League of Women Voters of the Cincinnati Area Education Fund
Hamilton, Butler County, OH November 8, 2011 Election
	Dan Unger Answers Questions Candidate for Board Member; Northwest Local School District

The questions were prepared by the League of Women Voters of the Cincinnati Area and asked of all candidates for this office.
Read the answers from all candidates (who have responded).

Questions & Answers

1. What are your qualifications for office?

I have attended all but three regular meetings of the Board of Education since my first one in August of 1994.(over 400 meetings in 17 years)I have not missed a meeting since I was first elected in 2007. I have been witness to or participated in every debate over every policy that our district has on record and have seen a lot of good people come and go over the years. I have archival knowledge of where we have been and a lot of positive ideas about how we can continue to improve our district. My lifelong career in private industry has demanded daily fiscal prudence and I will continue to bring the same to our school board in the years to come.

2. What would you do to advance the concept of "equity in education" in your district?

Despite differences in economic circumstance, family situation or even the neighborhood that a student lives in, when our students walk into our buildings, I expect all to have the same opportunity to succeed once inside of our schools. Included in this is an equal distribution of experienced personnel for every subject at each building, current learning materials and and up-to-date technology as appropriate per grade level. While the debate will go on forever over the perceived need for increased funding versus the ability of citizens to bear the tax burden, I remain committed to working within the existing budget to provide the absolute best that we can for our students.

3. How would you use your students' state test results to improve education in your district?

Our most recent state test results are the combined best ever for the district. We currently have six buildings rated as "excellent" and the remainder rated as "effective". There are many intangibles that can not be quantified by a test, yet these observations are still critical assessments of the progress of individual students. However,in the eyes of the State Board of Education, we are still evaluated by test results and we need to focus in those areas in which we are impelled to better progress. I believe that we need to look outside of our district to other schools that are having a greater level of success in certain subject matter and try to compare our methods with theirs, refining from both new innovation to improve our programs.

4. What will you do to build consensus in the community in support of public schools?

Our district is unique as one-in-three school age children with the geographical boundaries of the Northwest Local School District attend parochial schools. The distribution ratio of students has remained fairly constant for a long time, however,in recent years, the pool of age 5 through 18 year old students has dropped dramatically, coupled with a steep rise in tuition at parochial schools as religious staff have been replaced with higher paid lay staff. The result has been a larger number of families sending students to our public high schools and an increased need for communication between the parochial and public schools. I continue to encourage cooperation between the two, whether in academic pursuit, extra-curricular activities or even transportation. I look for opportunities to benefit both, as our students live in the same neighborhoods and can accomplish a lot more later in life united rather than divided. It is not the students, especially the younger ones that see the differences. Most of the potential for greater understanding of both types of schools is in the hands of adults. We all hope that all of our children have the greatest chance for success in life.

5. What are your budget priorities?

Funding for educational materials and district personnel involved in every day direct contact with our students. Maintaining current levels of bus service to families is a safety issue and priority. Second priority items are those services that are important, but do not have an everyday impact on our pupils. Careful stewardship of our existing funds provides a climate where our employees can feel an additional sense of security in their jobs which will allow them to focus on the primary mission of educating students.

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Created from information supplied by the candidate: September 19, 2011 17:00
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