Candidate for
Board Member; Princeton City School District

Let me introduce myself to you. I am not just "Jenny Pansing, Candidate". I am a education cheerleader who values my ties to my family and community, and advocates for children as best I can.

I am a Cincinnati native, and graduate of Sycamore High School. I attended the college of Mount St. Joseph, where I graduated cum laude with my BSN-- Bachelors of Science in Nursing. I have been married to my husband Terry for 24 years, and we have 3 children.

Professionally, I as employed as an RN at Children's Hospital, and have been for the past 24 years. I work on an inpatient unit, predominantly with medical patients coming to us with both short and long term medical conditions and issues. My job gives me a chance to work closely with children and their families as they grapple with multiple stressors in their lives. I see the extra challenges faced by those with limited educational backgrounds, and how this impacts their lives as a whole.

My husband Terry and I moved to Evendale 22 years ago, choosing this area before our children were even born, predominantly on the strength of the Princeton schools. We have never regretted that decision. All three of our children have thrived with the educations they have, and continue to receive through our schools, from preschool through graduation.

I first became involved in our district through the Evendale PTA. I began by helping on various projects, such as Book Fair, Everybody Counts!, and various others. In 1992-93 I was voted Evendale PTA 1st Vice President, and followed that by being voted President 1993-95. In these roles I began to understand more about the school and the district, and how they operated together to provide for our children's educational needs. I was a member of the Superintendent's Advisory Committee and several district task forces, and saw new perspectives while on these groups.

In 1996 I was asked to head one of our Strategic Planning Action Teams. Our group focused on how to make our district more family friendly. The team was comprised of parents, staff, and administrators from across the district. Again, I learned much about Princeton, and as a group we took a long hard look at both its strengths and areas of concern that we saw throughout the district. The recommendations we made through this team have led to many changes in how we as a district partner with parents and community residents in Princeton.

In 1997 I was the proud recipient of the PROS Award--"Princeton Recognizes Outstanding Service" and the Dreamkeeper Award, given to those who "go the extra mile" in helping our Princeton schools.

Outside of Princeton, I was active for several years in Valley Area Council PTA, a group comprised of 15 PTA school districts in our area. This has helped me see the big picture in education, and learn to look beyond Princeton to how decision affect students all over Ohio and the US, as well as public education as a whole. I served as President of this group in 1997-98.

I have always believed that schools, families, and communities must work together to provide the best possible education for our students. I was pleased that grants were available to help set up such partnerships, and persuaded Evendale Elementary to pursue this opportunity. Through our work, we were granted the first of several $3000 grants to help bring school, family, and community closer together for the benefit of students. Our successes were used as a trailblazer for Glendale Elementary to receive such a grant as well. Other schools have followed suit, and now have new programs in place that help foster these connections. I had the honor of co-presenting workshops about our successes with these partnerships to the Ohio PTA convention and the Ohio School Boards Association Capital Conference with other Princeton staff and parents.

I was first elected to the Princeton Board of Education in fall 1997. Since then, I have served one year as Board Vice President, and am now completing my second year as Board President. During that time, the Board has done much to strengthen its position as a leadership voice for Princeton and public education. We have focused our energies on specific, measurable goals. We now conduct yearly self-evaluations to look at ourselves, and determine our own internal improvements needed to be a more effective group for the district. As a district, Princeton is strong and vibrant, and I am proud of the contributions I have been able to make to help in that continued growth and vitality.

I enjoy providing service to our students, schools, district, and community through my Board efforts. I value public education, and believe that the district needs all my knowledge, commitment, concern, caring, and dedication as we grapple with internal and external challenges. I have a lot to offer Princeton, and would appreciate the opportunity to continue to serve you on your Board of Education.

Please Re-Elect Jenny Pansing on November 6 th. Thank you.