Justin Carlton

Running for the school board was not a goal of Justin's, but a couple years ago someone mentioned that if a school board position opened up that he would be a good candidate for it. A few weeks ago, he heard it again, then again from three more people, so Justin felt maybe someone was trying to tell him something. The school system faces new problems nationwide, fortunately some of the bigger problems are not yet happening in Roundup, but they could. Justin would like Roundup to be prepared for that, and is willing to help out with that. He decided to put his name in the hat. He feels that Roundup is really good about honoring the rights of Parents, and he wants to keep that going.

Because Justin and his wife have three children, and had two foster children, he feels that he has some skin in the game. Though he is not from Montana, Justin states, "I didn't choose where I was born, but chose where I live." One of the reasons for that is because of the freedoms in Montana. "I am retired military, I served twenty-four years active-duty service as a military law enforcement officer. I have extensive training in active shooter training. I became a firearms instructor through the USCCA, to support my business American Defender, which trains churches how to defend themselves from active shooters. "We train business and private sectors, and anyone who wants anything to do with self-defense. Then I added firearms training to that through the United States Concealed Carry Association." (USCCA)

Justin is concerned to protect the parent's rights. Though the rights are not under attack in Roundup now, but it could become a concern in the future. "We may get a teacher or principal here sometime in the future that has a different agenda." He states. The points on Justin's campaign ad are not from Justin, but are currently going through congress right now to be voted as actual rights that every parent or guardian of a child has. They are fighting to protect the right to know what is being taught and read in school, right to see the school budget, right for parent to be heard, how they go about protecting child privacy, and the right to be updated on any violent activity at the school.

In military he worked in hiring authority, looking at past records, hiring and firing. This may give him an ability to help with retaining new teachers. He states that "Looking at the reasons WHY they want to come to Roundup, WHY are they leaving their area, and what is their motivation to move here. He states that these are important questions to understand motivation.

Safety and mental health are other concerns that Justin feels are important. Promoting safety and security for our schools has never been of greater importance. He is concerned with teachers recognizing suicidal thoughts or other mental health issues, and having the ability and training to deal with that.

"A lot of people do not know me, and I am leader that you can trust. But how can you trust me if you don't know me? I am here to tell you that I am a leader that you can trust, just give me a chance to be a leader that you can trust."

Clint Pedrazzi

Clint Pedrazzi has lived in the Roundup area since 1995, left for college, then moved back to Roundup in 2014. He currently works for Mid Rivers Communication, ran a porta potty business, has four children with his wife, three of which are in school. Clint states that "I found myself seeing the times coming to a place where we need to stand up for the beliefs that we put into our kids, the conservative Christian values that we hold at home." "If I wasn't willing to run and stand up for them, I couldn't very well expect others to do so."

Clint has experience with financial limitations and budgets and working with people. He feels that this experience would be an asset as a school board member. His main concern is the degradation of traditional values creeping ever closer to our hometown. It is also a hard time for teacher retention. Understanding that our community may not have the means to pay what other districts can pay. Another concern for the schools is discipline. With a well-structured disciplinary action plan in place, the students, parents, and teachers will have more consistency and success.

Emily Shoup

Emily has been in the Roundup community for twenty-five years. She is a registered nurse, and has a healthcare background. Her husband, who is a Griz grad, and herself, a Cat grad, have three boys, one in 6th grade, 7th grade, and the oldest is a freshman. With her children in school, Emily has a vested interest in our school system. Her goal is to make things better. "At school board level, one can have more of an impact." Says Emily. "With my background, I have experience in patient safety and quality of care, and that is the interest I want to take to the school board with me." Emily has been going to the school board meetings for quite a while. "We want them to listen and welcome questions. I have observed it is getting better." Emily is familiar with finances through her experience with the hospital board. She states that finances are something that is not being presented in school board meetings. She has experience with the nursing shortage crisis, and understands that there is similarly a teacher shortage. "I do have experience in recruitment and retention strategies within the nursing field, and would carry that knowledge over to the school board." Other concerns of she has within the school system are with sports, coaches, participation and excitement. Building up the school to be a place that people are drawn to bring their children for education and sports. "We need the funds to have amenities to draw teachers and students to this area. Hiring the right people, and safety is a concern with things that can be implemented."

Dwane Snook

Dwane and his wife moved to Roundup in 2001. Since coming here, he has been active in the community. As a child his parents and grandparents raised them to serve in the community they lived in. "That it wasn't only something that they should do, but they had a responsibility to do that."

