Waunakee School Board
Joel Lewis – Westport/Middleton/Madison
Over the course of the last three months, I consider myself lucky to have gotten the opportunity to know Joel as a passionate, engaged leader in our community. He is incredibly eloquent, energetic and profoundly interested in helping lead the Waunakee Community School District (WCSD). He has been endorsed by numerous letters to the Waunakee Tribune, Madison 365, and has been endorsed by the Dane County Democratic Party and the South Central Federation of Labor. He is a union member himself and strongly supports worker rights, as well as staff responsibilities to maintain strong fiscal management at a district level.
In an ideal world, both Joel and the incumbent, Ms. Joan Ensign, could represent our community on the Board of Education. They are both qualified and exceptionally ethical. In the future, should the Board expand to nine seats to account for any over-representation of small municipalities on the BOE (a subject I intend to raise this year), both candidates would be excellent choices. Unfortunately, the community is faced with a difficult decision of picking one.
Both candidates are a fine choice for WCSD voters. I personally voted for Joel Lewis.
Joel is invested in our community and actually wants to involve all stakeholders in decision-making in the district. Above all else, Joel is aggressively in favor of improving communication that comes out of the district.
I made the final decision to vote for Joel following a clarifying moment between the candidates over support for Waunakee teachers. During the Waunakee Teachers Association forum, Ms. Ensign commented that “I am so proud of our district, because I think you’d be treated exactly the same with or without the union.”
I respectfully disagree. The history of the labor movement and the struggle between labor and capital disagrees with that statement. While it is true that WCSD did not precisely screw over the teachers following the passage of Act 10, to suggest that any labor group would be treated as well without organizing is wrong. Organized labor never obtains better treatment from the bosses by sacrificing solidarity.
Joan deserves high praise for her lifetime of dedication to the community and the district. She has lead the district as Board President for years. However, a dearth of communication from the district’s elected leadership merits a different approach. Joan’s leadership is almost universally behind the scenes. Above all else, we are public elected officials. It’s not our job to work in the shadows, despite how easy it might be to remain largely anonymous. We answer to the public.
In the vein of being answerable to the public, I am brought back to the fall of 2018. I’d been on the Board of Education for a couple months when a controversy erupted. An athlete was accused of making horrible racial slurs to a black athlete. Predictably, the story made its way onto Facebook and a social media mob began to spiral out of control. This controversy grew unchecked due to zero public response from our district. In such a void, I communicated that the district was in fact investigating the accusation. I publicly wrote the truth: that our administration had taken the aggressive step of meeting with the accuser, his parents, his school district, and the accused player from Waunakee, all within mere days. In summary, our entire administration, from Coach Rice, to AD Aaron May, to our high school principals were all highly professional, empathetic and compassionate. They did exactly what they should do. My open communication of what our administration was doing was well-received and the social media mob effectively dispersed.
However, I was soon admonished (in private) for having communicated to the public, which had been limited to my disclosure that an allegation had been made (which was already quite public) and that the district was investigating (which was not). I was told that in the face of issues like this, that “we should be silent.”
In the nearly two years that have since passed, I have been unable to come up with a justification for “staying silent” in the face of what began as a credible allegation that a student-athlete repeatedly called another child a n****r on the playing field. I’m well aware of reports of this continuing to happen even today within the halls of our own school buildings. Hundreds of people were out there calling us a community of racists, spoiled rich kids, deriding the Village of “Whiteakee” and far worse. It merited an immediate response.
Not suprisingly, I’ve never legitimately experienced the pain of racial animus, nor the fear that the color of my skin would put me at greater risk of being harmed. I generally don’t have to worry that my children will be abused or attacked merely on the basis of the amount of melanin in their skin or the texture of their hair. Given that, staying silent when in a position of power is a moral failing.
I have never previously shared this story in public, but I share it now because the backlash I received to merely talking about an allegation of racial disharmony showed that we live in a state of what Dr. King called “a negative peace”. I am devoted to justice and equity for all within our district. Given that, this race provides a clear choice.
Brian Hoefer – Waunakee
Mr. Hoefer is unopposed to fill Ms. Julie Waner’s soon-to-be former seat representing Waunakee in the WCSD. He is highly qualified, well-spoken, and excited to serve. Were he actually in a competitive race, he would deserve a far more in-depth endorsement. However, since he is virtually guaranteed to win, I can only say I am excited to work with him, and that he will have difficult shoes to fill.
Julie Waner has been an insightful and impactful member of the Board, and she is owed a great deal of gratitude by the community. I encourage anyone reading this to contact Julie and thank her for the thousands of hours she put into her position over the last decade. WCSD is better off having had Julie Waner in public office.
Waunakee Village Board
Robert McPherson
Over the last year, I’ve gotten the opportunity to know Robert as a kind, intelligent and compassionate individual who loves Waunakee. His wife Leslie, his daughter Cora, and his variety of cats are a valuable addition to the community. He is a legitimate expert in the field of risk management, banking and urban policy. He is distinctly qualified to offer a unique voice to a Village Board that doesn’t always ask enough questions.
Above all else, Robert is profoundly ethical and thoughtful. He researches the issues and prepares excessively. One need look no further than his answer (linked above) on TIF policy in Waunakee. In light of this level of professionalism and expertise that Waunakee voters are getting the chance to pick on April 7th, it’s important to compare him to another option.
This response is effectively disqualifying. It is a basic question over a multi-million dollar issue that will affect every resident in Waunakee for decades. Simply put – you cannot have an elected official who cannot answer this question.
The Village Board makes million dollar decisions on a regular basis. It creates policies and ordinances that affect the lives of everyone who lives, eats, works or plays in the Village. There is no candidate better qualified to represent everyone in the community than Mr. McPherson. He’s probably more qualified than we’re likely to get for some time, and the possibility that he could actually lose gives me great concern about the level of citizen engagement in local democracy.
As to the other candidates, Joe Zitzelsberger is a charming and affable individual who has been responsive to my concerns and took the time to meet with me and discuss issues in the Village. He deserves support.
Bill Ranum is a well-liked, local leader in health care who merits consideration, especially in light of the recent public health crisis.
Nila Frye’s longstanding dedication to the community and her willingness to engage the public in communication about decision-making is admirable, making her deserving of your vote as well.
Dane County Board
Tim Kiefer
I have already previously endorsed Tim, noting that “I’ve known Tim for several years and have a great deal of respect for him as a fellow lawyer, colleague and representative. He is responsive to constituent concerns and is an ethical and compassionate leader in the community.” He deserves another term on the County Board.
This spring, the power is in your hands. So after you wash them, cast your vote for Joel Lewis, Brian Hoefer, Robert McPherson, Tim Kiefer, and Nila/Joe/Bill.
Waunakee & Friends 