows:
• District 1 at St. Bart's Parish Center: City of Norwich Wards 1 through 6,Town of Norwich Districts 1 and 2, Town of North Norwich, Town of Guilford, Town of New Berlin 1, and Oxford 1 and 2.
• District 2 at Plymouth Firehouse: Towns of Plymouth and Smyrna.
• District 3 at Preston Firehouse: Towns of Preston, Pharsalia, and McDonough.
Grady Thompson Photo
(L - R) Norwich School Board candidates Don Chirlin, Roz DeRensis, Brian Reid, and TJ Grady take part in a 'Meet and Greet’ panel ahead of Monday, May 16’s election.
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