Compiled by Kim McDarison
A spring general election will be held April 5. Residents residing within the Whitewater Unified School District will find four candidates vying for two open Board of Education seats on the general election ballot.
They are incumbents Jen Kienbaum and Joe Kromholz — who, after an election held by the board last December, was appointed to fill the remaining term held by the late and then-sitting board member Jim Stewart — and two returning challengers: Miguel Aranda — who is a former board member after he, too, was appointed to complete a term following the resignation of Jean Linos in 2019 — and Andrea Svec, who, having lost a coin toss after tying with Kromholz in the election held by the board to fill Stewart’s seat, is making a second run for a full term: In 2021, Svec made a bid for a school board seat, but left the race, citing “unforeseen circumstances,” while pledging to run in 2022.
Board members are elected to three-year terms.
Fort Atkinson Online recently asked each of the candidates to provide some biographical information and fill out a short questionnaire. Candidates were asked to respond to four questions using a combined total of between 700 and 1,000 words.
Candidates were asked to submit a photo for publication.
The electorate also will have an opportunity to see these candidates respond to questions during a candidates forum which will be held Saturday, March 12, from 10 to 11:30 a.m., in the council chambers of the Whitewater Municipal Building, 312 W. Whitewater St., Whitewater. The forum is sponsored by the League of Women Voters-Whitewater Area.
The forum also will be live-streamed and recorded by Whitewater Community TV and uploaded to its Vimeo website, as well as rebroadcast on channel 990.
Additionally, the forum will be available on the league’s website: https://my.lwv.org/wisconsin/whitewater-area.
Candidates’ responses to Fort Atkinson Online’s questionnaires, presented in alphabetical order, follow.
Miguel Aranda
Age: 31
Address: 243 N Park St, Whitewater
Occupation: Administrative Assistant III (Level 3) for the Associate Vice Chancellor of the Office of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Support Programs. The Associate Vice Chancellor reports to the University Chancellor.
Number of years resided in district: 30 years
Education: Whitewater High School, UW-Whitewater BBA International Business with an Economics Minor, and UW-Whitewater MBA by May 2022
Civic and other organizational memberships: League of Women Voters, City of Whitewater Community Involvement Commission Member, City of Whitewater Community Development Board Member, Voto Latino Wisconsin Coordinator
Political experience: Appointed to Whitewater Unified School District from September 2019 to April 2020. International diplomatic relationship with the Mexican Consulate of Milwaukee.
What are your reasons for seeking this position?
I have always been satisfied with being a community organizer and staying civically engaged. Public office has never been a goal. After multiple sources of encouragement, I applied for the Whitewater Unified School Board position in September 2019. Once I received more insight about the district as a board member, I knew I had to return, or at least continue supporting the district where possible.
What are the most pressing issues facing the position you seek?
An aging population in Wisconsin, increasing income inequality, decreasing domestic population growth, and a lack of support and funding for public education from some of our State representatives. Trends affecting communities beyond the Whitewater community. This is only a few of the factors leading to a reduction of revenue for many Wisconsin public school districts.
If elected, what unique perspective and experience do you bring to the board?
My experience will come from a Latino male of Mexican immigrants perspective. I attended the Whitewater Unified School District, with my first language being Spanish and learning English as a second language. With a large portion of my extended family living in Whitewater, we represent a variety of cohorts of the Whitewater community. My viewpoint for the Whitewater community has always been a holistic one. My hope is to connect with those of similar experiences, from immigrant to Millennial parents.
Any additional comments?
Since 2009, I have been involved in social justice initiatives, particularly related to the Latino experience. In 2011, I was named a “People Who Matter” by the Janesville Gazette for leading and coordinating a volunteer group of other Latino University students. We outreached to surrounding school districts, including Fort Atkinson, to talk about the importance of higher education and to offer a guide of possible next steps after high school. These sessions were catered for high school students and included parent involvement; the sessions were offered in English and in Spanish. In 2012, I founded a University student organization to support students known as DREAMers. In 2018, it was a great honor to have received the League of Women Voters of Whitewater Area’s Making Democracy Work Award for engaging the local Latino community in regards to voter information and advocacy.
Jennifer Kienbaum
Age: 42 years old
Address: 272 Parkside Drive
Occupation: Compliance Manager
Education: Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance
Number of years resided in the district: 23 years in Whitewater
Civic and other organizational memberships:
• Boy Scouts of America
• American Legion Auxiliary
• Parent Teacher Association (PTA)
Political experience:
• Member, Whitewater Unified School Board, 2019 to current
• Treasurer, Rock Prairie Montessori School Board of Trustees, 2011-2017
What are your reasons for seeking this position?
