Candidate Questionnaire: Meet the Princeton Elementary School Board candidates

The race for a seat on the Princeton Elementary School Board is not contested in the April 6 consolidated election. Four candidates, newcomers Katie Dye and Blake Jacobs and incumbents Judd Lusher and Elizabeth Arkels, are running for the four full four-year terms on the ballot. There is one unexpired two-year term on the ballot, however no candidate filed a petition for that seat.

The Bureau County Republican and Voices from the Prairie felt now was a good opportunity to meet the candidates, especially the two newcomers. Here is a further glance at who these candidates are, their goals and reasons for running for school board.

The Bureau County Republican partnered with Voices from the Prairie to present the following questionnaire. Voices from the Prairie is a local transpartisan organization that promotes the importance of well-informed, involved citizenry.

Catherine (Katie) Dye

Education: Associate of Science from Illinois Valley Community College, currently completing a bachelor’s degree in accountancy at Western Illinois University.

What is your employment: Princeton High School Athletic Department Administrative Assistant.

Government experience: I have not previously held an elective office. I have been employed by both the Princeton Elementary School District (as a paraprofessional) (2018-19) and Princeton High School (2020 to present).

Community involvement: Princeton Jaycees — I served as chapter president, vice president, treasurer and Northwest Region director. I have been the Homestead Festival parade chairperson for the past four years after serving on that committee since I was in high school. I am active at St. Matthews Lutheran Church where I serve as a council member and former congregation president, I have also coached PYSL soccer and served on the committee for the annual KurtFest soccer tournament.

Why are you seeking this position? When I learned that there were multiple current PES School Board members that would not be seeking re-election, I felt that participating with the school board would be a great opportunity to serve the community in which I live. I love our Princeton schools and would like the opportunity to continue to make our district a positive and safe educational experience for our youngest community members.

What do you feel you have to offer that makes the board better able to meet community needs? I have three daughters that currently attend PES schools, so I feel that I have a good perspective on the needs of parents and families in our district. I previously worked for Jefferson Elementary School as a paraprofessional. This is one of the most rewarding experiences I have had. It gave me great insight into the daily lives of our PES students while at school and also the hard work and dedication that our amazing staff provides each and every day. In my position at PHS, I work daily with the athletic/organized activities’ finances. This has provided me with an insight into the daily happenings of a school and more about how school finances work.

What do you believe is the greatest issue District 115 will face in the next few years? I think that the greatest issue every school district in Illinois faces is finances. School districts need to plan and deliver as best they can to provide for the best possible education and school experience for today’s students and tomorrow’s all while being good stewards of public assets, including funds and property.

What are your thoughts about the district buildings and infrastructure improvements? Our district’s buildings are aging and are in need of upgrades and repairs. The needed improvements will continue to be a major financial concern of our district in the coming years.

What can be improved upon? I am proud of our school board and our district and the work that they have done during recent years. I hope to be a part of continuing the positive work that has been done for our district.

What have you learned from the school’s COVID experience and remote learning? Since last March, parents and school staff have had to make many adjustments as we worked through the COVID-19 pandemic regulations. Parents have had to adjust to trying to help children remotely learn at home, many times while trying to help multiple children all while working from home themselves. With a change in the schedule parents have had to work to arrange childcare. With having children in the district, I have seen first hand how hard our educators have been working for our children each day. Teachers have been working with in-person students during the morning and then working to record videos, prepare remote learning lessons and meet with remote students during the afternoon. This year has been a learning curve for everyone, but I have learned that our staff and our students are incredibly resilient. Throughout this last year I have been extremely thankful for our PES staff and their dedication to our students and their educational success.

Why should voters elect you? I will work hard to continue to make our district the best it can be. I will dedicate my time to learning all that I can that is involved with helping the district function to the best of its ability. I hope to have the opportunity to serve a community that I am proud to call home.

Blake Jacobs

Education: Health and safety compliance, regulated facility security, building fire systems, EMT-basic, contractor safety coordination and information technology.

What is your employment: Digital Transformation Specialist at a chemical manufacturing facility.

Government experience: Experience working with state and federal regulating entities.

Community involvement: Board member on the Princeton Youth Football League, youth football coach, assistant coach for Logan Jr. High STEM Club and active member in my local church.

Why are you seeking this position: I have an interest in serving our community and working to provide the best schools we can have for our children.

