Previous political or volunteer service: The Friendly Kitchen, Concord
Leah Wolczko
Why are you running for School Board?
I am a mother and a high school teacher. I came to teaching as a second career 5 years ago. The education of young people is of utmost importance to me. We need a School Board that is responsive to our teachers, the wider community and economic reality. I believe some new people, with fresh eyes, may be able to examine the issues facing our District from multiple perspectives and find it possible to protect the excellent education of our students without indiscriminately defending the status quo for every line item in the budget.
What do you see as the biggest challenges ahead for the Goffstown School District?
I believe the School Board needs to assume the economy may have permanently changed for the worse. For a decade, American wages have stagnated. Our homes have lost value, as have many of our other assets. The U6 unemployment rate for December was 16.1%. The cost of living is rising rapidly. Regardless, taxes for our municipal services rise every year. Maintaining the status quo instead of prioritizing our expenditures is a recipe for disaster for our schools, which could lead to drastic cuts in essential student services in future years. We need bold new ideas.
What are your ideas for keeping school costs manageable in a down economy?
The District produced a document listing consequences of a reduced budget. It bears scrutiny. Many expenditures are being made because of arbitrary time tables previously set. Per their document, unbroken furniture is being replaced; shelves are slated for replacement simply because they are “23 years old and made of wood.” Calculus textbooks are slated for replacement because they were printed in 1997, not because they are damaged or new knowledge has been discovered. $63,000 is to be spent on Smart Boards, which are unnecessary, expensive and will doubtless be obsolete shortly. Space limits prohibit discussion of other, bigger ideas here.
