Wausau Pilot & Review
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In the spring election April 2, three candidates are vying for two seats on the D.C. Everest School Board.
Larry Schaefer, Katie Felch and Steven Cronin are all on the ballot. Here, they’ve answered questions about their views and candidacy ahead of election day.
Larry Schaefer, 76, retired chemical engineer. Prior political experience: Elected to 27 years of service on the D.C. Everest School Board.
Katie Felch, 41, vice president of community and government relations at Northcentral Technical College. Prior political experience: D.C. Everest School Board.
Steven Cronin, 32, small business owner. Prior political experience: Current Village of Weston trustee, on the SAFER Board of Directors, and chair of the Weston Planning Commission
What motivated you to run for office?
Schaefer: My ongoing concern for the increasing emotional needs of the students (and of the teachers) and my desire to maintain the high standards of performance at DCE.
Felch: As an alumni of D.C. Everest, parent in the District, wife of a local business owner/manufacturer, higher ed partner and community member, I have a vested interest in the continued success of DCE. I had a wonderful experience as a student at D.C. Everest and was fortunate to be taught by many amazing teachers (some of whom are still teaching today) and had many excellent extracurricular, leadership and athletic opportunities. I care deeply about our District and the kids who call our community home and I want to ensure that they have the same, or more, opportunities that I was afforded as a student in the District. Since returning to the area, I have been fortunate to give of my time and talents to a variety of organizations and causes that support one of our community’s greatest resources – our children. If I am given the opportunity to continue to serve our great school District as a board member for another term, I will work diligently to ensure that our District remains strong for our students, businesses and community well into the future. I believe there is still impact to be made and, if re-elected, I promise to continue to approach my role with eagerness, thoughtfulness and a willingness to learn and grow.
Cronin: I have two children that are just becoming of school age and are enrolled in the Everest District. One is currently in Kindergarten at Mountain Bay Elementary, the other is attending 3k at St. Marks. Being a parent of kids currently enrolled in the district goes a long way in helping guide the direction of the district. Particularly when it comes to the parenting issues of today and being actively involved with our schools for the foreseeable future.
What are the three most pressing issues that the district faces today, and how would you address them?
Schaefer:
- Financial Challenges due to the combination of inflation and the concerns/limits of the taxpayers versus ever increasing educational needs of our graduates who will be trying to compete in the job market.
- Attracting and retaining the best staff.
- Maintaining the existing outstanding support from the community that DCE now enjoys.
Felch:
- Mental Health + Safety: Mental health and wellness for students and staff and ensuring a safe learning and working environment for all have been priorities for the Board, and they will need to be continued priorities moving forward. We have prioritized an investment in mental health resources and staffing, student support teachers and behavioral early interventions in recognition of the many stresses placed upon both kids and staff. It’s important that all who enter our buildings feel supported and safe.
- Funding: As a board member, it is important that I am a responsible steward of the tax dollar that carefully considers the local tax burden. At the same time, I recognize that public education in Wisconsin is limited by a lack of adequate state funding at a time when we are seeing the rising cost of inflation coupled with increasing student needs. As such, funding will continue to be a priority for me as a Board member. I will continue to advocate for additional state investment while ensuring our existing budget is nimble and responsive to both student and staff needs.
- Great Place to Work: I can still list the DCE teachers and staff who had a profound impact on me and why. I want to ensure that our District staff continue to have the opportunity to positively impact kids. We will need to continue to prioritize talent attraction and retention to ensure we are providing the best experience for our learners.
Cronin:
Teacher burnout- This continues to be an issue nationwide. The district needs to continue to invest in technology and tools that make their job easier. How can we increase productivity during the day so work isn’t going home with them at night? Mandates from DPI and the legislature make things complicated but our focus should be how we can help teachers achieve their mission.
Growth- The communities that make up the Everest District have been experiencing significant growth in the last decade and that is projected to continue. The district needs to continue to plan for the future and anticipate the needs of the community before the needs exist.
Budget- Budgets always seem to be a challenge, but I do feel that this has become more of a challenge in recent years due to the record inflation we have experienced. The district needs to constantly be searching for new ways to save a buck or two. Whether it’s taking a look at various contracts with suppliers, partnering with neighboring districts to increase buying power, or looking at things we can do in house vs contracting for. Everything should be looked at. The time I’ve spent on the Weston Village board has taught me a lot about how local budgets and funding works and I think that gives me a unique perspective as well.
What are the best things about the D.C. Everest School District?
Schaefer: We actively focus on making D.C. Everest a great place to learn and a great place to work.
Felch: Simply put, it’s our people. We have amazing students who are doing amazing things every day. We have outstanding staff at all levels of the organization who care deeply about helping kids and ensuring student success. We have a community who supports the work that we do and invests in our students. I couldn’t be more proud to be part of the D.C. Everest School District.
