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FAQ: Our Positions

Positions from Camille Peterson, Chelsea Alkire, and Dr. Kelly Dillon on key issues.

Special Education

Camille

Every student deserves a high-quality education—regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, socio-economic situation or learning ability. We must ensure that students are assessed and identified early in their learning journey, while connecting parents and guardians with the resources that will help their child thrive both inside and outside the classroom. To achieve this, we must provide teachers and staff with the professional development, resources, and working conditions they need to deliver the best possible outcomes for our students.

Chelsea

I believe that our district has done a good job with SpEd services, but they need to be uniform across the district. All staff should have a base level of training to work with our SpEd population. I know that there are many differences within buildings, and often schools that already have programs in place receive more of our SpEd programs in their building. This can put a strain on staff in that particular building, due to having larger SpEd populations within the building. All schools should have classrooms and programs in place for SpEd students, allowing for the least restrictive environment for these students. And as the mom of an autistic son, I feel this on both a personal and professional level.

Kelly

I believe every student, regardless of their perceived or actual abilities, is deserving of a quality education. We need to empower teachers to meet students where they are, work closely with families on IEP formation, execution, and assessment, and incorporate universal design for learning in as much of our curriculum as possible to help all students access the content. As an educator myself, and a sister of two brothers who were designated as “special education” in their early years, inclusion of students of all abilities is how we help them understand and learn to work with all sorts of individuals in a variety of settings.

ESL students

Camille

Our district has made strong strides in supporting multilingual learners by providing English as a Second Language (ESL) programs & instructional resources, and classroom supports that meet students where they are in their language development. We also work to engage families through translation services, bilingual communication, and culturally responsive outreach, ensuring parents and guardians are active partners in their child’s education. Additionally, our teachers receive training to incorporate language development strategies into their lessons, helping multilingual learners succeed academically while building confidence in their language skills. We can improve on this by expanding our training beyond just the ESL department and make sure we incorporate our other staff, such as secretaries, cooks, bus drivers, custodians, etc. All staff should be trained and provided with strategies to better serve our ESL students & families.

Chelsea

Our district is often held as a gold-star standard for preparing staff to work with EL students. Mr. Ed Kennedy has done an amazing job allowing staff within the schools to have the resources and tools necessary. Similar to SpEd caseloads, EL caseload amounts need to be outlined in the teacher contract. There have often been EL teachers with 80-90 students on their caseload, which means that these students are not getting the resources necessary to allow for language growth. Most EL students in our district are born here in Ohio, and all ESL students deserve and legally are required to an education within our school system. I was an ESL teacher at Norton Middle and Heights, and am not a TESOL teacher at Groveport-Madison, so I see this firsthand and work with ESL students and families on a daily basis. I would love to help our district improve the EL program here in a way that benefits those students and families without sacrificing other programs or resources, and I believe I am uniquely qualified to do that.

Kelly

Our district serves the second largest population of English Language Learners in our state including nearly 11% of our students. The teachers who serve these unique learners need the resources necessary to meet each child’s goals: attain proficiency in English, meet the same standards and involvement in the same content other students are expected to meet, and to provide experiences that can help foster a sense of belonging. I believe we also need to find ways to welcome familial involvement from the rich diversity of cultures our large district houses. Our graduates will be entering a global economy, and they are already exposed to individuals in different cultures via social media. In my own classrooms I have seen important conversations happen when we are able to see beyond our own neighborhoods, experiences, and world. Embracing our differences and learning from each other will help prepare them for the 21st century world.

The teachers union

Camille

South Western City Schools Collective Bargaining role is to advocate for fair and equitable agreements that support both the needs of staff and the mission of the district. Through collaboration with the Board of Education and district administration, the collective bargaining unit helps ensure a professional, stable, and supportive work environment that ultimately benefits students’ learning experiences. The Bargaining unit negotiates contracts with the district, covering wages, benefits, working conditions, and other terms of employment. I fully support educators' rights to engage in collective bargaining.

Chelsea

The teachers union is set in place to benefit all the teachers, including the ones that do not pay the dues. Many services may not be utilized by educators, but the union does collectively bargain for all staff members that fall under the union. As a teacher myself, I appreciate what my union does for me in advocating for fair pay, more supports that help us do our jobs more effectively, and especially better working conditions -- our working conditions are our students' learning conditions.