Dwane has been on the school board for three terms (9years), and has also done a lot of work with the local VFW. He is running for the board again because, when he started, he was told that it would take about a year and a half to get comfortable in the position and start seeing changes. He would like to go forward current projects that have been begun with the school board. Some of the things they were able to achieve while he has been on the school board, includes; the purchase of property for the busses by the new grade school and get them out of the weather, larger propane tanks, so that propane can be purchased when the price is best, as well as two lots of land next to the high school that have been purchased for future use.

Dwane says some of the challenges of the school board include; money, the budget, the number of positions that we are faced with this year, and teacher retention. One of the things he is really pushing is for housing for the teachers.

Dwane would like your vote to allow him to go forward and continue with things that he has already been a part of. Another benefit is that Dwane wouldn't have to go through the year of a learning curve as a new member.

Angie Mozqueda

Angie has lived in the Roundup community for five years. She is a parent of two boys, her husband is a local deputy, and Angie is a Prevention Specialist for the Roundup, Lavina, and Ryegate areas.

Angie ran for school board last year. She was motivated to run again because of her collaboration with the school as a prevention specialist. She has been attending school board meeting since November of 2021. In the meetings she saw a lack of questioning and difficulty understanding the goal within the school system. She has spent a lot of time speaking with superintendent Mayfield, teachers, community members, parents and students with her work in prevention, and looking at the data. What she sees is the need for some change. She is ready to be a person to ask questions within the board and look at long-term goals and be a part of that needed change.

"Being a parent, you hear a lot of things from the kids, their friends, and the parents, and one thing that I heard from everyone, is that they do not feel like they are being heard. Hence the reason many of the parents aren't attending the school board meetings. Their questions aren't being addressed, and there is no follow up, or getting back. I feel that we need to rebuild the trust that the school has between the parents, youth, and the community. Transparency, communication, and honest, are the three most important things." Angie explains.

"I have been working really hard on these points. In a fall board meeting I brought up; "why are our school board meetings not being streamed online?" I was told that if they (parents) really cared they would be here. I felt that was unfair, because we have weather in Montana where sometimes you cannot drive into town, and parents who are commuting to Billings then back home. They do not want to come back in at 7 pm on a Monday for a school board meeting. My winning comment was that they had accommodated Mr. Mayfield when he was in California, so I think our community deserves that same respect and accommodation. Early this year they made that link available, so now you can watch the stream online. The link is posted on all the agendas at the bottom. That is a win and I am proud of that, because it is important that you make sure everyone has access to that information. They (parents) can ask questions that are important to them."

"I am already available in the community and available to parents and students for concerns, and I can take that information to the school board meetings. Making sure that parents can trust the schoolboard. I also feel that it is important to have people on the school board that have students in school because they have a vested interest in what is happening in the school. Another point I feel strongly about is that parents should have the right to parent their child. I really want our school to communicate to parents and let them know what is going on, and give the parents information they need to be better, so kids can be better, and school can be better. I have been working with the superintendent who has a vision of making things better, and I think we are on the right path for making things better."

Chris Brewer

Chris Brewer is a Roundup Montana native. He was born and raised and a 2003 graduate of Roundup. He went to a Montana college and got a bachelors degree in diesel, he eventually moved back and settled in his hometown with his wife and teacher Katie.

Chris is a current school board member of nine years. He has chosen to run again because, "It is good to keep a consistency on the board, and it's nice to be able to work with the same people". Chris also mentioned that the experienced people on the board can help the new superintendent with any hiccups and help with the community dynamics.

With his mechanical background, Chris helps with the service end of things for the schools, focusing on the bus fleet, drivers, and mechanical issues. Other things the board is currently working with include the 4-day school week and teacher retention. The teacher shortage is a problem, not just for our community, but in most, and it is not easy in any community. The board is working with the administration to help with the bullying issues in the school, which has been another concern from parents that the school board has been trying to make improvements on.

Candidate Responses to the Following Questions from The Public;

Why did the school board not adopt a four-day school week after two polls were conducted heavily favoring the four-day week? Why, without public input did they favor and move toward a Friday day for intervention?

To the new candidates, As a result of the two polls, what would they have done about the four-day week? Would they have opted for the intervention day without public input?

