As part of the November 3 election, voters in the Hastings Area School System district will vote to place some members on to our Board of Education.
Four candidates will be running for three available, six-year terms. Below is information on each candidate.
NICK MARLATT (Incumbent)
What experience do you have that will serve you well on the school board?
I am a father of three daughters, ages 14, 12 and 10. My wife is an educator and education is important to us as a family. My wife and I both have advanced degrees and I believe in the power of education to expand an individual's social imaginary or intellectual horizon so they become wiser and more empathetic as a member of their community. We have lived in multiple states and school districts and have seen how other districts work and places where they are healthy and unhealthy. I have served on various church boards in my professional life, both at the congregational level and at the regional judicatory level. I have also served on boards here in Barry County, including the Hastings Rotary Club Board and the Pierce Cedar Creek Institute Board. These experiences have provided an apprenticeship in how boards function and the role of boards in relationship to the community they serve.
Additionally I have volunteered as a student mentor here in Hastings as well as in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, where I lived before moving to Hastings four years ago. I have also coached track and cross country in Ilwaco, Washington where I lived before moving to Pennsylvania.
My volunteer experience, my service on various boards as well as having three children in the Hastings School System at all three levels of the school system makes me uniquely qualified to serve the Hastings Area School System because I will see and have to live with the decisions made by the Hastings Area School Board.
What led you to want to serve on the school board?
I want to give back to the community I live in and education is an important part of the Hastings community.
What are some of the key issues facing HASS and what are your ideas to address them?
As a new member of the board, I am learning about the specific issues facing HASS. That being said, there are societal issues which impact all communities and schools and Hastings is no exception. For example, aging buildings and physical infrastructure in districts need to be addressed as they are part of the basic needs of quality education. There are also shortages of good-paying trades workers in many communities and I want to see Hastings continue to support the various pathways to quality employment that may not require post-secondary education but is necessary for communities to thrive. In short, I want to help contribute to stewarding the Hastings Area Schools well, ensuring that our students receive a high quality education, creating a school community that supports its educators and staff, and build the district into a premier school system that attracts new families to our wonderful community.
LUKE HAYWOOD (Incumbent)
What experience do you have that will serve you well on the school board?
I have over 13 years of experience on the Hastings Area Schools Board of Education with nine years serving as President and one year as Treasurer. I graduated from Hastings High School in 1994 and upon receiving my Bachelors in Animal Science at Michigan State University in 1998, I returned home to the family farm. (I am also 50 years old, not 40 as reported in the Hastings Banner.)
I am a lifelong resident of Hastings and have a deep understanding of our community and school district’s needs. I have five children that have attended Hastings Area Schools, three of which have graduated.
Other experiences that help bring leadership qualities to the Board of Education are: Prairie Farms Dairy Cooperative Board of Director/Secretary, Barry County Fair 4-H Dairy Superintendent, 4-H Club leader, Corwell Health Pennock Hospital Community board and FFA Alumni President.
What led you to want to serve on the school board?
I became interested in serving on the board when I was asked to interview to fill an appointment when a BOE member moved out of district 13 years ago. As a graduate of Hastings, I felt I had an outstanding education in the Hastings Area School System and I saw an opportunity to give back to the community by serving on the board. I wanted to make sure my children, along with everyone else’s children in our district, had every educational opportunity available to them that our small rural school system could provide.
What are some of the key issues facing HASS and what are your ideas to address them?
Some of the key issues I feel that face our district are declining enrollment and the financial implications that this has on balancing the budget. Another challenge is maintaining and making improvements to our aging buildings and infrastructure.
First and foremost we need to continue to be fiscally responsible and transparent with our tax payer dollars. This often means we must make hard budget cuts in times of need. In addition, I feel the best way to address enrollment is to continue to strive to be a destination district where we minimize enrollment decline.
In doing so, we must be able to provide educational opportunities to ALL students. We need to determine student needs based on their career choices and in doing so provide additional opportunities for each of our students. This could be advanced college prep and AP courses or CTE courses just to name a few. All of our students also deserve a safe, caring, and up-to-date learning environment. This opportunity presents itself to us this fall with a zero mill increase which would allow us to modernizing many of our buildings and facilities along with making safety upgrades.
I have had the privilege of serving the Hastings community on the Board of Education the past 13 years, and look forward to another six years of service if elected.
KEVIN DICKINSON (Incumbent)
What experience do you have that will serve you well on the school board?
I have lived in Hastings for 35 of my 39 years. I have moved away twice and have always been drawn back to this community. I am proud to say that my wife teaches for Hastings Area Schools and I have three children attending school at all levels of our district, elementary, middle school, and high school.
The experiences I have had managing Hastings Pharmacy and sitting on the board for our area's Ducks Unlimited chapter have given me the foundation to be an effective school board member. The daily operation of the business and planning events require me to collaborate with co-workers and community members to work within set budgets while maintaining a dynamic and versatile environment.
I have also had the opportunity to coach various youth sports in Barry County, which has allowed me to form relationships with many families that have given me perspective into various challenges that our community faces.
What led you to want to serve on the school board?
I was offered the opportunity to interview for my current position on the school board when a temporary vacancy needed to be filled. I was honored to be given the chance to serve our district in this way.
What are some of the key issues facing HASS and what are your ideas to address them?
In my short time on the board, many members of our community have voiced concerns about various issues every school system faces including budgets, transportation, and sports. It is my goal to address each of these issues with transparency, integrity, and accountability as I continue to serve this district. The success of our community relies heavily on the success of our students. Our students deserve a safe, fair, and high quality learning environment.
DARRELL SLAUGHTER
What experience do you have that will serve you well on the school board?
Leadership skills developed through years of working in management, coaching and time spent in the United States Marine Corps.
What led you to want to serve on the school board?
Wanting full transparency on bond projects and where the money is spent.
What are some of the key issues facing HASS and what are your ideas to address them?
Teacher retention, school funding and safety and security for students and staff are some of the key issues facing HASS. Working to have equitable pay for staff while working to recruit local graduates to fill openings as well as providing safe and secure schools will all help with retention.
Physical security upgrades as well as mental health support to help students. For school funding, I will work with the board on transparency of all school funding, making sure tax dollars and state and federal funds are spent in the best interest of students and for students.
One candidate will be running for one, partial (two-year) term. Information on that candidate is below.
BRAD TOLLES (Incumbent)
What experience do you have that will serve you well on the school board?
Life experience. I've run multiple businesses, owned several homes, worked budgets, paid bills and raised a family.
Most of what the school board does is the same stuff we all do to run our personal lives; it's just a bigger scale and there's way more government involvement.
What led you to want to serve on the school board?
I care about our community and the future of all the kids of our district. They are literally our future.
What are some of the key issues facing HASS and what are your ideas to address them?
The biggest issue is always, how to provide the best education possible with the resources provided. Financial issues impact every component of running a district. I feel very strongly that our communities understanding of school financing is critical for the operation of a strong school system.
The concept of the three-legged stool put forth a couple years ago was a good (all be it, simple) description of school funding. I would add one more leg to that stool, that I feel is the most important: Voting. This is the critical feedback our elected board needs to address the "how best" questions. I hope I can, as I continue to learn, help others in our community understand the financial mechanics of running our schools.