Notice:
Responses listed below have been provided by the candidate. and no editing or verification was performed. The content is solely the responsiblity of the candidate.
Responses listed below have been provided by the candidate. and no editing or verification was performed. The content is solely the responsiblity of the candidate.
If you believe a statement below is in error, please contact the candidate directly to inform them of the error. Do not use the contact page to inform the webmaster of the error as no action will be taken due to the time required to correctly research both sides of the issue.
Content is only updated if it is requested by the candidate directly. Click Here to view the candidate questions.
School Board Candidate Cinda Guagliumi
| Name: | Cinda Guagliumi |
| Office: | School Board |
| Term of Office: | 1 |
| Years Resident: | 14 |
| Contact Info: | cinda.guagliumi@gmail.com |
| Website: | |
| Offices/Community Involvement: | Merrimack School Board Member - 7 years
Merrimack Budget Committee Member - 3 years American Heart Association - 2 years Child Life Volunteer at Children's Memorial Medical Center in Chicago, IL - 5 years Wish List Auxiliary Volunteer for Children's Memorial Medical Center in Chicago, IL - 4 years |
| Why am I Running: | I believe that it's important to give back to the community. Areas of interest for me include education, children and health. There are many reasons why I'm running for office this year:
1) Children. 2) Drive instruction and innovation in post-COVID world including interventions and extended learning opportunities. 3) Improve educational outcomes and pathways. 4) I can bring my experience to the 1-year spot without any learning curves that new members would experience. 5) Leverage my budget experience to make prudent decisions for the taxpayer. I'm one too! |
| What do you plan on accomplishing while in Office: |
I plan to use lessons learned to optimize our delivery of instruction moving forward, with a focus on shared values and responsibilities for student success. Student learning needs to be primary and we need to give the appropriate resources, time, and training to our teachers so they can maximize student learning. Skilled teachers and strong leaders are critical components of any school. I hope to promote professional learning communities where teachers have time to collaborate and continually learn and optimize instruction. I would like to use data-driven decisions to support our district strengths and weaknesses. Collaboration drives success.
In addition, a key focus will be a transparent and community-centered superintendent search effort. This search is an important and exciting opportunity to coalesce around a shared vision, particularly as we springboard from COVID, with community and stakeholder involvement. I support the tier of interventions for all students to get instructional support during non-traditional school hours, particularly in the higher grades. I believe there are ways to do this without increasing budgetary costs. This year has been a turbulent year for all of us. Please know that I've never wavered in my support of the community of Merrimack. I'd appreciate your vote on April 13th. |
| Candidate Statement: | |
| School District Articles Below were questions asked of the candidates running for School District Positions |
|
| Article 2 Accept Gifts: |
Yes |
| Comments | It makes sense to have the governing body publicly accept gifts on behalf of the district. |
| Article 3 Support Contract |
Yes |
| Comments | Even with a salary increase, the district realized savings on the concessions the support staff made in health insurance. The district is investing in professional development in a way that can maximize growth opportunities for mutual benefit. I understand and appreciate the support that para-professionals give for classroom teachers to maximize student learning. |
| Article 4 Spec. Mtg A3: |
Yes |
| Comments | It makes logical sense to have a special meeting should Article 3 fail. |
| Article 5 Ventilators |
Yes |
| Comments | The buildings are in need of improved ventilation based on air quality studies, which is largely due to the age of the facilities. The School Board weighed all options for improving the ventilation and this lease option has the greatest cost-benefit, but also gets the work completed for all affected areas quickly, while paying for it over the 10-year lease period (while interest rates are low). Staff and student safety is important to me. |
| Article 6 Disband Budget Committee |
No |
| Comments | I believe that the low cost of having a budget committee with volunteers put in place by the citizens of Merrimack is worthwhile. Given the size of the budget and the need to be responsible with tax-payer dollars, I feel that additional eyes, perspectives, and transparency are important. I'd prefer taxpayers elect these positions rather than an alternative approach such as a School Board appointed budget committee like some districts do. |
| Article 7 Budget |
Yes |
| Comments | The 2021/2022 Budget on this year's ballot is 1.43% over the prior year's budget. This increase is relatively consistent with the inflation rate and is close to level-funded. |
| School District Non Ballot Questions Below were questions asked of all candidates |
|
| Question 1 |
What is your stance on travel and quarantine policy? Do we make up our own school
policy or do we follow what the CDC and DHHS has a current policy and keep up to date
with them.
