Joseph Selbka: Candidate Profile

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Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioQA Bio City: Arlington HeightsWebsite: https://www.facebook.com/Joe-Selbka-for-District-25-School-BoardTwitter: Candidate did not respond.Facebook: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Arlington Heights District 25 School Board Age: 45Family: My spouse is Beata Selbka. I have two children in the District, Sofia and Victoria.Occupation: attorney, adjunct professorEducation: BA, University of Illinois at UrbanaJD, University of Minnesota School of Law, cum laudeVisiting Student, University of Chicago, the Law SchoolM.P.A, University of Illinois at Chicago, College of Urban Planning and Public AffairsCivic involvement: Member, Board of Zoning Appeals, Village of Arlington HeightsMember, Illinois State Bar AssociationMember Northwest Suburban Bar AssociationMember, Learning Disabilities Association of IllinoisFaculty Member, Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal EducationAuthor: Special Education Due Process LitigationElected offices held: Member of Board of Zoning Appeals, Village of Arlington HeightsImpartial Due Process Hearing Officer, Illinois State Board of Education;Impartial Hearing Officer, District of Columbia Office of the State Superintendent of EducationQuestions Answers Why are you running for this office, whether for re-election or election the first time? Is there a particular issue that motivates you, and if so, what is it?I am motivated to run for office because I believe I can use my education and experience to help the community. I have spent years representing state and local governments (including numerous school districts). I have a master's in public administration and I have taught hundreds of government managers and aspiring government managers at a graduate level at the University of Illinois at Chicago. I also gained valuable insights into education: (1) in my time as an administrative law judge adjudicating special education disputes between school districts and parents for the State of Illinois and the District of Columbia; (2) in coauthoring a book to guide lawyers in the area of special education law; (3) in representing parents, students, and public school employees while in private practice. Finally, I have been on a team which provided consulting services to a board of education related to working together cohesively and ethically. All of these experiences have given me expertise, and just as importantly, perspective to be a board member who can truly add to the educational experience of the children in my community.What do you think about the process for measuring student success in your district? Is it adequate? What changes, if any, do you propose?The District is too focused on standardized tests as measures of student success. Moreover, the District is too focused on simply ensuring all students receive an average level of proficiency in academic skills. I believe success for different student populations has to be measured in different ways. The modern school system is expected to teach different populations, and success thus has to be measured in different ways. The ultimate measure of success is whether the school is preparing the student in question: (1) to be as productive member of society as possible; (2) to be an informed citizen and contributing member to their community; (3) to give the student the tools to reach his or her potential and pursue his or her goals in life. For most student populations, thus, the most important measures of success will be: (1) mastery of academic skills (mainly the "common core" curriculum); and (2) mastery of the Illinois social-emotional learning standards for their age groups. Nearly as important (and related to academic mastery) will be preparing students to begin thinking analytically and creatively. For other student populations like special needs children and ESL children, we need other measures of success. For ESL children, just as important as mastery of academic and social-emotional skills is mastery of English. For special needs children, success has to be measured against their potential. The District should endeavor as much as possible to maximize special needs kids' chances for a flourishing life.How big a role do you think the board of education should play in setting the curriculum for students and what ideas do you have for changes to the current curriculum?Much of the curriculum is set by federal and Illinois law. The State Board of Education and the Department of Education set much of the curriculum for primary school students"â#128;ťespecially through the Common Core State Standards Initiative. A local board of education has very limited ability to change or deviate from the state and federal standards.A local board of education and administration, however, do have significant ability to affect implementation of the curriculum. There are multiple improvements to the way in which the curriculum can be implemented. First, the District is overly reliant on standardized testing. Standardized testing mainly measures proficiency rather than growth. For the general student population, the district needs to work to help teachers to evaluate children beyond their standardized test scores to determine how children can grow. Teachers need to be both empowered and then trusted to identify blossoming creativity, analysis, persistence, and ambition in order to encourage growth. The District should also take into account the desires of parents in fostering growth. For special needs children, the District needs to change the values and emphasis in implementing the curriculum. Rather than have consultants conduct studies on how to provide the minimum required by law, the Board needs to emphasize to District personnel should meet every child's unique needs and rely on every child's strengths to provide an education. Rather, the Board should find ways to encourage District personnel to try cost-effective techniques, accommodations, and specialized programming first.What budget issues will your district have to confront and what measures do you support to address them? If you believe cuts are necessary, what programs and expenses should be reduced or eliminated? On the income side, do you support any tax or fee increases?The District's biggest budget challenge is currently the building and construction outlays associated with enlarging District schools. With appropriate governance, there should not be a need to raise taxes and fees. First, the Board has to revisit rearranging District boundaries to alleviate some of the problems with overcrowding in the schools. The District may also try allowing school choice for some of the slots in District schools. Second, the Board has to seriously use its oversight powers to ensure construction and architectural contracts are drawn in a way to allow the District to keep costs to a minimum especially due to excessive change orders. Districts have to be vigilant when dealing with contractors and architects in order to prevent cost overruns. The Board needs to ensure that the District's business manager and assistant superintendents are doing everything possible to keep costs low. Again, this is part of the Board's oversight and stewardship responsibilities.What role can and should school choice play in your district? If Congress or the state approves a voucher system or other means giving students broader choices among public and private schools, how will that affect your district? What is the appropriate response for the board of education of a public school system?I believe we should look at allowing some choice among the public schools in the District. If parents want to enroll their children at different schools, this could create a healthy internal competition among the various schools. I also believe private schools are sometimes necessary for special needs kids which the public school cannot provide services for. These are generally referred to as therapeutic day schools or residential placements and are sometimes appropriate for special needs kids. I do not believe a voucher system will significantly affect our District even if it is approved by Congress or the state. I do not believe other vouchers for other private schools are a good idea, but I would respect the law if the state decided to allow vouchers.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?Issues important to me not mentioned above are: (1) all day kindergarten is important to me. I think this could be the most helpful policy for helping young learners in the District; (2) Special education is important to me. I would try and make use the governance powers of the Board to instill a culture which leads the District to be more understanding of special needs parents and more responsive to special needs kids; (4) I want to encourage the Administration to expand advanced classes for children who desire a more challenging environment; (5) I want to work to make the Board more communicative to the community at large and to better explain Board decisions. Part of the Board's responsibility is to explain the processes of school administration and educational policy decisions to the citizens to allow them to make informed decisions. Similarly, I want to foster engagement and collaboration between the District and parents. The Board and Administration should make decisions in a way which attempts to bring the community into the decision making process. All of these changes can be summed up with two simple propositions: (1) in dealing with Administration, the Board needs a "noses in, fingers out" approach where the Board holds the Administration to a high standard in providing alternatives and acting creatively. The Board also needs to cultivate a culture of service and engagement with parents and the community in providing District services.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Pope FrancisWhat is the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?When you are convinced that something is the right thing to do, persevere, work hard, and follow your conscience.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I would have taken more social science classes in college.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?Philosophy. Philosophy gave me a grounding to understand every subject that I studied thereafter, and helped me understand the practice of law.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Always respect yourself; demand that others respect you; and never disrespect others in an attempt to build yourself up.