What do you feel you have to offer that makes the board better able to meet community needs? I have a genuine interest in helping to make our schools the best they can be.

What do you believe is the greatest issue District 115 will face in the next few years? The greatest issue will be recovering from the pandemic and any learning losses our students have experienced. We need to consider supports such as summer school and after-school programs in order to close the learning gaps.

What are your thoughts about the district buildings and infrastructure improvements? I will work hard to understand district building needs as I grow in my role as a board member.

What can be improved on? I come to the board with no agenda. I want to help improve the district but will study district needs to best prioritize needed improvements.

What have you learned from the school’s COVID experience and remote learning? I have learned that remote learning is tough for students and families and that nothing can replace a classroom with a caring teacher.

Why should the voters elect you? Because I care about our community and schools, and I want to serve in the effort to make a positive impact.

Judson E. Lusher

Education: B.S. English/Speech - Illinois Wesleyan University; M.S. Education/Speech – Northern Illinois University; C.A.S. School Administration – Northern Illinois University; Illinois Administrators’ Academy – 20 Seminars, Associate.

What is your employment: Retired PES School Administrator.

Governmental experience: Elected four terms to the Princeton Elementary School Board.

Community involvement: Community Partners Against Substance Abuse Coalition (CPASA) – Board of Directors; Bureau County United Way – Past Board of Directors; North Central Regional Betterment Coalition – Board; Princeton Rotary Club; Bureau County Retired Teacher’s Association.

Why are you seeking this position? I understand school governance and know how critical it is to listen, gather data, set goals and timelines for accomplishments, evaluate progress, work cooperatively and collaboratively with others to alter goals as needed, and to utilize available resources for success.

What do you feel you have to offer that makes the board better able to meet community needs? I am proactive, and in working with others, I find it more positive and successful to always think creatively in addressing the challenging issues that school systems often face.

What do you believe is the greatest issue District 115 will face in the next few years? It is unfortunate that the Princeton community failed to pass a much-needed building referendum for District 115. The problem/issue of replacing old, outdated buildings is not going to go away. It still remains. Other nearby districts have met the needs of their students by replacing aging infrastructure. As a board member, I would encourage the rest of the board to give thought to running another building referendum.

What are your thoughts about the district buildings and infrastructure improvements? We can spend a lot of money on improvements and you still have old, outdated buildings that don’t meet the needs of 21st century learning.

What can be improved upon? School buildings. Please reference my answers to the previous two questions.

What have you learned from the school’s COVID experience and remote learning? What people out in the public are telling me is that the teachers, staff and administrators have been doing a fantastic job this school year with the education of our PES students. I am very proud of them!

Why should the voters elect you? I am a strong advocate for quality education and excellent schools. Nothing is more important to the shared future of society than the well being of children. As a board member, I will continue to work for the students of Princeton Elementary District 115.

Elizabeth Arkels

Education: PHS, St. Ambrose, Illinois Valley Community College and multiple Red Cross training certificates.

Government experience: Two terms on the school board.

Community involvement: Volunteered for multiple fundraisers and school events.

Why are you seeking this position? I have spent the past eight years on the board and feel it is important to share my knowledge and experience as we transition to a new superintendent and board members.

What do you feel you have to offer that makes the board better able to meet community needs? I can offer an open mind and the knowledge I have obtained in the past eight years.

What do you believe is the greatest issue District 115 will face in the next few years? The transition to a new superintendent and board members can always potentially pose issues. I am confident we will all work together in a respectful and open-minded way so we do what is best for not only our students and staff but our community as a whole.

What are your thoughts about the district buildings and infrastructure improvements? Our buildings are in poor shape. Some worse than others. We have done what we can with the current updates that have been made. Unfortunately, those are only temporary solutions.

What can be improved upon? There is always room for growth and improvement. I, personally, would like to work on my own community outreach and grow the numbers of public attendants to our meetings.

What have you learned from the schools COVID experience and remote learning? As a parent, I have seen some really great things and not so great things with remote learning. I have seen our admins and staff go above and beyond to do the best they can to make this challenging time as smooth as possible for students and their families. No one ever expected to have be a part of a pandemic, everyone has adapted incredibly to the unknowns we were/are faced with.

Why should the voters elect you? I have served two previous terms. I look forward to supporting our new superintendent and mentoring new board members. I have learned so much in the last eight years and want to learn more, while supporting our students and staff and doing what is best for our community as a whole.