Compiled from questionnaires

Editor’s note: The following candidate profiles were compiled from questionnaires sent by the Muscatine Journal to candidates for the Muscatine School Board.

Ron Axel

Age: 62

Education: Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in education from the University of Iowa.

Address: 2472 Hummingbird Lane

Occupation: Retired educator

Family members: Wife, Joni; four children and nine grandchildren.

Community service: A veteran of the United States Army, 1968-70.

Q&A

What experience do you have that you think will serve you well as a member of the school board?

Thirty-two years work experience in the Muscatine Community School District: 14 teaching, 18 as an administrator. Iowa’s Middle School Principal of the year in 2000. Inducted into the Muscatine High School Hall of Honor in 2008.

 What are the two most important issues facing your school district?

The dropout rate and remaining fiscally responsible to taxpayers.

 What improvements would you like to see in your school district?

I think we need to look at more than just ITBS scores to measure student achievement. We also need to look at our course offerings at the middle and high schools in an effort to reduce our dropout rate.

 Why are you willing to volunteer your time to the school board?

I have always cared about kids. That’s why I became an educator in the first place. I have six grandchildren attending school in Muscatine so I have a vested interest in their education. I spent my adult life in education and I feel as though I still have something to give the District and to the community.

 How would you describe the role of a school board member?

Education is a function of each state. The state has given each community the responsibility of defining and writing policies for the District. This is the primary duty of each board member.

Timothy “Tim” Bower

Age: 48

Education: Fairfield High School class of  1979;  Iowa State University, bachelor of science, mechanical engineering, 1984; University of Iowa, executive MBA program, 1995.

Address: 3331 Mulberry Ave.

Occupation: Senior product design engineer, John Deere

Contact information: 563-262-0468, bower85@machlink.com

Family members: Wife,  Karen; three children: Megan, 2008 Iowa State University graduate; Brittany, 2008 MHS graduate and  sophomore at Iowa State; Aric, a sophomore at MHS.

Prior school board experience: This is my first time running for school board, but for the past four years I  have been elected as co-president (along with my wife Karen) of the Muskie Band Boosters, which is the largest student activity group in the Muscatine Community School District.

Community service:  Wesley United Methodist Church, trustee, administrative council. Within the school district: Numerous school support groups, MHS principal’s advisory team, classroom support, support of drama productions, taught programs to elementary and middle school classes, fundraising activities, Junior Achievement volunteer and a coach for youth softball, baseball and soccer.

Q&A

What are the two most important issues facing your school district?

Improving the graduation rate and  improving standardized test scores. 

The current graduation rate is one of the lowest in the state.  It’s critical to raise this ranking. 

Test score performance is a challenging subject.  The focus on measurement is probably the most important result of “No Child Left Behind.” However, making sure our children are prepared so they can be successful after graduation is key. We must identify what is working, build upon those successes, and change what isn’t working.

What improvements would you like to see in your school district?

I would like to see a district-wide improvement in the technology used in the classrooms. The instruction and training to use these tools must also be provided.  I would also like to see an increase in parent and community involvement. I’ve seen the impact this can have first-hand, and it can make a world of difference.

 Why are you willing to volunteer your time to the school board?

The education system is one of the most important institutions in society today. I have always volunteered to support the groups in which my own children are involved. Being on the school board provides the opportunity to touch our youth’s future and make a difference.

 How would you describe the role of a school board member?

To understand and provide for the needs of our youth so that they are prepared for the future. The resources and tools necessary to make this happen must be allocated within existing budget constraints. Board members also must understand the training and curriculum that is needed to prepare our youth for their future goals.

Paul Brooks

Age: 68

Education: Oskaloosa High School, 1959; Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, 1963; William Penn College in Oskaloosa, 1966; Northeast Missouri Teacher’s College with Master’s degree, 1968; Educational specialist’s degree, University of Iowa, 1985.

 Address: 110 Brook St.

 Occupation: Retired

 Contact information: 563-299-4307

 Family members: Wife, Carolyn; four grown children; seven grandkids (all but one of whom are either graduated from Muscatine or currently students somewhere in the system).

Prior school board experience: Two terms.

 Community service: This year I served on Muscatine Community School Board, State School Board Association (District 9), Spring Valley Camp, Kiwanis, Financial Peace Coalition. Flickenger Learning Center and United Way Affinity group.

Q&A 

What are the two most important issues facing your school district?

Finances and personnel.

 What improvements would you like to see in your school district?

Continue to raise the graduation rate and to lower the dropout rate. Continue to hire the best for our students. Keep the tax rate low so we don’t over burden tax payers.

 Why are you willing to volunteer your time to the school board?

