Nicholas Paris, LTHS Board Of Education Candidate

LOCKPORT, IL —Nicholas Paris is running for Lockport Township High School District 205 Board of Education. There are eight candidates running for three open positions in the race.

The consolidated election is April 4.

Here are Paris' responses to the Patch candidate questionnaire:

Your name:

Nicholas Paris

Age (as of election day):

28

Town/city of residence:

Lockport

School district:

205

Family:

My wife ivy paris 28yrs old hopefully some children soon

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?*

No one I know works in government.

Education:

Bachelors degree in chemistry

Occupation:

3 years as a logistic specialist and a manager of a nancys pizzeria

Campaign website or Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/profi...

Previous or current elected or appointed office:

No previous office held.

The most pressing issues facing our (board, district, etc.) are _______, and this is what I intend to do about them.

I want the students to be able to make well-educated decisions about careers they want to pursue. I want them to be able to make the right decision before it becomes too late to change their minds. We need to make sure the same attention and resources are given to blue collar career paths as white collar career paths. Furthermore, we should be able to provide the students with accurate information of what they should expect depending on what career path they take.

From personal experience I was told through high school and college that after I received my chemistry degree I would be making at least 70k a year right out of the door. It was actually a 30k a year job and I was working for a career placement agency and not the actual company I worked for. We should really be able to give the different scenarios for following a career path a student should expect.

If we can do more follow-up research with students that graduated from LTHS and learn from their career path we can build a better idea for what students should expect following the same path including how to get started, any unexpected debts you will have to take on, and what the actual job is like day to day.

I plan to make sure the guidance offices do more to reach out to kids and get them in touch with LTHS alumni that followed the same path they plan to follow.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I was in the LTHS school system recently, and I know, from personal experience, the places where the school was lacking in getting the students ready for their life after high school. I also keep in touch with current students and hear the issues they face daily because of my work at a local Nancy's pizza. Also, a lot of the other candidates are in the school system, so I can provide a real world/outside perspective voice for our community to make sure there are no in house biases towards school board decisions.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community or district?

We need to make sure students are ready to live as adults after they are done with high school. Currently it seems like the baton of learning real world skills are being passed down to post high school learning institutions such as community college and 4 year colleges. I want to make sure students can get a good job, be prepared to make financial decisions, and understand how to be a key member in their communities right out of high school.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform

Internet ethics
media literacy
Reaching out to parents weekly to address community concerns

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I have been working with students and their parents for 13 years making me aware of the communities concerns when it comes to high school education. Also, I am a hard worker I have always worked two jobs and was able to get my bachelor degree in only 3 years. I will work hard and make sure the current students don't end up like many of my classmates. Many students from my graduating class are in jobs that they are over qualified for or they are not using their degree. I will make sure these students know all the options that are open to them to help them achieve a fulfilling life.

Why should voters trust you?

Voters should trust me because I will listen to them after I am elected. I will not get in the school board role and push my own agenda. I believe elected officials are truly public servants, and that is what I intend to do. I will serve the community as a whole and not just the loudest people in the community. I, like most people, do not trust politicians in today's political climate and I want to make sure that changes. I am not doing this for anything besides making the students able to thrive after high school and in turn making our community thrive in the future.

If you win this position, what accomplishment would make your term in office a success?

Making sure students can live on their own after high school following a career path that will make them successful as adults. Alternatively, making sure if students are going on to higher education they know exactly what to expect after graduation for their field's job prospects and a good estimation of a salary they should expect.

What are your views on fiscal policy, government spending and the handling of taxpayer dollars in the office you are seeking?

As a school I believe all spending should go into educating the students. I will ask myself with every penny we spend how does it benefit the student?

What are your thoughts on how the district has handled the COVID-19 pandemic?

I believe it could have been handled better. Learning at home was a necessity when COVID-19 was new, but I believe it went on for far too long. Cheating was running rampant when the students were testing at home. For situations like tests I believe we could have made the students come in 1 day a week, while keeping safe, to ensure they were learning the material. The students learning at that time are severely hindered now if they want to pursue further education because they did not learn the skills they needed to succeed.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, some school boards saw extremely heated disagreements during public meetings. If elected, what changes, if any, need to be made to ensure meetings are run efficiently while still allowing open discussions?

My goal is to have each school board member personally reach out to at least 1 parent a week via phone call, email, or text. It is hard for parents to voice their concerns at a school board meeting because they have to find the time while juggling community, family, work, and all other responsibilities they have. I feel like most heated disagreements were caused because of not having correct/current information on how the school was handling issues. Parents would not want to come to the school board meeting and voice their concerns until what they were hearing was far beyond what they would deem acceptable. Therefore, reaching out to parents preemptively might give them a chance to voice their concerns and for the school board to give them the most current and accurate information so they do not come in the meeting so heated.

How do you feel about sex education being taught in school? Should an LGBTQ component be included, and why or why not?

The goal of sex education in school should be to make sure students know how to keep safe and to help them make the right decisions for themselves.

What are your views on critical race theory and whether it should be taught in the district?

N/A

Do you think the current board has done enough to support racial equality, and if not, what specifically should be done to do so?

N/A

When it comes to student achievement, what are schools within this district doing well and what needs to be improved? How can those improvements be made?

The extracurricular programs at LTHS are exceptional. The programs I would try to improve are programs where students learn how to plan for their future as adults.

Is there any reason you would not serve your full term of office, other than those of health or family?

There is no reason I would not be able to serve my full term. If I believed I could not serve the full term, I would not have run for office.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Don't become a politician, become a public servant. Never forget the people in the community you are trying to serve to the best of your ability.