Commitment to District 200 Schools

I value public education and I am deeply committed to District 200. My son attended K-12 at Lowell, Edison, and Central. I was widowed in 2018 and have remarried. My wife’s three children and two of her grandchildren are or will be District 200 graduates (K-12, one still at North). I have sponsored and contributed to the Jefferson playground equipment, the Monroe Eagle dinners, the Wheaton North drama program, and the Lowell art program. I am a volunteer at Jefferson Early Childhood Center and have donated supplies there. 

I eagerly supported the recent referendum to fund badly-needed improvements at Edison, Franklin, and Monroe Middle Schools. (Hubble, being much newer, is in good shape.) This IS NOT deferred maintenance which implies neglect over the years. I could go into detail about things wearing out. Obsolescence is not fixed with a coat of paint. Thanks to past leadership, our outstanding bonds will be completely repaid this year, and the new bonds approved by the referendum will cost less to repay than what we have been paying on the old ones. I considered the 68% yes vote to be a strong endorsement of the leadership of the current board and administration.

Several years ago, the board adopted a commitment to spend about $7 million a year out of the current budget for ongoing maintenance of our Jefferson Early Childhood Center, 13 elementary schools, 4 middle schools, and 2 high schools. The goal is to prevent deferred maintenance and deterioration. I strongly support this plan.