I have a background in schools. I have served as a janitor, bus driver, teacher, coach, director of transportation, principal and school board member. I have cut back on many of my other volunteer jobs to be able to better serve on the Muscatine Board of Education.

 How would you describe the role of a school board member?

Keep informed. Be sure to keep up on the Iowa School Boards training sessions, keep a listening ear to the public, study the agenda materials and remember the Board is where decisions are made and that we are “in this for the kids.”

Tammi Drawbaugh

Age: 39

Education: Bachelor of Arts, Iowa Wesleyan College.

Address: 2004 Crestline Dr.

Occupation: Project Manager at HNI Corp.

Contact information: 563-264-2258,

drawbaught@gmail.com

Family members: Husband, Paul; children: Kaleb, 10 and Emma, 6.

Prior school board experience: I have served for the past three years on the Muscatine Community School Board earning the Iowa Association of School Boards Better Boardmanship Award each year.   

Community service:

Grant Elementary School Parent-Teacher Organization for the past five years, holding a variety of board positions; active member of First Presbyterian Church and involved in teaching Sunday school, youth leader and previous pastoral nominating committee; appointed in 2008 by Gov. Chet Culver to the Institute for Tomorrow’s Workforce board.

Q&A

What are the two most important issues facing your school district?

Our current graduation rate of 82.8 percent. A current board goal is to do all we can to increase this number.

Finding creative and research-based methods to accomplish this, while continuing to build on many of the current programs that are in place, is critical to reaching and exceeding that goal.

While we concentrate on raising the graduation rate, we must not lose focus on the students that are succeeding every day in school and focus on offering academics that will challenge them.

I am extremely proud to say that our school district is debt free! This comes from many years of careful and diligent work by board members and district employees. Unfortunately, the current financial conditions of our state and local economy are less than positive. The stimulus dollars school districts have received come with many regulations. The board will need to keep diligently working to find creative ways to implement new cost saving measures while continuing those currently in place. 

What improvements would you like to see in your school district?

I believe the district and community need to continue partnering together to focus on improving our graduation rate. We must continue to use technology with careful and well thought-out data-driven processes to reach and enhance every student’s educational experience. These students need and deserve advocates of strong voices that are willing to invest time, resources and energy to help them understand the power a high school diploma will hold for them.

Why are you willing to volunteer your time to the school board?

Investing time in a cause I feel passionate about is easy!  Every student deserves the chance to learn and accomplish a level of education that will enable them to meet their lifelong goals.  I believe this means different things for different students. The best part of the role as a board member is to hand out diplomas on graduation day. To watch students walk across the stage and give them a diploma that will take them to the next chapter in their life is better than any reward I could describe.

How would you describe the role of a school board member?

A community leader who is passionate about upholding the district’s mission statement of ensuring excellence in education for all students. This includes several things. A board member should be committed to being a lifelong learner.  Becoming educated on key policy and funding issues is important to understanding how the board works together as one unified voice.

Advocating and connecting with legislators and our governor all year long is important to understanding what is happening at the state and federal level and ultimately, how it will impact our district.

Listening to, and seeking out, the input of all stakeholders in Muscatine is essential to understanding some of the daily activities that occur in our district. We especially need to listen to our students. 

Dennis M. Fox

Age: 50

Education: Celina Senior High School, Celina, Ohio; Bachelor of Science, Ohio State University, Columbus; Masters in Business Administration, St. Ambrose University, Davenport.

Address: 2676 Becky Thatcher Rd.

Occupation: Vice president, manufacturing and operations, Bridgestone Bandag Tire Solutions

Contact information: 563-263-7440

Family members: Wife, Patricia; three children: Laura, 26, married to Kellie Schutte and has a newborn daughter, Teagan; Pete, 24, will soon be married to Kourtney Keller; Sarah, 22, registered nurse in Ames. All children graduated from Muscatine High School and have graduated from various colleges in Iowa.

Community Service: Muscatine General Hospital Board of Trustees; past member of the Greater Muscatine Chamber of Commerce and Industry  Board of Directors; past member Muscatine United Way Board of Directors;  Junior Achievement class teacher, facilitated the design of “Making Tomorrows Leaders Today,” a leadership program for high school students; initial member of the Pre-School Alliance start up team in Muscatine; certified trainer of Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.

Q&A

What experience do you have that you think will serve you well as a member of the school board?

I have worked in managerial and leadership positions of increasing responsibility with Frito-Lay, Bandag Inc. and Bridgestone Bandag Tire Solutions during the past 33 years. I have experience serving on various boards and community leadership teams during my working career and know how to effectively get results with these types of groups.

Our family has lived in eight different communities. I have seen the challenges and solutions the various community school systems have faced. I am also active in our church and am a group leader in Kid Zone. I enjoy working with children and want to more directly support the teachers of our school system.