Kelly

I fully support any industry when engaging in collective bargaining. I believe collective bargaining helps all employees, regardless if they are involved in the union or not. The relationship between administration, leaders, or the board need not be adversarial with unions, regardless of context. In school districts specifically, the board, community, and teachers all have the same common goal: quality schools and financial stability

School vouchers

Camille

While I respect parents’ right to choose the learning environment that best fits their child, I do not support the use of public funds in the form of vouchers to pay for private school tuition. When a family chooses to pursue private education, that decision should be privately funded, not subsidized by public school dollars. Similarly, charter schools should be funded independently rather than drawing from public education budgets. Public education is already experiencing funding reductions, and every dollar diverted to alternative options reduces the resources available for students in our community schools. This creates inequities and places a heavier burden on taxpayers to sustain essential programs. My priority is to protect and strengthen public education by ensuring that funding remains dedicated to the students, educators, and schools it was intended to serve.

Chelsea

There are cases where vouchers are appropriate, but I do not agree that they should be given to anyone that wants to attend a private school. I understand there are some families that are not able to utilize public schools and others who prefer to send their child to a private school and I have no problem with parents making the choice to send their child to a private school because they prefer a faith-based education or want their child to receive an education from a school they feel is more prestigious. However, public funds belong in public schools. I want all students-- regardless of their home life, their race, their abilities, their culture, their socio-economic status -- to have access to a quality public education. I do believe that autistic students or other special education students that cannot receive needed services from their public school district should be able to utilize vouchers to attend a more specialized school that better meets their needs, but those fall under a different voucher scholarship program. The expanded EdChoice voucher program is what I am addressing above.

Kelly

One of the reasons I wanted to run for school board is because of the current board's support of vouchers and their failure to advocate for better funding for our school district. I do not believe you should be able to sit on a public school board if you don't support the policies that best serve the students in your district. When elected to a nonpartisan role like sitting on a school board, you leave your personal politics at the door, especially if they conflict with the job expected of a school board member in a public school district. 90% of Ohio's students attend public schools, yet they continue to lose funding while lawmakers keep increasing the public funding of private schools. This expansion with no oversight or maximum amount of funds is unacceptable. Vouchers have a place in our community, but if private schools do accept (or require students to take) vouchers they should be held to the same standards that we require of public schools. There should be a requirement for need based – whether that is educational need (e.g., STEM, IEP) or financial need. One of my goals when elected is to rejoin the Vouchers Hurt Ohio lawsuit and to better advocate for fair funding.

Transgender students

Camille

I am a strong advocate for the protection and advancement of LGBTQIA+ rights for students, teachers, and staff. Everyone deserves the right to express themselves authentically and live their lives without fear of discrimination or marginalization. This includes ensuring access to education, healthcare, and equal treatment for LGBTQIA+ individuals. Yes, all schools should be safe spaces for all students. But marginalized students, especially in the transgender community, are at a greater risk of bullying, violence, and self-harm. So until they are as safe as their peers, we should provide supports that help our transgender students feel safer, so they can ultimately do what they are at school to do -- learn. Regarding sports, I believe it is essential to create fair and inclusive opportunities for all athletes, including transgender students. However, ensuring that the rules are clear and fair for everyone is also important. As school board members we follow the guidance of OHSAA and the laws of our state.

Chelsea

I do not believe a "stance" on transgender students has any place in an election or on a school board. They are children. If we are talking about rules and laws in place regarding transgender students, I believe all students need to feel a sense of belonging and acceptance to be able to reach their full potential. Many students come to school with a lot on their shoulders. It is the job of educators to teach them, and Maslow's Hierarchy of needs shows that psychological and safety needs must be met for students to learn. If our goal as a Board is for students to succeed, we must make sure ALL students are able to learn.

Kelly

I believe every student in our district deserves the opportunity to have a quality education which includes respect and acceptance. Ostracism leads to students feeling like they do not belong and creates a hostile learning environment. I do not believe it is the job of any teacher, staff member, or administrator to police how individuals express themselves other than enforcing school or state policies.

