Ann Arbor Board of Education vets school board candidates

The school board interviewed the applicants Monday evening. School board members will appoint one of the candidates to fill Hollier's seat at their regular March 10 meeting, following brief public statements by the candidates.

At the Balas Administration Building, the board quizzed candidates about revenue generation and cost-savings ideas.

Hard choices facing the board in the coming months could include layoffs, reductions to employee benefits, the privatization of maintenance and bus services, and opening the district to schools of choice. 

Few candidates addressed the specific issues head-on during the interview.

Victoria Haviland said ideas for adding revenue and resources to the district include sending a clear message to the community about what's needed and possible partnerships with area universities to identify grant money. For cost-cutting measures, the former teacher who now trains teachers at the university level said she was ready to learn more and debate proposed measures, such as the privatization of some district services.

Jeff Sabatini said his experience as a journalist and lack of traditional experience in the education field would be an asset, allowing him to act as a watchdog on the board. Big ideas that go against the traditional - such as year-round schooling - are interesting and worth further debate, he said. "There are a lot of alternative educational ideas that have been out there for a long time that are proven, and with the will, could be implemented and produce cost savings," he said.

James Corey complimented board members' approach to addressing the budget situation thus far and acknowledged they faced a difficult situation. He suggested the district consider technology as cost-savings measure. Corey, a former teacher and current graduate student in public administration who now works for the digitization project, Google Book Search, said districts spend money on books that can now be downloaded for free.

Susan Collet said she was familiar with proposals for savings, such as the outsourcing of some staff, but would hold off on commenting on specific ideas for revenue or savings so she could gather more information. The auto industry engineer said she would try to make decisions based on what was best for district children.

Andy Thomas credited the financial crisis facing the district as his primary motivation for potentially joining the board. The retired hospital administrator said he doesn't have an agenda, but wants to help solve budget problems in a thoughtful, rational manner. Thomas was one of three candidates who directly addressed a proposal to open up the district to schools of choice. He said it was an area of concern but stopped short of opposing the idea. "We need to have a plan B in place," he said.

Schools of choice allows students from within a county or contiguous intermediate school district to attend another school district if it becomes schools of choice. State funding follows each student to the district he or she attends. The option of limited schools of choice has been proposed as a way to generate a projected $1 million-plus annually in revenue. Some 150 schools of choice seats could be opened - 50 kindergarten or first grade seats, 50 sixth grade seats and 50 seats at the alternative high school at Stone School or Roberto Clemente School.

Haviland and candidate Jack Panitch echoed Thomas' sentiment of concern.

Jack Panitch, a tax lawyer turned stay-at-home dad, said he has "a lot of learning to do," but as a board member would work to help preserve education, which he called the community's best asset. He said several of proposed ideas for budget savings are great and need to be discussed. "The fact is I don't want to say anything more without all of the data," he said.

Christine Stead said she has vetted some options proposed for savings, but preferred to speak about revenue ideas. The business management consultant said she favors more strategic approach toward sustainability and independence, with both foundation work and an eye on business partnerships.

Margy Long, a retired non-profit executive, said the board shouldn't shy away from proposing another countywide millage. In November, voters struck down the 2-mill, five-year schools enhancement millage that would have raise $30 million for public schools countywide per year, costing the owner of the home with a $100,000 taxable value $200 per year. 

She said privatizing maintenance and bus services was an area of concern. "I'm very concerned that the employees that have the least ability to absorb that kind of trauma are the ones we end up putting the trauma on," Long said.

Haviland, Thomas, Panitch, Stead and Long have children in district; Sabatini has a child entering kindergarten; Collet's children graduated from the district and Corey attended Ann Arbor Public Schools but has no children in the district.

Hollier's short tenure on the board ended following his resignation. He had withdrawn from the board's last race just shy of the May 2009 election, but was elected anyway. In the end, he agreed to serve and was sworn in July 2009.

Hollier's resignation is the second on the board in recent months. Longtime Ann Arbor school board member Helen Gates-Bryant resigned last November and was replaced by Simone Lightfoot in December. During that replacement process, seven people applied for the seat.

Editor's note: This story has been corrected to reflect that Jeff Sabatini did not address schools of choice in his interview, while Jack Panitch said he favors schools of choice. AnnArbor.com regrets the error.

Juliana Keeping covers higher education for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at julianakeeping@annarbor.com or 734-623-2528. Follow Juliana Keeping on Twitter