|
| Response: | I support following the CDC and DHHS' current policies and keeping up-to-date with them as conditions change. |
| Question 2 |
What is your stance on continuing the REAL academy for those who cannot safely
return to school or choose not to until there is a vaccine for children.
|
| Response: | Given that leading experts (World Health Organization, ADA, CDC) are telling us that it will likely be late fall until possibly the end of QI 2022, I believe that the district needs to provide options for families that chose to stay remote next school year. |
| Question 3 |
What is the role of the School Board and what differences do you see with their role
versus the role of administration?
|
| Response: | Simply put, the school board's role is governance and the superintendent's role is administering the daily functions of the district. This is outlined well by the New Hampshire School Board Association (NHSBA)-> https://nhsba.org/school-board-governance-accountability/role-of-a-school-board-member/ |
| Question 4 |
What are your thoughts about full-day kindergarten?
|
| Response: | I supported the implementation of full-day kindergarten while serving on the board, and I continue to support it in Merrimack Public Schools. Developmentally appropriate full-day kindergarten has the following advantages:
-Increase career and college readiness skills upon graduation. -Higher long-term achievement, including among disadvantaged and low-income children, and for those receiving Title I services. -Higher reading scores in early grades. -Fewer grade retentions. -Higher test scores. -Increased opportunities for creative activities and for developing social skills. -More time spent in individualized instruction. |
| Question 5 |
What are your thoughts on college and career readiness?
|
| Response: | My goal is to have every student that wants to attend college to have the entry level skills needed without remedial work. Our school will focus on critical thinking, inquiry, problem solving, communication, and interpersonal skills needed to prepare for the real world. I believe all children can learn at high levels. |
| Question 6 |
What are your thoughts on Vocational programs and how would you improve the
programs what we have now?
|
| Response: | In the 21st century, we have many learning pathways for students including nursing, biotechnology, carpentry, medical coding, criminal justice, culinary arts, welding, and HVAC, to name a few. CTE opportunities give students the experience to explore potential careers. I believe that these programs are underutilized because students are concerned about scheduling versus what's best for their learning. I would encourage our school administrators to be more flexible in scheduling required coursework so students have the opportunity to explore possible career paths. |
| Question 7 |
What are your thoughts on ELO's (extended learning opportunities)?
|
| Response: | Extended learning opportunities break down the walls of the school and make the world the classroom. There are incredible chances to allow students to gain credit through real-life experiences. i.e., community service, internships, competency-based learning, travel and work skills. Also, these opportunities boost academic achievement and build leadership skills. This makes students more likely to be college-ready. |
| Question 8 |
Do you find value in benchmarking us against other districts and if so, how?
|
| Response: | All information is valuable. We also need to look at national assessments, state assessments and in-school assessments to evaluate how the district improves its instruction. |
| Question 9 |
Please share your thoughts on how Merrimack is currently doing working with
students who have additional and special needs, and if you see any changes that should
be made, etc.
|
| Response: | I believe that Merrimack values its support of students with IEPs and 504 plans. Of course, continuous improvement always has to remain top-of-mind. I support professional growth opportunities to have the most current understanding of educational law. |
| Question 10 |
If there is a budget cut, what would you cut first?
|
| Response: | I support cutting items that are not directly related to learning outcomes before those that would affect the delivery and quality of education. I would ask administration to provide their list of priorities of what would be cut that would not affect student learning outcomes. |