THE FOLLOWING ARE THE ANWERS FROM EACH CANDIDATE;

Thanks for the opportunity to respond. This decision to not adopt a four daily schedule when the polls suggest everyone was in favor is surprising. I am in favor of the four-day schedule. I attended the initial presentation and collected all the data. I felt it was a good idea. I think now what needs to happen is the information driving the decision not go into a four-day schedule needs to be published. We need to educate everyone on why. -Justin Carlton

{I am not a current board member, so cannot speculate as to why they made the decision that they did. I prefer not to comment without further knowledge}-Clint Pedrazzi

There are more items that need to be put together before the board decides on going to a 4-day school week, we will need to go through more master agreements, also need to work through more legal matters with employees, and have the best calendar put together and not rush into it fast. -Chris Brewer

We were attempting to give as many of the local citizens an opportunity to share their concerns on the 4-day school week before we went forward and adopted the new school week. Yes, we had over 75% state that they wanted to go to the 4-day school week, but there was also 30% that did not respond favorably to a change. We wanted to give that group a final chance to respond. Changes like this do take time, and not happen immediately. -Dwane Snook

Thank you for posing this question and concern. I too asked the same question. In the Board meeting held on Monday April 17th I was the only candidate and member of the public that spoke out about concerns for the families that an intervention day would directly affect. The answer given by the board was that they did not want to rush into a 4-day school week. And that their attorney had sent them an email months prior with directives on how to go about implementing a 4-day school week, which included, to my understanding, holding a community meeting, which they did. The board stated they did not feel they were ready to move forward but did decide on an "intervention" day. I voiced my concern that the parents were polled on a 4-day school week (not an intervention day) and that to expect ALL students high achieving or not to attend on those days for 3 hours is a burden. To run buses for 3 hours is concerning to me as well. But even with every concern and question I had it was voted all in favor of the intervention days on that 2023-2024 calendar. The board stated they needed a calendar so that class schedules could be generated. Which I understand completely, but I don't agree with making that decision without input from parents, without reaching out to parents and polling them like they did for the 4-day school week. This is why I believe we need more parents at the meetings because my voice alone is not enough. I will also say I do not have a personal opinion on this calendar that's been voted on. I spoke out for the parents that were not there, the parents and community like myself that were not aware that this intervention day was going to be looked at and voted on that night. But my ultimate concern and priority is that once again the board asked for the parents' input regarding a 4 day, the community and parents voted and yet the board decided not to go forward with the results from that poll. Whether you are for or against a 4-day, you were still asked to vote. However, we (parents/grandparents/foster parents/community) were never asked to vote on an intervention day and the board went forward with that option. That is the issue at hand making decisions without being mindful of the families that those decisions directly affect whether positively or negatively either way you have to be mindful of our parents and grandparents that ultimately will have to accommodate the school's decisions The expense of gas to come into town for 3 hours can add up and what is the plan when those intervention days land on practice/game days? Our students would be released at 11am where parents are expected to pick them up either at the school or the bus stop and then have to bring their child back into town for their game/practice that day in the afternoon? I am in no way at all trying to undermine our board or be ' 'difficult ''. I am simply thinking through our community and the struggles our families already face and what a decision like this will do to working and non-working families, the expenses related to this decision and their work lives. If the board had talked through their thought process on this decision maybe that would have helped. But they did not discuss the pros and cons of the ripple effect of how the decision to have intervention days would either help or hurt our hard-working families. In regards to what I would have voted for? My first question would have been what did the parents vote on? What did we do to get their input? If we have not received and reviewed that feedback then I would not be comfortable in voting on a decision either for or against. Transparency and Communication is the foundation of any successful organization and those are two items we as parents need to EXPECT moving forward. And that is something I, if elected, will stand firm on. And if I am not elected, I will still continue to do the work in the background. I hope this helped, thank you. -Angelica Mozqueda

Question #1) Why did they not adopt a four-day school week after two polls were conducted heavily favoring

the four-day week:

I attempted to search for the results of "two polls" that were conducted regarding the 4-day school week. I located a poll posted on Musselshell Media face-book page that revealed out of 167 votes, 74.85% of votes were in favor of the 4-day week. According to United States Census Bureau of 2021, the population of Roundup, MT is 1,805, which represents 9.25% of the votes in this particular poll. I have searched school board meeting minutes from March 13th, 2023, and find that according to Roundup school district documents, "preliminary community survey results are attached....." (Eiselein, 2023). I am unable to locate the results on a school platform. My point is I am not able to provide an analytical conclusion regarding these results and I can't be sure I fully know which "two polls" are being referenced. My question back to you would be; if you created a poll for a new speed limit, as an example, and the majority were in favor of the proposed speed limit, would you implement it based on a community poll without evaluating the risks and consequences or conducting studies to implementing such a law that evaluates both pros and cons? I can't make an educated decision without doing research.

Question #2: Why without any public input, did they favor and move toward a Friday day for intervention?