What are the two most important issues facing your school district?

Over time, there will be many issues and opportunities facing us. As I evaluate the long term for our school district, we need to make decisions that take the whole system into account and not put a solution in place that negatively affects another area or creates a future issue.

Whole systems thinking and approach to solving problems will result in what is best for students, teachers, staff, administrators, parents and community and maximize our efficiency and effectiveness.

Finance management is the second important opportunity we have as a school district. We will need to be proactive in our spending relative to income. With the current economic conditions, I expect we will need to make every dollar we spend count.

What improvements would you like to see in your school district?

Continue to improve the way people within our school system interact and treat each other on a day to day basis by continuing to develop a community culture of honesty, dignity and respect by all students, faculty, staff, administrators and parents.

I would like our school district to become a learning community where parents, businesses, local organizations, churches and volunteers partner in the development and growth of everyone’s skills and capabilities.

Every student counts, every school counts, therefore we need to keep students at every learning level challenged and motivated to learn and grow. Having a system which can meet a variety of academic needs is vital to each student’s long term success and a significant benefit to our community.

Why are you willing to volunteer your time to the school board?

I have been asked by several people in the community to run for school board. I had also set a goal several years ago to serve on our school board. I believe our current school system is sound and would like to build on this.

How would you describe the role of a school board member?

Provide oversight of the school system, working with the superintendent and staff on setting goals and standards for the district. Regularly assess the results and take action as needed. Assure there is communication back to the community on the issues, future plans and actions. Listen, ask questions and make good decisions.

John Haller

Age: 50

Address: - 108 Middle Rd.

Occupation: Lead man at HJ Heinz

Contact information: 262-8564

Family members: Wife, Angie; four children: Michael, Jesse, John and Caitlyn.

Community service: I have coached Little League land volunteered my time in school activities.

Q&A

What are the two most important issues facing your school district?

 I feel that the first issue is our test scores.  I see that our scores are going down and in talking to my children, we are as a district trying to teach to a test, instead of teaching overall knowledge.  If we teach overall knowledge, the kids will be well rounded and have the ability to pass tests. 

The second issue is the use of our budget. I feel that the district is not taking care of the masses, it is taking care of a few.

  What improvements would you like to see in your school district?

More technolgy in the classrooms.  Allow teachers to teach without tying their hands.  I would also like to see the grading scale adjusted for the high school. This would allow a better class ranking and a truer accounting of the students abilities.

 Why are you willing to volunteer your time to the school board?

I feel that there are many decisions being made that affect my children and others that have not had all aspects of the decision considered before they were made.

 How would you describe the role of a school board member?

In my opinion, a school board member should be a person who looks out for the school district, personnel and the students best interests.

Joyce Haller

Age: 73

Education: Muscatine High School graduate.

Address — 1812 Sampson St.

Occupation: Retired as a Muscatine Community School District custodian after 35 years

Contact information: 563-263-3576, jdhaller@muscatine.k12ia.us

Family members: Two adult children; six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Prior school board experience: Just finishing my first three-year term, which I have truly enjoyed, even though it included many long hours and hard decisions.

Community service: In the past, I was active in PTO, Girl Scouts and church youth work. Now I am on the Salvation Army Auxiliary and Christmas committee. I am also active in my church. While working as a custodian, I served on several committees, including Project Reconstruct. I also worked to help establish the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees as a representative of the District support staff.

Q&A

What are the two most important issues facing your school district?

We must continue working at providing the highest standard in education possible for all our students. This means providing the best staff and material we can.

 What improvements would you like to see in your school district?

We must be very financially responsible in the years to come. We owe it to both the taxpayers and our students to use these monies very wisely.

We need to continue work on our score standards, maintain our teacher training and provide the tools necessary to teach with. In this same area, if methods are not working they need to go. If personnel are not doing the job expected of them, they need to get with the program or be replaced.

At least a couple of our elementary buildings have not been updated in more than 20 years. This needs to be corrected. 

 Why are you willing to volunteer your time to the school board?

There is nothing more important than the children of our community and their education. In addition, I truly enjoy volunteering and I have the time. But most of all, I have a great interest in the District. In the future, it is important that the present Board members, who worked with the community to select Bill Decker as the new district superintendent, work together in meeting the guidelines we have established for the District.

 How would you describe the role of a school board member?

As a Board, it is our job to set and maintain policies and standards for the District, with the goal of providing the best possible education for all students while striving to meet state and federal guidelines.

As a board member, I must be willing and able to give the time and energy it takes to make myself aware of all sides of an issue. I must be willing to listen, ask questions, learn, and be available to the superintendent, other board members, employees, students, parents and the taxpayers.