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Candidate Profile: Mary Berger
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Election 2018: Monroe School Board

The School District of Monroe Board of Education has three open seats in the upcoming election. President Bob Erb has decided not to seek re-election. Incumbents Mary Berger, vice president, and Amy Bazley, deputy clerk, are seeking to reclaim their spots on the board. Two write-ins have registered for the race: Teresa Keehn and Lisa Hendrickson, both former educators.

Position sought: School Board - School District of Monroe

City/town of residence: Monroe, WI

Family: I live with my husband, Don, and have two adult children.

Education: I have a Bachelor's degree and more than 30 years of work experience

Occupation: Facilitator, Process Improvement and Service Excellence at Monroe Clinic

Previous elected positions held: I am completed my second term on the Monroe School Board.



What are the top issues facing this district/municipality and how would you work to resolve it?

The top issues for our school district are financial stability and continuing to improve student success. A recent study of our facilities highlighted concern for the safety and integrity of our buildings. One priority is security and access at our entrances. We will need community involvement in considering improvements to our learning spaces.

Monroe recently ranked second in the Badger Conference on our district report card and 3rd among schools in the entire Madison area. This is a tremendous increase and the result of focused hard work by our staff, parents and students. This path of success requires retaining and hiring skilled people. This is significantly challenging due to the shortage of teachers in key content areas. Additionally, salaries are very competitive for teachers in fields of high demand in our region.

My priority on the board continues to be to listen and work together with our community and my board colleagues to reach our goals. Our ultimate responsibility is to provide for a safe and effective environment for students and staff to learn and grow their skills. Community support is vital for the financial resources needed to address any issues related to providing a high quality education.



What are other key issues facing the district/municipality, and how would you work to resolve them?

Another key issue for our district is funding. We are prudent with our financial resources and Monroe is a supportive district. However, we need to continue to share information, increase awareness of the great work we are doing for students, and partner with our community.