I am currently one of the seven members of the Whitewater Unified School Board. I have served on the school board since April 2019, and I have decided to run for another three-year term based on a variety of reasons. First, as a mother of four children (ages 13, 12, 9 and 7), it is important for the school board to have representation from parents who have a personal interest in improving the quality of our school district. Second, I believe in quality public education that ensures the success of all students. Third, serving on the Whitewater School Board allows me the opportunity to share my experiences and skills to benefit this community.
What are the most pressing issues facing the position you seek?
Over the next several years, key areas of focus for this district include ensuring that all needs related to Special Education and English Language Learners are met, building a top notch vocational and technical education program that allows our students to graduate in a competitive career ready environment, addressing our aging buildings, all while operating a fiscally responsible budget.
In addition, student success requires support for not only their academic needs, but also their social and emotional needs. As a district, we need to do everything that we can to keep our students and educators safe and healthy so that they can stay in person, in school, where they can be most effective. With the pandemic widening an already concerning gap in student achievement it is imperative that we identify each student’s educational and emotional needs in order to provide a roadmap for success.
If elected, what unique perspective and experience do you bring to the board?
Prior to serving the Whitewater School District, I was on the Board of Trustees for two three-year terms for Rock Prairie Montessori School. I have also worked with many boards in my professional career. While the objective of each board has been different, they all require someone who can create stronger ties between the board and the stakeholders. One of the most important roles as a Whitewater School Board member is to serve as the voice of the community, something that I take seriously.
If elected, I will continue to focus on student achievement and implementing policies that will ensure success for all students. I will continue to listen to the concerns of this community, be responsive, serve as a voice for all, demand transparency, encourage data-driven decision making, and help problem solve to facilitate setting measurable goals and action plans.
Joseph Kromholz
Age: 60
Address: 393 Eagle Court
Occupation: Attorney, Partner at Ryan Kromholz and Manion, S.C.
Number of years resided in district: 19 years
Education: I received my undergraduate degree in chemistry from Carroll College and my law degree from Marquette University.
Civic and other organizational memberships: I am a member of the Whitewater Unified School District School Board (finishing Jim Stewart’s term). I am a member of the State Bar of Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Intellectual Property Law Association, the State Bar Section on Intellectual Property Law Association, and I am admitted to practice in all federal courts in Wisconsin as well as before the 4th and 7th Circuit Courts of Appeal and the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. I provide pro-bono legal assistance in the Eastern District of Wisconsin. I am a registered Patent Attorney.
Political experience: None
What are your reasons for seeking this position?
I believe in a strong public school education, and I believe that our community needs to rally behind and support our parents, our teachers, and staff to make our schools exemplary places for all children to receive an education. To achieve this we must ensure that all kids have access to school and be in school. We need to work together.
I believe that Whitewater Schools are great for our children. My wife Marjorie Stoneman grew up in Whitewater and we moved here in 2003 to raise our son, David, who attended public school in Whitewater. Our son clearly benefited from talented, caring teachers and opportunities in this school district. Although he has now graduated, I want to continue to be involved in the board because I want to continue supporting the district. A strong school district benefits everyone.
What are the most pressing issues facing the position you seek?
I believe that we need to adequately fund our schools. The state of Wisconsin is now expected to end its budget cycle in June 2023 with a surplus of $3.8 billion in its main bank account. Real school funding has not meaningfully increased since 2011. During that time school districts have repeatedly had to go to referendums to cover the costs of operations. It is time to effectively support our state education system and the children and families that rely on that system. We need to end the cycle of having to go to referendum. We need to actively educate the state Legislature to use this surplus to ensure adequate funding of our schools so that this referendum cycle can end. I want to be part of this effort to bring more funding to our schools.
I believe that all children deserve a strong education. I want to ensure that all children, regardless of abilities or languages, have the opportunity to succeed in a caring, learning environment. All children need to be given the opportunities to succeed. For some this may be to go to college and for others this may be to go to work in industry. Local and national industries need qualified, skilled people. For too long we have underfunded technical education in our school system and we have fallen behind in the types of training and education that other districts offer.
We also have a unique opportunity to pursue a dual language program. Almost 50% of our students do not speak English as their primary language and the majority of those students speak Spanish as their primary language. If we were to teach all of our students to speak both English and Spanish we would enable them to communicate with roughly 80% of the people in the world and make them very desirable persons for the business community to employ.
If elected, what unique perspective and experience do you bring to the board?
I believe that school board members must be able to work together to make changes. As a partner at the law firm, Ryan Kromholz and Manion, I have had the opportunity to lead staff, engage in challenging discussions, and pursue successful outcomes. I believe all of those traits are vital to working together with school board members to make sound decisions based on research and the needs of students. As a board member, I have already engaged with the community to discuss issues that are deemed contentious. I plan to continue to work together with all community members.
Any additional comments?
