With early and mail voting already underway, one of the contests facing Elmhurst voters in the April 1 consolidated election is the School District 205 race, where five candidates are vying for three seats.
City government issues may have more impact on daily life for Elmhurst taxpayers, but the School District has the most effect on taxpayer wallets. While city property taxes typically come to about 7% of a homeowner’s tax bill, District 205’s share of local tax bills is about 75%, or $3 out of every $4 residents pay in property taxes.
The candidates are Athena Arvanitis, current District 205 board president and the only incumbent in the race, along with John Bishof III, Brian Bresnahan, Tom Chavez and Nicole “Nikki” Slowinski.
In comments during the League of Women Voters of Elmhurst January candidates forum and in conversations and edited emails with Pioneer Press, the candidates spoke about their reasons for running, qualifications and their approaches to issues facing the district.
Arvanitis, the current president, is an educational consultant after nearly two decades in education with New Trier High School. She is running to continue what she calls a strong path forward.
“Over the last four years, our district has seen tremendous improvement…,” she said, “but there’s more work to do.”
Arvanitis said one of her goals is to continue the current “upward trajectory,” to ensure the district will exceed community expectations for public education over the next three to five years.
She also is concerned with fiscal responsibility, citing what she called double digit increases in standard expenses causing a strain on the overall budget. Arvanitis said the district is now in good financial standing but needs to maintain a strong financial base. She cited her background in school operations as an asset to board decisions.
Bishof, who said he is a stay-at-home dad, is a graduate of District 205 schools with three children now in the district. Bishof has volunteered in district schools with the PTA as a treasurer, web administrator and past president.
“I’m here to support students and to be an ally for teachers,” he said.
“Having felt that D205 provided me with an excellent education and preparation for college, I’m going to hold our district to very high standards,” Bishof said.
Bishof said he is concerned with attracting and retaining the best teachers who can provide what he called a robust and classical education.
“We need to make certain that we are allowing teachers to teach accurate history and current events without allowing special interest groups to ban books or topics,” Bishof said.
Bishof said he was confident that curriculum changes led by current Superintendent Keisha Campbell would bring improved test scores. He believes schools should provide for the emotional wellbeing of students, sometimes designated social emotional learning, beyond only academics.
Bresnahan is a 20-year professional educator whose volunteer roles have included serving as Foundation 205’s chairperson, PTA chair, Scout leader, religious education teacher and coach. He is currently a business coordinator for another school district.
He said he wants to bring his experience, education and “student first” mindset to the district.
A top priority would be improving student achievement by not only focusing on improving test scores, but also ensuring the district is preparing students for lifelong success.
“My experience in the classroom has shown me that while academic performance is important, we should also concentrate on prioritizing other predictors for success, such as resilience, emotional intelligence and adaptability,” he said.
Bresnahan noted that innovative education should not only be about academics, but career and technical education, experiential learning, the arts and the trades.
He said his financial and operational experience would help insure fiscal responsibility and efficient spending of taxpayer money.
Chavez is a familiar face and voice to anyone who has attended district board meetings or, before that, rallies to call for reopening schools during the pandemic.
“I think most people in the room know I’ve been a strong advocate, sometimes an outspoken advocate, for improvement in the district,” he said.
Chavez said the three things he has always talked about are academic achievement improvement, transparency from the district and holding people in charge and on the board accountable for student outcomes.
According to publicly available data from the Illinois State Board of Education, he said, only about half of York High School graduates were meeting state standards in English language arts or math, down 4% from the previous year.
“More than half of our students are missing the mark,” Chavez said. “That’s a sobering statistic for a once top-tier school district.”
Chavez also criticized the financial stewardship of district officials, noting the recent departure of a district employee for misuse of a district credit card and the resignation of his supervisor. Published reports say the district has hired an outside audit firm to investigate the matter.
“There are plenty of things improving in the district,” Chavez said, “but there are plenty of things that need to improve.”
Chavez ran four years ago as part of a slate, but said that is not the case this time around. Asked if he was affiliated with any of the other candidates, he said, “None of them. It’s me against the world.”
Slowinski also has a bachelor’s degree in education although her full-time management work is not in education. She has two children in the district and two stepchildren who graduated from York.
“I am running for the school board because I wholeheartedly agree with our mission of preparing students for college, career and life” she said during the candidate forum.
Slowinski said she is motivated to run because of her strong belief in the value of education and the importance of giving back to the community. She has been involved for years in the Emerson PTA and Churchville PTA and was a member of the Churchville Community Committee working to enhance the learning environment and connection between students, staff, families, and community members there.
In her email, Slowinski said she will work to see that students, parents, caretakers and staff are informed about the district resources and understand how to access and effectively use them. She wants to see to it that the district identifies gaps and helps to create solutions to support student readiness. She said she would be a good steward of financial resources, ensuring maximum value for students, schools and the Elmhurst community at large.
Slowinski noted there have been many changes in the district in the last several years, changes which can create challenges.
“Because of this,” she said, “I think it will be really important to continue to apply basic principles of change management such as increasing communication, providing opportunity for feedback as well as frequent updates, ensuring proper support mechanisms are in place, and remaining focused on shared goals.”
That is especially important, she said, as increasing diversity in the district will bring challenges in balancing needs and costs.
Elmhurst Community School District 205 educates about 8,300 students in 14 facilities, including 12 schools, an early childhood education center and a transition center for students 18-21 years old with intellectual disabilities.
Graydon Megan is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
