4 Candidates for 2 ECASD BOE Seats

Four file for two school board seats
Craig seeks sixth term; challengers include former board member
By Christena T. O'Brien
Leader-Telegram staff
The Eau Claire school board faces several challenges in the near
future - a projected budget shortfall estimated at $2.8 million, a
possible referendum and hiring a superintendent.

Two of seven board seats - held by Carol Craig and President Mike
O'Brien - are up for election this spring, and four people will vie
for those seats in the April 1 general election.

O'Brien isn't seeking re-election, but Craig is seeking a sixth
three-year term. She'll be joined on the ballot by former school board
member Robert G. Janke, who spent nine years on the board; Doug Mell,
director of communications at UW-Stout in Menomonie, and Adam Shiel,
an electrical engineer at Silicon Logic Engineering.

Craig, a Chippewa Valley Technical College instructor, said that the
biggest challenge facing the new board, and one she would look forward
to addressing if elected, is balancing the budget while maintaining
existing education standards.

"I think all of our programs here are high-quality," she said, adding
that quality education is a major concern for families considering
relocating to an area.

Craig served four terms on the board ending in 1995 and rejoined the
seven-member body in 2005. In addition to the board, she served on the
charter school committee and the committee studying how best to use
Little Red School.

"A number of significant issues will be decided in the next three
years that will set the stage for educational quality for years to
come," said Mell, who spent 16 years as city editor and managing
editor at the Leader-Telegram before taking the job at UW-Stout in
October 2006.

The father of two - a North High School graduate and a junior at North
- summed up the major themes of his campaign as "the three C's" -
comprehensive strategic planning, communication and collaboration.

"The district needs a systematic approach to comprehensive strategic
planning," Mell said. "The district has started this process with its
needs assessment survey review, but the next board will have to be
diligent in overseeing this planning process. Comprehensive strategic
planning has to become part of the district's DNA."

Making his first run for public office, Shiel decided to seek election
after attending school board meetings for the past year and serving on
a committee that developed a charter school policy for the school
district.

"I believe the board can make better and more transparent decisions,"
said Shiel, whose children - a 6-year-old son and 4-year-old daughter
- attend the Montessori Charter School.

Shiel said he realizes the district faces challenges in the future,
including the projected budget shortfall for the 2008-09 school year.
Before supporting any proposal to address the issue, he said he'd like
to better understand the district's finances, including its spending.

Janke, a retired UW-Eau Claire geography professor, lost his seat on
the school board in April 2006 and a re-election bid in April 2007.

"I don't like the direction the board is going in," he said.

Janke believes the district will have to put building maintenance
needs before the voters again.

"The district will have to go to referendum again - unless the state
changes how schools are funded," he said. "There is a need for
infrastructure improvements, and you can only put those off for so
long before you get to a point where you can't do that anymore."