I strongly believe in the value of education and believe that the school district already provides a strong education. That said, I believe we need to plan to start tackling predicted challenges. I ask for your vote to help me work with others as I strongly believe we can be a great school district if we all work together.
Please share my contact information. I plan to work together with all community members. If you call and I am not able to answer the phone immediately, please leave a message with your contact information so that I can return your call: kromholz@execpc.com or 414-379-2116.
Andrea M. Svec
Age: 55
Address: W7679 Shereda Rd., Whitewater
Occupation: Lead Compliance Analyst for AT&T; I have been with AT&T since 1992.
Number of years resided in district: Moved permanently in 2013. I have been coming here my whole life.
Education: B.A. Northern Illinois University; majored in English, History minor.
Civic and other organizational memberships: President of the Music Parents Association
Political experience: None
What are your reasons for seeking this position?
I want to help make our schools a priority. We have lost a number of students over the last few years to other school districts. Not only must we attract our own students back, we must make Whitewater the school of choice. It is critical that strong partnerships with parents, teachers, administrators and the community are created in order to make this happen. All students should have a path to follow as they move through school. Whether a student chooses to pursue higher education or a career in the trades and vocations, excellence must be expected and pursued.
What are the most pressing issues facing the position you seek?
Finances will be a struggle in the months and years to come. Families, businesses and by extension schools will face hardships with the rise in inflation. Asking for and receiving money from our community in the form of taxes, referendums or fundraising will be challenging; therefore, we must be judicial with the money we have, spend it wisely and be transparent with the spending we do. It doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t spend, it means we do it the right way by prioritizing the needs.
Academics, Athletics and Arts are the 3 areas that we need to refocus our efforts. In order to be the school of choice and to prepare our students for success, we must channel our energies in these 3 key areas. Strong plans and goals need to be set and accomplishments measured against those goals. Students must remain in the classroom and have hands-on experiences through a well-rounded curriculum that includes integrated learning. Athletics, music, drama and art are required for a robust student experience. These components also make schools desirable to parents making school choices for their children.
Technology and Vocational training is greatly needed in our district. Students who will not or do not choose a path to college should have skills when they graduate to prepare them for success in trades. Community and business partnerships will be critical in this area of our school. At this time this is an area of opportunity that we should be cultivating for our young people.
If elected, what unique perspective and experience do you bring to the board?
I am not a politician. I believe in doing the right thing — not some of the time, all of the time. I have the ability to look at information that is presented and ask questions that others don’t. I will be a voice for those who do not feel they have been heard. I will listen to the people of this community and make decisions based on facts and data. I am creative and am not comfortable with the answer, “We have always done it this way.” It is time to try things a different way. I want to be a part of that change.
Any additional comments?
It’s about the FACTS:
F is for Fiscal Responsibility. We must spend our dollars wisely. We must provide clear data and plans that ensure we are being good stewards of the monies we have been given. We must plan for rainy days. We will find alternative ways when necessary. We will treat the money as if it were our own and be accountable for our results.
A is for Academics, Athletics, and Arts. These are the basics. When we are strong here, when the 3 legs on this stool do not wobble, we will be successful. It’s time to take our blinders off. It’s time to listen and think outside the box. It’s time to dare to be different. Mediocrity is not okay. If we don’t dream for more, we can’t work for more. Every child deserves the chance to be the most he or she can be. It can’t just be the teachers who bear this burden. These students belong to us all because they are our citizens of tomorrow. When they succeed, we all succeed. It is up to each of us to find ways to strengthen our “A”s.
C is for Culture. We must create a culture of excellence. Mediocrity is not an acceptable outcome. Students must know their success is our success. Their failures are ours. Our culture will be one of respect. Respect and courtesy will be shown to all. Parents, teachers and administrators will be the examples of what that means.
T is for Tech Ed. Not every student will be college bound. It is our obligation to ensure there is a path for them. There are careers in the trades are and there is good money for those who have the know-how. We must partner with the community members and businesses to create a program that is second to none. Whitewater should be the school others look to for inspiration when designing their own trades curriculum.
S is for students and S is for success. After all, if it isn’t about these things…why bother? Students must be brought into the mix when planning for this change. Being a part of the solution gives them skin in the game. Working hard for common causes is how work gets done. It’s part of being a citizen. It’s part of growing up. They will benefit from the hard work and partnership. Give students a voice today so they can be the voice for tomorrow.
Success. It is something that all can achieve. Not all will want it. But it is there for those who are willing. It cannot be given to someone. It is earned. One must work for it. Success is not created equal. But success has one thing in common for all…it is a reflection of being the best one can be. Success isn’t stopping once you get to the top of the hill. Success is looking for your next mountain to conquer.
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Thankyou for the article!
I would like to know if any of the canidates believe in CRT! Or, specifically their position on parents involement in school policies/children education.
Thankyou!