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Voters will have more to say about school board this year

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Gregory K. Ardrey

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Karl Dommerhausen

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Jim Farrell

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Tom Lemmer

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Diedre Richard

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DuWayne Severson

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Peter D. Severson

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Lori Stottler

JANESVILLE — For the first time in recent memory, voters will pick a majority of the nine-member Janesville School Board.

Normally, members serve staggered, three-year terms, so elections are held for just three seats each year.

This year, five seats are up for grabs. The top three vote-getters will serve three years. The next two will serve for one year.

The situation arose when two board members resigned, in May and June 2008. The board appointed two men—Greg Ardrey and Peter D. Severson—to replace them.

The law requires that an election be held for those seats at the next opportunity, which is April 7.

Ardrey and Severson both are running to retain their seats. So are incumbents Lori Stottler and DuWayne Severson.

The two Seversons are not related.

One incumbent, Debra Kolste, is not running for re-election.

Eight people filed their nomination papers by Tuesday's deadline. The other candidates are Karl Dommershausen, Jim Farrell, Tom Lemmer and Diedre Richard.

Dommershausen, Farrell and Lemmer were among the 10 people who applied for the open board seats last summer.

Here's more information on each candidate:

-- Ardrey, 42, of 25 Sauk Court, is an electrical engineer and a senior manager for Alliant Energy. He serves on the Janesville Multicultural Teacher Opportunities Scholarship Fund Board.

Ardrey said his top priority is seeing that all Janesville students achieve to the best of their abilities so they can become productive adults.

Ardrey said he has been frustrated in his five months on the board that issues other than academics—while important—have eclipsed the job of educating students.

Inspiring children to do their best in school should be at the top of school board members' agendas, Ardrey said, and he hopes to promote that idea.

That goes for special education, for the gifted and talented, "but also, how do we get the average student that's just sort of sliding through, and we really don't stimulate that child to say, ‘this is what I really want to do,'" he said.

A secondary issue is the district's growing diversity, but Ardrey ties that issue into academics, too. The district has a growing population of minority students while the staff remains largely white.

No matter what their ethnicity, the more diverse experience teachers have, the better the chance they will have of finding ways to inspire a student, Ardrey said.

Ardrey said the thing that helped him get to where he is today was his academic performance while growing up in St. Louis, and he believes that same can be true for all Janesville students.

-- Dommershausen, 66, of 2419 Plymouth Ave., has run twice for Janesville City Council. He has been active in a wide variety of community-improvement efforts.

Dommershausen runs 27 West Appraisals & Estate Services in Janesville with his wife, Renee.

He said he always has been interested in education. He was active when the city's first Montessori school was opened decades ago and worked with the PTA when his children were in school. He recently has been serving in an effort that targets homelessness among children.

"I have never been unhappy with the school board," he said. "Their decisions have made sense to me. ...I believe the board needs to manage the school district, but not micromanage."

Dommershausen has longtime experience in managing computer systems and said he is concerned about the state of the district's information-technology staff, which is going through a transition in the wake of a devastating computer-virus attack last fall.

He said his expertise might help as the board faces proposals to improve its information technology.

Dommershausen said he believes he can help the district prepare students for the future, especially in the aftermath of the massive loss of jobs connected to the General Motors plant.

He does not want to increase the district budget. "If anything, I'd like to see it drop," he said. "But I don't want to make class sizes larger, and I want to make sure the children have a broad educational background."

-- Farrell, 62, of 1427 N. Harmony Drive, is an accountant and comptroller for Orchid International in Monroe. He said his expertise in finance should be useful during difficult economic times.

Farrell's wife is a longtime teacher in the Whitewater School District, which led to a longtime interest in education, Farrell said.

Farrell said he believes budget cuts are coming, and that's something he has dealt with in the business world. He suggests the cuts could come from administration, travel expenses for administrators, finding savings in utilities and other services, and consolidating services among schools or even school districts.

One possibility is consolidating the district's five charter schools under one administrator, he suggested.

Farrell said he also wants to help in the transition to a new superintendent and new business manager as the people in those jobs retire in June.

An improved district Web site also would be a plus, Farrell said.

Farrell said he's been impressed with the current board's activism and its level of preparation and discussion.

"I think the board is the overseer of the superintendent, and I think that relationship needs to be strong," Farrell said.

Farrell noted the district has started collecting data and surveying parents and staff as part of the Studer improvement process, and he wants that information used to improve the district. "I feel very strongly about that."

-- Lemmer, 45, of 324 Linn St., is an assistant manager at Family Dollar, 1800 Center Ave., Janesville. This is his second attempt to be elected to school board.

Lemmer has been active in the PTA, and he said his recent involvement in a neighborhood action team in the Old Fourth Ward has shown him the effects of growing poverty among the city's youth.

