Fenton School Board Candidates Focus on Budget and Marketing

Five candidates for the gave statements and fielded some tough questions in front of an audience of 30 teachers, parents and residents at Wednesday's candidate forum at .

Phillip Price, Charles Colombo, Daniel Carter, James Shaw and Tamara Valley are competing for two open spots as School board President David Walker and Trustee Roger Ellis' terms will expire in June and they will not be returning to their posts. The five candidates are competing for the open four-year positions. They all have or have had children in the Fenton schools.

Carter has been involved with several Fenton Area Public Schools groups including the International Baccalaureate Committee and the Fenton Athletic Foundation. Other than the pressing issues of the budget, he feels strongly about parent involvement with the child's education.

Price is a former board member with five years of teaching experience and is a former small business-owner with a financial background that he feel could be of help with the school budget.

“I'd like to bring in a volunteer program,” Price responded when asked what his top priorities would be. “To help teachers, help with office work, assist or run extra curriculars. I'd like to get parents, retirees in here helping until this money situation passes--and it will pass.”

The “money situation” that Price is referring to is the 4 percent budget cut for education that Governor Rick Snyder has proposed, which amounts to $470 per student. All five candidates addressed this issue on the panel.

“There's always a better way to do things,” said Colombo, who said he brings critical-thinking and negotiating to the table. "We need to look for ways to make things more efficient without sacrificing educational experience."

Valley, a business woman with experience in accounting, agrees.

“The most important thing is the kids,” said Valley, who is running because she wanted to get involved. “We're giving them rigorous academics, but also band and sports. Those things are also so important and I know how difficult it's going to be to keep them with the financial straits that we're in.”

All of the candidates agreed that Fenton could use bigger and better marketing efforts to bring more students into the schools.

“I think Fenton competes very well with charter schools,” said Shaw, who has four children in the school system and considers himself a 'satisfied customer'. “We need to make sure we're seen as a destination point, let people in the surrounding areas know what we have to offer.”

There were concerns from some audience members that increasing enrollment efforts could lead to overcrowding.

Valley said she would welcome that problem.

“Overall, Michigan's headcounts have been decreasing,” Valley said. “And each new student brings in $7,000. As a business woman, I say we would make room.”

Budget cuts seemed to be on many of the minds of audience members. When asked where those cuts might come from, only Shaw spoke candidly.

“It would be dishonest to say that teachers aren't at risk. When 85 percent of the budget goes to salaries, it's a reality that we will look at that as a place to trim," he said.

Concerns about collective bargaining and helping at-risk students were also among the audience questions.

Elections for the positions will be held on May 3.