School Board Candidates Discuss Issues at Forum

Special education, school rankings, and classroom curriculums were among the topics discussed Monday night by those attending a  Board of Education candidate forum hosted by the League of Women Voters.

Five candidates, including three incumbents, are running for the three seats available on Nov. 8. Those vying for positions on the board include:

• Gary Hauff, who is serving his 13th year on the Troy School Board. Hauff retired from the Troy Police Department and has lived in the city for more than 25 years.
• M'Liz Malven, who was appointed to the Troy School Board in February. She is a nine-year resident of Troy and has 25 years of senior management in the IT industry
• Todd Miletti, who is serving his fourth year on the Troy School Board. He is an account manager for Hewlett Packard Company and a 12-year resident of Troy.
• Karl Schmidt, who is the owner of a $2 million Troy research firm and an instructor at Oakland University Business School. He has been a Troy resident for 17 years.
• Cristian Teodoridis, who is an innovation manager at Chrysler and has more than 20 years of international experience in engineering, the IT industry and marketing.

While the majority of the candidates agreed on several points, candidates did distinguish themselves individually on several specifics.

Teodoridis identified himself early on as a "special interest" candidate, vaguely referring to supporters that could be found in campaign finance documents and mentioning "teachers, parents and students" as his special interests. Both Hauff and Schmidt said they have been endorsed by Troy Residents Unified For a Strong Troy, a non-partisan group formed in January.

Troy resident Jan McIntyre said her main concern is special education, particularly programs available for autistic students in the district.

"I think Karl Schmidt gets it," she said, on the topic.

McIntyre said she's frustrated with the progress the district has made with programs available for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. For instance, she said the district is recommending her 12-year-old son be bused to West Bloomfield for part of the day for classes because the Troy district is lacking in its own program. 

Cathy Fucinari, of Troy, said she believes candidates that would be successful on the board are those who can get along well and be able to find agreements as board members.

"There has been enough people not communicating in this city for the last few years," she said. "People are tired of that."

Candidates answered questions submitted by audience members during the hour-and-a-half forum. Here are some excerpts from the candidates' responses:

Who are you endorsed by?

Miletti: "I'm not supported by any special interest in the city or district, that I'm aware of. It's a very grassroots campaign... I am very proud of that."

Schmidt: "I'm endorsed by TRUST... they selected me because they think I would have the best interest of the district in mind."

Teodoridis: "Yes, I have the support of many special interest groups, including students, parents and residents... all are available on the elections financial disclosure paperwork."

Hauff: "I am endorsed by TRUST, but in terms of financial support or anything of that nature, I'm on my own."

Malven: "I'm on my own. I'm highly involved in the community... I do more of an email campaign."

On schools of choice

Schmidt: "I support limited schools of choice... it's a way to stabilize enrollment numbers, but I wouldn't want to see us actively advertising for students."

Teodoridis: "If it will give us numbers we need to sustain the district, I'm for it, but I'm not supportive of mandatory schools of choice."

Hauff: "We currently limit schools of choice to kindergarten and first grade... it keeps local control and we don't need Lansing opening us up to everyone."

Malven: "I agree... it does give us some control."

Miletti: "We are growing independently, aside from schools of choice... I agree with the current (situation)."

On improving school rankings

Teodoridis: I believe our schools are the best in the area, sometimes that's reflected in scores, sometimes it's not. We should continue to do what we do well... and take a look at the metrics and (adjust) to improve scores."

Hauff: "Staff is working hard to raise test scores ... scores are also raised by involvement by parents, this is where the rubber meets the road."

Malven: "I take it personally... we need to look at the criteria and see if we can adjust."

Miletti: "The concern is really the achievement gap... we are working hard to close that gap."

Schmidt: "There are differences in scores among different socio-economic levels... when you look at if there is anything systematically different among schools ... possibly we shift money into schools that need help."

On special education

Miletti: Academic excellence for all, that should be the expectation. It's a highly complex issue, and I'm not an expert, but I trust Dr. Fowler (Superintendent) has the right people on it."

Schmidt: "There are major challenges for kids that have these challenges. I did get an email from a person who (has special education concerns)."

Teodoridis: "I think the situation is real. We have been mandated to share provisions for special education groups... I don't think we have been able to respond to our own problems."

Hauff: "It's a very important issue, probably our highest priority. We have good people in place."

Malven: "Every child has an Individual Education Plan. With autism, our teachers are doing a good job... we are open to listening."

On privatization of employee groups

Schmidt: "Privatization is bad... Outsourcing is bad for quality, if you are an outsourced employee, your loyalty is to the company that employees you (not the district.)"

Teodoridis: "I don't believe in privatization... Teaching is a core function, outsourcing it doesn't make any sense."

Hauff: "Privatization has worked in this district in small groups, not teachers... Custodial and food service employees were privatized and the district has never looked better... I would never low bid teachers."

Malven: "We were all in an uproar when we privatized (custodians and food service), but it worked. Many people stayed... I would never privatize teachers."

Miletti: "Privatization has been an exceptional value... it saved the district $10 million in two years... in terms of teachers, obviously not."