6 Vie For 3 Seats On Mokena 159 Board Of Education: Election 2023

MOKENA, IL — Six candidates will vie for three seats on the Mokena District 159 Board of Education on Tuesday, with voters deciding who will represent the district as a critical time when some candidates said students within the district are struggling to meet grade-level expectations and when all districts are looking for better support for local students and teachers.

The six local residents are hoping to win seats on the board after current board members Jennifer Riedl, Jamie Staley and Mike Everett chose not to seek re-election. Michele Coleman, Tom Freyer, Kelli MacMillan, Amanda Montgomery, Julie Oost and Samantha Tunney will be on the ballot Tuesday.

According to candidate questionnaires submitted to Patch, Tunney is the lone candidate with school governance experience and is the current President of the Mokena PTA. Coleman and Fryer did not respond to multiple requests from Patch to submit questionnaires.

For Tunney, maintaining excellence in District 159 is among the biggest priorities facing the board. She said if elected, her focus would be on student achievement and programming, safety, and security while ensuring that the district remains fiscally responsible.

“My decision to run for the school board was not made because of one particular issue I want to fix, but to research current policies and procedures, and maintain or improve what might be needed,” Tunney wrote in her questionnaire.

Tunney, 36, also wrote that she is focused on not only what’s best for District 159 students, but for the Mokena community as a whole. She is also in favor of providing more support for district teachers in order to provide students with the best possible education possible.

Tunney, however, is part of an inquiry to the Illinois Parent Teachers Association after a formal complaint was lodged against her with the state. Among the allegations are possible violations of Mokena PTA bylaws including allegations that Tunney appointed her successor as PTA President and appointed another person to the board without a formal election, which is required under the bylaws.

Tunney did not respond to Patch’s request for comment on the matter.

Montgomery, 41, is also seeking to see the district continue to improve while also providing support for teachers and other staff members. To attract and retain good teachers for local students, Montgomery wrote in her candidate questionnaire that good communication between the Board of Education and school administrators and staff is critical.

She said that in order to be successful, the board must continue to be fiscally responsible while also doing what it can to provide the best educational opportunities for students while giving teachers and other staff members what they need to do to help drive student success.

But Montgomery, who considers herself a transparent ally to the LGBTQ+ community according to her questionnaire, says that the district must also embrace inclusiveness and must provide the same educational opportunities to all students, especially those who are of color, neurodivergent, and those representing the LGBTQ+ community, she said.

“I believe all students should have a safe, respectful, and inclusive learning environment,” Montgomery wrote in her Patch candidate questionnaire. “I believe in open communication with the school board, staff, teachers, parents, and community to work towards the goals of the district.”

For MacMillian, improving student performance remains a critical issue that needs board attention. In her Patch questionnaire, the 45-year-old mother of three listed the “growing number” of students who are failing to meet grade-level expectations in math and reading as being an issue that needs attention.

She also pointed to a “shrinking” number of district eighth-graders who are passing classes like Algebra I and says that District 159 teachers are being spread too thin while “trying to effectively teach students within a wider spectrum of abilities,” MacMillan wrote.

She said rather than maintaining the status quo, the Board of Education needs to focus on making meaningful improvements to the district in programs that can benefit students across the board.

MacMillan said that the district must make “substantial improvements” to its academic progress reports that are submitted to the state and that she would like to see more feedback from teachers and parents alike as the district looks to continually improve.

“As a feeder district into Lincoln-Way 210, we should raise the bar on our programs to ensure our students' success in high school and beyond,” MacMillan wrote.

Oost, meanwhile, enters Tuesday’s election focusing on student and staff safety along with ensuring that the Board of Education keeps the district working within a sound budget. A strong advocate of transparency and open dialogue, Oost said that the Board of Education needs to be part of the solution in making improvements district-wide.

Oost, a 51-year-old mother of triplets, wrote that she hopes to win a seat on the board and over the course of her term, see positive change emerge around District 159 so that students can see the rewards of becoming involved in their community, Oost wrote in her Patch candidate questionnaire.

“Ultimately, I want my family and me to be part of a safe, happy, and thriving community — one where people can feel safe voicing opinions and working collaboratively to do what is best for our town,” Oost wrote. “I firmly believe that a strong community needs strong schools.”