Cronin: We have a fantastic technical education program that very few other districts in the area are able to match. The district is very well supported by the community and local businesses, as is evident by the results of the last referendum and the support for the Greenheck Turner community center currently under construction adjacent to the senior high. DCE consistently pays its teachers well in comparison to districts across the state. The district also offers comprehensive PTO benefits and are one of few to offer PTO.
Members of school boards are often far apart from one another on issues that come before them. How would you work to find common ground with someone whose views you disagree with?
Schaefer: The current members of the DCE School Board all have the same focus for our work, which is the students. As a result, we are very rarely far apart on issues. When we don’t agree, we still respect each other’s opinions because we understand that different opinions can arise because each Board member has had a different set of life experiences. By the time we are done discussing an issue, we typically end up with an unanimous vote. We do occasionally have a divided vote, which is a good thing because it shows that an individual can speak their mind and vote their convictions. We have also (rarely) ended up with a 4 to 3 vote. Fortunately, DCE has had Board members who, when they have been on the 3 side of a 4 to 3 decision (as I have been, on occasion), those 3 Board members are mature enough to “bury the hatchet” and genuinely say that this was not my personal choice but as a Board member it is now my choice and I support it 100%.
Felch: I said this often when I was Board president, but we must model and extend grace. My role as a school board member is to thoughtfully listen to and build relationships with not only my fellow board members, but all stakeholders. I think we have done a good job of this overall as a Board during my tenure. I haven’t always agreed with my fellow board members on issues, but I always welcome any opportunity to engage in open, transparent and honest dialogue. At the end of the day, we are all one collective team and our District is best served when we work collaboratively as board members, administrators, staff and families in support of the best interest of kids.
Cronin: Disagreeing with others is a good thing. Opposing views foster good conversation. I’m always in favor of having a healthy discussion on an issue and finding some common ground, something that I think often gets overlooked in today’s political climate.
How can D.C. Everest work to attract the highest quality teachers while being mindful of budgetary issues?
Schaefer: First, we must “do our homework” to ensure our salary structure is within the competitive range with other comparable schools. Also, the current Board, in conjunction with the Teachers, have developed a salary “ladder” structure that contains additional salary that can be earned by teachers who are willing to work and complete advanced education programs that have been approved by the Board for their subject. Many of the surveys that address the question of “why do you stay” show that Teachers want to be appreciated and respected. This important lesson is why the Board adopted as one of its goals “Make DCE a great place to work”.
Felch: As a Board, we have prioritized an investment in paid time off for teachers in recognition of their work and in support of work/life balance. We evaluate our compensation packages to ensure we are competitive with the market. We have supported investments in mental health resources and staffing, student support teachers and student behavior early interventions in recognition of the many stresses and burdens placed upon both students and staff in today’s educational environment. We developed two initiatives to ensure we retain our best + brightest alumni as future DCE teachers through the “Teachers Change Lives” course and the “Always an Evergreen” educator talent pipeline. While these are tangible examples of talent retention and attraction practices within budgetary constraints, I believe one of the most important things we can do as a District is to create an environment where people feel supported in their work and connected to our goal of being a great place to learn, work and live. At the core, it’s about valuing, recognizing and appreciating the amazing individuals who give of their time and talents to our most valuable resource – our kids.
Cronin: We should be using the area as a whole to market our positions. The DC Everest district and the Wausau area in general is a fantastic place to live, work, and raise a family. We have a lot of the perks of a larger metropolitan area but still have that small town feel. There are plenty of outdoor recreation opportunities, unique restaurants, shopping, plenty of different events throughout the year, etc. Selling what makes this area a great place to live and work doesn’t cost the district a dime.
If you were forced to cut one single program at the district – whether that is athletics, music, art, or any other program – what would it be?
Schaefer: Many years ago when the Wisconsin legislature cut the budgets to all schools, the DCE Board had to make the hard choice of cutting a course, which ended up being Driver’s Education. This was a particularly hard choice because our program cost less than others and so the lower socioeconomic residents depended on DCE to help provide a driver’s license for their child so that their child could get a job, help pay for insurance, take siblings to school., etc. DCE was forced to cut a class that hurt the portion of our constituency that could least afford it. In the end it came down what DCE had to do and versus what it was nice to do. Drivers Education was a nice to do course. Selecting which course to cut depends upon a large number of different details that exist at the point in time for each different course being considered for removal. As result, it is not possible to today select a course which might need to be cut at sometime in the future. The last time we had to make at a decision to cut a course at DCE it was particularly distasteful. If another such decision ends up being required again, I suspect it will be equally distasteful. None the less, when you are on the Board you do what you have to do.
