by Kara Hildreth
Thisweek Newspapers
Eight candidates are running for three open seats on the Farmington District 192 School Board.
The primary election will be held Tuesday, Sept. 9. Two candidates will be eliminated and the top six voter getters will move onto the general election in November.
School Board members Ann Manthey and Tim Weyandt will not seek re-election.
Board chair Julie McKnight, who has served for nine years, is seeking re-election. She works as a director of information systems at Health Partners as part of the health-and-wellness programs.
Candidate Tim Burke has lived in Farmington for nearly six years with
his wife and two daughters and works as a public relations manager for
Allina Hospitals and Clinics.
A resident since 2000, Carol Kappes and her husband have two children
who are 15 and 13 years old, and she works as a registered pediatric
dental assistant at Eagan Dental Clinic.
Farmington residents since 1995, Jim Peroutky and his wife have three
daughters who are 16, 13 and 10 years old. He works in technology for
Thomson Reuters in Eagan.
Kimberlee Simones, a resident of Farmington since 1996 with her husband
and three children ages 10, 14 and 17, works in the hospital technology
desktop support division for Health Partners.
A 12-year Farmington resident, Julie Singewald and her husband have
three children, ages 11, 8 and 5. She works as a clinical laboratory
scientist for Allina at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis.
Veronica Walter, a resident of Farmington for eight years, works as a guidance counselor at Burnsville High School.
Bruce Westover, a resident since 2000, and his wife have a 5-year-old
and twins who are a year and a half. He works as a stay-at-home father
and holds a professional background in telecommunications.
Each term is for four years beginning in January 2009.
QUESTIONS
1) Why did you decide to run for a seat on the Farmington School Board?
2) What professional and personal attributes would you bring as a board member?
3) What specific areas of curriculum, from kindergarten through high school, can be improved upon?
4) How important a role do the state MCA tests play in pinpointing students’ progress and areas of low performance, and do you think these scores are a report card on how the district is teaching its students?
5) What are the greatest challenges the Farmington School District will face as it approaches the next four years or a term for a school board member?
Questionaire response: Bruce Westover
Questionaire response: Jim Peroutky
Questionaire response: Veronica Walter
Questionaire response: Julie Singewald
Questionaire response: Kimberly Simones
Questionaire response: Julie McKnight
