School Board Candidate Kristine Blaha: Activities Necessary for Well-Rounded Students

Name: Kristine Meade-Blaha, 39

 Neighborhood: Oak Ridge; lifelong resident of Jefferson Township

 Children in District: One in fifth grade at White Rock School, one in first grade at Cozy Lake School

 Education: B.A. Psychology from Ramapo College, M.A. Counseling Psychology from Columbia University, M.A. Organizational Psychology from Columbia University

 Occupation: Director of Corporate HR and Talent Acquisition for Quest Diagnostics

 Volunteer Involvement: Blaha and her family are very involved in a variety of community sports, including youth football, cheerleading, softball and baseball. She has volunteered in the community for the last two years as an advisor for both recreational and competition cheerleading in Jefferson. In addition, my husband coaches softball, football and baseball.

What Blaha Brings to the Race:  Blaha graduated from Columbia University in New York, earning two Master’s Degrees, in Organizational Psychology and Counseling Psychology. She was a management consultant in Manhattan for five years, earning experience consulting with the management teams from Fortune 500 companies in a variety of industries. She currently works for Quest Diagnostics in Madison. As a director of human resources, Blaha believes her experience with people and setting and managing her own budget will be an asset to the board.

Blaha’s List of the Most Important Issues Facing the Board: 1. Communication between the Board of Education and the residents of the community, not only for the purpose of providing and receiving information but to ensure there is strong collaboration built between both so that overall the best decisions are made for our children and are ultimately supported by residents of Jefferson Township. 2. Cost savings due to the continued pressure on budget while maintaining the overall quality of the children's education and support of the teachers in our school system 3. Continued focus on enhancing, not reducing, sports teams and other extracurricular activities for our children These are not "nice to haves," they are critical to developing well-rounded children and enhancing their skills and capabilities.