I want to put on my parent hat and express my views on parents. As a parent myself I know parents are the eyes, ears and voice of the district. They are a vital part of providing information and keeping the school board informed as to what is going on in families and how their children are doing in school. I hope parents always feel like they can come to me and voice their opinion. As a school board member I would be representing thousands of parents in the district. I desire to have as many parents as possible voice their opinion.  When we put many bright minds together, that is when we come up with the best solutions.  The beauty of living in America is we have a process for voicing our opinions and having our elected officers represent us.  My desire is to have parents find me a good listener because that is what I want as a parent also.  We need the eyes, ears, and voice of parents in our new school district.  

When my children were in elementary school in a different state, the district proposed a boundary change for a new school that was being built.  Our neighborhood did not like the proposed new boundary for our neighborhood.  A wise school board member gave me the advice that I should not approach the school board to complain, but that I should present a solution to the problem. Our neighborhood banned together to raise our voice with a solution to the problem. We questioned the growth numbers and placement of the school.  We found land to purchase to build the school closer to our neighborhood, fixing the problem of four different elementary school boundaries. The school board voted in our favor but two months later reversed their vote because the school had already begun being built and the district needed the numbers in our neighborhood to attend the new school.  I was upset because of the reversed, last minute vote.  The next morning after the school board meeting I got a phone call from the Superintendent.  He wanted to know if I would share the information I gathered about available land to purchase for a new school.  Four years later they put our solution in place.  Our neighborhood was upset the district did not have the forethought to solve the problem in the first place.  Our children had to move to a new school and four years later return to the one we should have been in all along.  As a school board member with this background, I will listen to solutions to problems parents and staff present.  I will also look deeply into the numbers and solutions presented by the district. *

I would like to put on my school bus hat and discuss buses not because I am a bus driver, but because I have had experience with the bus.  As a mother I waited at bus stops and put my children on the bus.  At first it was one of the hardest things I did to put my child in the vehicle of another human I did not know, and trust he/she would be taken care of and arrive safely at school.  I find that many bus drivers I have interacted with over the years have been very good at their job.  I appreciate anyone who gets behind the wheel of a huge vehicle, maneuvers that vehicle, handle all the students, and arrives at their destination in safety.  As a principal I rode the bus during the first weeks of school with the kindergarteners to make sure those students arrived in safety, got off at the right bus stop, and were received into the arms of their loved ones.  I also rode the bus when problems were reported or when extra help was needed. Thank goodness for video cameras on the bus.  One time I waited hours with a school bus driver on the side of a mountain until law enforcement could assess the damage to her bus caused by a reckless teenage driver who ran into the side of her bus while driving students to Clear Creek.  The bus driver was found to be innocent of any wrongdoing caused by the accident.  She was brave.  Our school bus drivers are safe, courageous and kind. I appreciate and support all they do for our District. *  

We feel growth in our area closing in on us from all sides; as we sit in traffic, wait in stores, and drop-off and pick-up our children from school, just to name a few.  I loved moving into Eagle Mountain in 2010 and being a part of this great community.  Some could say my moving here added to the growth problem because we were new, which is true,  So, I can't really complain about growth because at one time I added to it.  Growth is going to be part of our lives as long as we live in this high growth area.  

It is very important the cities and school district work together as we tackle the discomforts of growth that we all contributed to when we moved here.  We need to be forward thinking and realistic as to what to build as we grow, while at the same time be careful to not overbuild and get ahead of ourselves. There is a good balance that can be fostered as schools and cities work together. The tax dollars to operate a city and school district come from the same citizens. We should work together to make every dollar count for our future.