Five vie for 4 seats on D-155 board
By JILLIAN DUCHNOWSKI - jduchnowski@nwherald.com
CRYSTAL LAKE – Candidate Paul Roth again is squaring off against incumbents for a spot on Crystal Lake High School District 155’s board.
He lost a similar race two years ago but said he was back after attending most board and committee meetings since then to learn more about the district.
“I’m really excited about the district and want to be a part of the school board,” said Roth, 48, a capital projects consultant. “Any successful organization needs fresh eyes, fresh ideas.”
The five candidates running for four four-year seats agree that district leaders have been fiscally conservative and don’t anticipate needing to trim programs in the coming years.
“We are generally looking several years down the road, and barring any unforeseen disasters ... we’ve not seen any reasons to have any such discussions [on potential cuts],” said Gary Oberg, 62, a physician who has been on the board for 24 years.
The district has added Chinese and pre-engineering programs in recent years, and board President Theodore Wagner, 55, wants to continue to emphasize safety. The district recently consulted with a national safety expert and plans to continue to implement and seek suggestions.
“It’s just a responsibility for us,” said Wagner, a commercial real estate developer.
Board member David Secrest, a 63-year-old health and pensions benefits administrator, said he’d like the board to continue to expand and align its technology, as leaders are trying to do now by hiring a technology director.
“In the not too distant future, we’ll start to see textbooks online,” Secrest predicted, adding that would be cheaper for schools.
Roth said many voters might expect that board members have students in the district, which isn’t the case.
Roth has a child who will graduate this year and expects to have two children in the district next year.
But current school board members disputed that was necessary.
Oberg never had any children in the district but is a District 155 graduate. Secrest’s five children are graduates, with the youngest graduating last year.
Both said it was important for board members to be involved by attending extra-curricular activities such as sporting events or musicals.
Ann Somers, 56, a part-time office manager and accountant for a manufacturer’s representative, has six children, the youngest of which is a junior.
“I think we have a diversity of the angles that we’re coming from,” Somers said. “That’s interesting in way because we’re not all in the same time phase, with students who are currently in the school.”