Obviously, I was not part of this decision due to not currently being on the school board, however, based on the 2023-2024 school calendar that was passed at the school board meeting April 17th, 2023, the intervention days are not all on Friday's. Some of the scheduled intervention days are on a Wednesday or a Thursday, which I can understand creates a hardship for working parents as it is not on one set day. My only guess is perhaps it was intended toward preparation of an eventual 4-day school week.

Question #3: As a result of the two polls, what would they have done about the 4-day week?

Out of two survey's/polls that you may be referring to; these are only findings of research arranged in a logical sequence without bias or interpretation. (Annesley, 2010) I emailed the Office of Public Instruction in attempt to obtain information of the requirements for implementing a 4-day school week & received an automated reply so far. (for example, how many public forums are recommended or required, any necessary paperwork to file, etc.) I believe this is a big decision where all subsystems need to be analyzed. What do I mean by this? For example, as I relate to healthcare, a hospital is a system with many subsystems (dietary, EVS, hospital staff, maintenance, the clinic, etc). Say the nursing staff want to change the meal times for the residents in long term care. A poll is created, the nursing staff participates in poll & the results/findings show changing the meal time is favorable. The big picture then becomes how does this affect all the other subsystems? Was dietary included in the poll? Do they have appropriate dietary staffing to accommodate this change? How does this affect the patients in the hospital getting their meals, is EVS available at that time to come clean after the meal at that time? What time can the staff now take their lunch break? Do the nurses need to plan on administering medications earlier to accommodate for meals? You see my point. I am just trying to get us to think about all the thought processes that need to go into a major decision such as a 4-day school week. It should not be a decision with a rushed implementation, or it would be set up for failure. Working parents need time to make accommodations for childcare, practice schedules, planning for those intervention days with a consistent schedule, etc. A school district should take the time to engage the community, parents, teachers, bus drivers, and other staff in more than just one forum and one survey. We also need to think about how this affects academic performance. According to Hoffman, 2015, "research conducted by Sunburst Schools Superintendent Tim Tharp for his doctoral dissertation at the University of Montana shows an initial improvement or holding steady for the first few years when schools switch to a four-day week. But after that, performance plummets". (Great Falls Tribune) This article also mentioned that Montana districts using a four-day week found schools floundering & the struggle is that they really need more instructional time. (Hoffman, 2015) There are also valid concerns about what the kids will do with more time away from a regular school routine..... I think it is important to do our due diligence and research the effects of a 4-day school week on academics, social/emotional and mental health; show us the data but also let's do our own research as well. As far as attendance, aside for excused appointments, family emergencies, etc., the attendance policy could be reviewed/revised and be enforced. With "intervention days" only being 3 hours, I tend to think there may be an increase in absences due to parents not wanting or able to transport their kids for only 3 hours especially if they aren't having any problems and sustaining honor roll grades. I also admit I don't fully understand the recruitment efforts to this when it sounds like teachers would still be at school 5 days/week. There is so much more to this. I am NOT saying I am against a 4-day school week, but merely suggesting that to do it right, it takes time to implement it successfully. I hope that helps answer your questions.

Question #4) Would they have opted for intervention days without public input?

I think that the findings from the school district survey may have been a good indicator that the community was ready for some form of a 4-day school week, hence I feel that this would have led the board to approve a form of intervention days without further public input. This being said, my recommendation would have been to choose these days on a Friday so it is at least consistent and typically coincides with sporting events which would help the absenteeism argument if related to more school activities.

References:

Eiselein, C. (2023) Roundup school district documents, Documents. Available at: https://www.roundup.k12.mt.us/documents/school-board/board-minutes-2022-23/371321 (Accessed: April 20, 2023).

Google. (2021). United States Census Bureau. Google search. Retrieved April 20, 2023, from https://www.google.com/search?q=population%2Bof%2Broundup%2C%2Bmt&rlz=1C1UEAD_enUS1030US1030&oq=population%2Bof%2Broundup%2C%2Bmt&aqs=chrome..69i57j0i512j0i15i22i30j0i390i650.6753j1j15&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Hoffman, M. (2015, December 6). 4-day school week success varies across Montana. Great Falls Tribune. Retrieved April 20, 2023, from https://www.greatfallstribune.com/story/news/local/2015/12/06/day-school-week-success-varies-across-montana/76895876/

Research guides: Organizing your Social Sciences Research Paper: 7. the results. 7. The Results - Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper - Research Guides at University of Southern California. (2023, April 18). Retrieved April 21, 2023, from https://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/results

-Emily Shoup

There is more items that need to bee put together before the board decides on going to a 4-day school week, we will need to go through more master agreements, also need to work through more legal matters with employees to have the best calendar put together, and not rush in too fast. -Chris Brewer