"I can see the need in the kids," he said. "There's such a big need, and it's not just the Wilson School area. It's throughout the district that the poverty has increased."

Lemmer expects Janesville's economic woes will lead to shrinking school budgets, but he hopes that getting grant money from state or federal governments will help.

He'd like to see breakfast clubs expanded to every school in the district, not just some.

"I think there's a need for it in every school," he said, and not just because of poverty, but because it's difficult when both parents are working to provide a good breakfast every morning.

Balancing the budget will be difficult. "That's going to be a bigger challenge than it ever has been, and I love challenges," he said.

Lemmer wants to work against bullying, which, after talking to students, he believes is worst in the middle schools.

He said the first step is to raise awareness about bullying, and he would ask teachers for their input on how to stop it.

-- Richard, 41, of 2625 W. Highway 14, is co-owner with her husband, Rick, of RD Worldwide, a management search and temporary staffing firm with several offices, including one in Janesville. This is her first try for public office.

Richard has worked in human resources in large companies in Michigan. She said she wants to put her 20 years of business experience to use to help the district. She said her experience includes things the district is facing: leadership changes, budget cuts and meeting customer expectations.

She said she wants to maintain teacher-student ratios despite expected budget cuts.

Richard also wants to "make sure the business of the school board is conducted in a professional and respectful manner, with facts and data." She said the board's conduct is not a problem, but she believes it could be improved.

She said she wants decisions based more on tangible data than on gut feelings. "It's all about asking the right questions," she said.

"My objective is about making sure we have a good educational experience to provide our students, that they feel challenged, that they feel a sense of accomplishment," she said.

And she wants to be able to measure that educational success through data such as increased graduation rates, test scores and fewer expulsions.

-- DuWayne Severson, 51, of 56 S. Martin Road, is director of sales and network development for Mercy Health System. He is the board's current president but has said he's not looking for a second year holding the gavel.

"I'm just looking to serve," he said.

Severson is seeking his third three-year term on the board. He said he likes to remain flexible and to work with the rest of the board to deal with issues as they arise.

Severson has been an advocate for finding ways to reduce expulsions while keeping schools safe. He said one way to address the problem is to steer children in the right direction before they start down the path that ultimately leads to an expulsion offense.

Severson said he wants to serve with the rest of the board to overcome an expected school-funding crisis, "to come up with appropriate solutions to meet needs of our students."

Severson said he expects the administration will first propose a budget and cuts, and then it's up to the school board.

"We'll have to keep everything on the table, this year more so than ever," he said.

Severson said his background as a certified public accountant would serve the board well.

"I think I bring not only the experience of having been on the board, but with the financial background that I have, I think I can lend a perspective that is helpful," he said.

-- Peter D. Severson, 39, of 1817 Wesley Ave., is a business process analyst for the state court system in Madison. He helps develop and test software and troubleshoots problems for court computer users statewide.

"I still want to make it a better district," Severson said after five months on the board. "Actually being on the inside, you get to see the challenges we are facing, and I'm excited to be a part of it. It's been a great experience so far."

Severson has been a strong advocate for putting more school district information on the district Web site.

"How are people supposed to be truly informed about things if they can't read about it," he said.

Severson successfully pushed to establish e-mail addresses for all school board members.

He said he's hoping to get more information on the Web site, such as board meeting minutes and the background information that comes with each school board agenda.

Severson backs the district's effort to revamp its out-of-date Web site. He said the Milton district's site could serve as an example.

Severson said he wants to emphasize the Studer process goal of creating a workplace that makes employees happy. He believes that achieving that goal will lead to better student achievement.

One minor issue that he would like to explore is why students dislike cafeteria food, he said.

-- Stottler, 41, of 218 S. Harmony Drive, also holds another elected position. She is Rock County clerk. She is seeking her second term on the school board.

"We have a young board as far as tenure goes, and with this economy and the upcoming changes in administration, I feel a certain duty to stay on, as we will need all the experience we've got to balance top-notch education with lowest possible taxes," Stottler said.

"I've got a good grasp on school finance and feel I can be an asset to the children in our district as we make financial decisions that may affect their education," Stottler said. "... I want to make a difference in the lives of kids, advocate for excellence in teaching and at the same time, be representative of the average taxpaying parent in Janesville. ...I feel I really have the qualifications and passion to help lead this district forward."

Stottler she has heard the opinion expressed that teachers should forego raises in light of the economic situation. She said she "totally" disagrees.

Stottler proposed and developed a series of school-board training sessions on issues such as parliamentary procedure and the school finance.

Stottler said she'd like the board to move forward with a common set of goals, and she believes the board is beginning to operate more cohesively.