Mental health in schools

Camille

As a school board member, I would advocate for the consistent integration of social-emotional learning (SEL) across all grade levels. This includes supporting training for staff, investing in evidence-based SEL programs, and ensuring schools have access to counselors and support staff (counselors, social workers, and psychologists). We don't have enough counselors, and many we do have give academic counseling only, but not mental health counseling. As a social worker myself, I believe it is vital that we have mental health professionals in at least every middle and high school, but ideally every building in the district. I'm also really proud of how we have implemented therapy dogs like Bo in some of our high schools. Collaboration with families and community partners is an important component of mental health support because it helps to create safe, inclusive environments where every student can thrive socially and academically.

Chelsea

Mental well-being affects all of us, including and especially our students. I've worked with students with severe trauma, who are homeless, who live with food insecurity, who have been removed from incredibly abusive situations. 40% of students report experiencing feelings of hopelessness in the United States. 9.5% of students have attempted suicide during the 2022-23 school year. I personally have had students attempt, and a couple even commit suicide. I just went to a funeral this summer for a former Franklin Heights student. If we can have mental health professionals in place within our schools and it saves even one student from harming themself or others, then we have done something worth fighting for.

Kelly

Every person who walks through our schools’ doors deserve to have good physical AND mental health. Mental health IS health, and I do not consider it any less important than physical health. Students must feel safe, accepted, and supported in order to be the best learners they can be. I believe it is important to destigmatize conversations around mental health and self-care. In my own classrooms I am open about my own struggles and help students know how to use resources available to them to live their best lives. Healthy students -- both physically and mentally -- learn, engage, and live better. We need to lower the counselor to student ratio in our schools by recruiting and retaining quality professionals to meet our students’ unique needs. We need to help families connect with other community resources available. We may need to expand services such as food pantries, free stores, and community health in some areas of our district. As a district we can also take advantage of peer-lead programming that is evidence based and successful.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Camille

Currently, the board opposes DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) initiatives and views diversity as something to be resisted rather than embraced. These positions are in direct contrast to the values of inclusion and equity that our community needs. With our district being the 5th largest district in the state, we should be proud that a diverse student population brings broader exposure and experiences for our students and staff. It also qualifies our district to be eligible for federal grant funding that expands opportunities for the students we serve. Equity- Ensure, every student has access to a high-quality education by setting policies that promote academic success, equity, and opportunity for all learners. Inclusion- ensuring everyone feels a genuine sense of belonging and recognizes the value they bring to our district and community. When every student, staff member, and family knows they matter, we build the foundation for success—not only as a school district, but as a thriving community.

Chelsea

Sometimes the words diversity, equity, and inclusion are used in current conversations as if they are a new buzz words, but that's not true. When it comes down to the fundamental points of DEI, within education, it means that we are actively working to ensure that all students -- ALL STUDENTS -- have access to the opportunities and tools needed to graduate with a plan for employment, education, or enlistment. I want all students in our district to thrive, but it only takes walking through all of our high school facilities to see that they are not treated equally or supported equitably. When students are in buildings with no AC or no heat, a lack of accessibility for those with disabilities, or a library with ceiling leaks, causing water damage and mold to books and the floor -- they are not going to do well. Those are not conditions conducive to good health, let alone quality learning. We must unify our school district, make things more equitable across our district, and allow for all students to feel included and ready to succeed.

Kelly

These buzzwords have been weaponized as of late which is unfortunate and harmful for the common goals we all have for our district: to prepare our learners for the futures they choose, whether it be education, employment, or enlistment. Our students, communities, neighborhoods AND district are diverse in socioeconomic status, race, culture, celebrated faiths, political ideologies, and family composition. Assuming we are a monolith is short sighted and simply inefficient. Embracing the ways we are different helps our graduates prepare for a world that IS diverse. They will eventually work with, for, hire, or learn next to individuals with vastly different experiences. Helping them navigate those differences as early as possible will only help build good community members. Inclusion, to me, means including all voices in our community experiences. My own children were part of our district’s peer-model preschool, serving as peers to students with disabilities. This experience helped them understand we all have different abilities (physical, learning, or developmental) and inclusion of those differences enriches the learning environment. Inclusion builds empathy, the silver bullet against hate, violence, and isolation. I see no reason why each classroom should not be as inclusive as possible in respectful and authentic ways. Equity is one of my core values. It means equal access to resources, information, and opportunities.

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