Felch: Under our Board goal of being a “Great Place to Learn” is “Portrait of a Graduate.” This initiative seeks to ensure every D.C. Everest student has the opportunity to have meaningful academic, service and community-based experiences. The thing I love most about this approach is that it meets kids where they’re at and recognizes that each student has unique goals, interests and skillsets and there are multiple pathways for success. As such, I would not support a singular cut to one program because each program has value for the students who are engaged in it. If the Board were forced to make a cut, I would advocate for a consistent percentage reduction of each program’s overall budget to meet the targeted budget reduction amount.
Cronin: I am not a proponent of cutting anything quite frankly. I would instead look to work with staff and department heads to see what budgetary adjustments can be made in ALL departments to ensure that we can continue to provide the services and programs that we are already providing. Athletics, music, and art specifically are all tied to positive mental health which is a massive subject and direction of the district. Cutting any of those would be a huge mistake.
A number of school boards nationwide have banned certain books from being taught in schools. Do you agree with that decision? Why or why not?
Schaefer: Like other school districts, DC Everest offers parents the option to opt out of any particular subject matter that they find objectionable for their particular child. Every parent has the responsibility and the right to determine what their child is exposed to. On the other hand, no parent has the right to determine what some other parent’s child can or can’t see. Banning books violates everyone else’s First Amendment rights and therefore banning books is against the law.
Felch: I would rely on our Board Policy 9130 to provide guidance on this issue. If a family or individual has a concern regarding instructional material, including books, they may follow the parameters of the policy. This approach honors first amendment rights and leans on experts to provide guidance while also ensuring families have the opportunity to independently express concern(s) and make individual choice(s) on course matter and content.
Cronin: This depends very much on the subject matter of the book and the age group it is being made available to. Every situation is different and needs to be looked at individually. Without a specific example in front of me I can’t answer this question. What I can tell you is that DC Everest does have a Policy for parents and stakeholders to make formal complaints. The policy outlines how a book would be reviewed and considered for potential removal from the library. Books in the library for free reading and books required in the classroom are two different things. If a complaint were to come before the board, I would approach the situation with an open mind and use my best judgement to make a decision that is best for ALL students.
What else would you like voters to know about you?
Schaefer: I have lived in the DC Everest School District for the last 47 years and so I believe that I have a good idea of what the expectations are of the residents of the District. In addition to my 27 years on the DCE School Board, I served on the Kronenwetter Fire Department and after 22 years of service I retired as one of the our two Captains. I was a founding member of the Kronenwetter Medical Emergence First Responder team having also now retired after 22 years of service. I was honorably discharged from military service as a Captain, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Combat Engineer reserves. I know what it means to serve. My 27 years on the Board have also given an me understanding of what is required to be a Servant Leader on a School Board. I would appreciate the opportunity to serve another term on the DCE School Board.
Felch: My husband and I are both DCE alumni who have been blessed with three amazing kids who are now experiencing their own “DCE pride” as students at the DCE Senior High, Junior High and Riverside Elementary.
In my professional role, I currently serve as the Vice President of Community + Government Relations at Northcentral Technical College. In my nearly 20 years at NTC, I have had an opportunity to see firsthand how partnerships with local K12 Districts, including D.C. Everest, four year college articulation partners and local businesses create seamless educational pathways for students that positively impact the local economy.
In addition to my role at the College, my husband and I both feel it is important for our family to give back to the amazing Everest community we call home. I currently serve as a board member and past president of the D.C. Everest Area School Board; board member for the D.C. Everest Education Foundation; past board member, secretary and treasurer for the Foundation of Saint Clare’s Hospital; and vice president of the Board for the Children’s Imaginarium, a STEM-focused children’s museum in Wausau. I also volunteer my time as the chair of the Aspirus Health Foundation Festival of Trees Gala and as Junior Achievement classroom volunteer (Riverside Elementary + DCE Junior High) in addition to serving as the Marketing + PR Coordinator for the Friends of Everest Boys Basketball Booster Club. In 2021, I was the recipient of the Greater Wausau Chamber of Commerce Athena Young Professional Award and in 2014, I was recognized as one of the recipients of the Wausau Area “20 Under 40” award.
While my background and biography provide context to who I am as a candidate, the most important aspect of my candidacy is my “why,” and that’s the students. I care deeply about our District and the kids who call our community home. It would be my honor to give of my time and talents to continue serving the entire Everest community and I respectfully ask for your vote on April 2nd.
Cronin: I believe the knowledge I’ve gained through operating numerous small businesses and sitting on the village of Weston Trustees and subsequent committees gives me a unique perspective that could help guide the direction of the district for years to come. I am asking for your vote on April 2nd!
