School Board Candidate David Holden

David Holden

Family

Married to Raye for 29 years with three sons all educated in the Saline Area Schools -- Dylan, Class of 2007; Derek, Class of 2011; and Reed, Class of 2012.

Education

University of Michigan (BA 1979), Robert Morris (MBA 1992)

Employment

Manager Strategic Accounts, Air Liquide Industrial U.S. LP

Government history

• Pittsfield Township Zoning Board of Appeals (Current)
• Pittsfield Public Safety Millage Executive Committee (2011)
• Opposed the February 2011 Saline Area Schools Bond Proposal

Community Involvement

• Past President Warner Creek Homeowners Association
• Saline travel baseball and basketball coach for 15 years
• Member, Pay to Participate Committee 2010 Saline Area Schools
• Michigan High School Athletic Association Basketball Official
• Dearborn Public Schools Finance Committee (1981-85)

Why are you running?

We have, without question, an elite school district that ranks as one of the best in the state. Contributing to the elite status are parents and taxpayers who value education, students eager to learn and a passionate faculty. I am running for School Board because I want to see that elite status maintained. However, it is at risk and we have passed the tipping point. The trend of the past several years must be reversed in order to provide our children with a quality education and maintain our property values.

We have seen a financial decline that has led to draining the reserve fund, increasing student fees burdening parents, staff lay offs, and increased class sizes.

My priorities will be to serve the “customers” of the district.

What are the top 3 issues facing the district and how should the district address them?

The number one issue we face is financial stability. The structural deficit must be resolved. The trend of spending more than we take in, selling assets, and draining the reserve fund below 2 percent needs to be reversed. All three collective bargaining agreements expire in 2012. The agreements need to reflect the current economic environment and contain flexibility with future cost certainty. We will be unable to provide a quality education to our young people unless we resolve this issue in 2012.

The second issue is addressing the increased class sizes that are a direct result of an operating cost model that is broke. Increased class sizes are not fair to students nor teachers. We need to adjust to a desired student-teacher ratio at each of the three educational levels: 22-to-1 for elementary, 25-to-1 for middle school, and 28-to-1 at the high school level. We then staff accordingly and based on the operating budget revenue determine fair teacher compensation. If we are true to the educational mission we will pursue this path to ensure we provide our students with the best educational experience possible.

The third issue is generating additional revenue outside of traditional taxation jurisdictions. In the current environment asking parents and taxpayers to take on additional financial burdens is not feasible. We need to consider growing the Saline Education Foundation tenfold, reestablish a Saline Booster Club to leverage the entire community for athletic fund raising with the long term goal of making athletics self funded and off the operating budget, and marketing our Advanced Placement Courses via web cast to students across the state on a tuition basis.

What needs to happen with the next teachers' contract and how do you plan to get it done

There are certain elements that must be contained in the new agreement including:
1.  Flexibility and future cost certainty is essential so we can identify what expenses will be in an environment where revenue from the state and federal governments is unpredictable at best.

2.  Healthcare Reform – The MESSA insurance is not competitive and needs to be eliminated and replaced with a direct carrier. The District should manage the contract. Comparable coverage can be provided at a significant reduction from the current MESSA rate.

3.  Merit Pay – Recent legislation will place metrics on teachers. If those metrics are achieved in whole or fractionally we have a formula where the teacher is compensated based on achievement.

4.  Hire additional teachers – Part of the good faith of the new agreement is that a percentage of the cost savings be used for the hiring of additional staff. This will aid in reducing class size.

(This page will be updated as we publish the candidate's answers to the questions we posed.)