Meet the at-large Westfield Washington School Board candidates

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The incumbent who holds the at-large seat on the Westfield Washington School Board is seeking to retain her position against three challengers in the Nov. 8 general election.

Candidates Patrick Fassnacht, Alan Ford and Curt Wyatt are seeking to oust incumbent Amber Willis, who has held her seat on the board since 2015. All four individuals bring different viewpoints about issues facing the district, what could be improved and why they believe they are the right person to represent constituents.

Below are responses in alphabetical order based on questionnaires that were sent out to election candidates and have been edited in some cases for space and style.

Patrick Fassnacht
Fassnacht

Patrick Fassnacht

Age: 48

Education:

B.A. Purdue University, West Lafayette

Art Education

M.A.E. Ball State University

Educational Administration and Supervision

Ed.S. Oakland City University

School Superintendency

Occupation: Educational administration

City of residence: Westfield

How long have you resided in your school board district: Twenty-five years

Immediate family: Maggie Fassnacht, wife

Sami Fassnacht, daughter, WHS Grad

Josh Fassnacht, son, WHS Grad

Website or best way for voters to learn more about you:

Previous political experience: None

Why do you want to run for school board?

This is such a vital time in our community’s history. We continue to grow at a rapid rate and continue to react to the ever-changing landscape. The next two to three years are pivotal for WWS. The choices we have been making, and are about to make, will have such profound impacts on our children and larger community for quite some time to come.

What are your qualifications for this office?

Being a teacher, principal, regional director, and director of operations in numerous settings– rural, suburban, and urban – I have a range of experiences upon which to draw. Beyond a career of serving and growing capacity with teams and communities, I bring a passion and commitment to my work.

What are the top three issues that your campaign will focus on?

  • Communication, voice, and transparency
  • Support, connections, and accountability
  • Vision, principles-based leadership, and long-range planning

Westfield cannot allow growth and catching up to ever-changing realities to get ahead of our deliberate communication and planning as a team. First, communication simply has to improve. We have to be inclusive, empathetic, and bring people together.

Knowing how much everything connects to everything else within a system, leadership has to be in tune with resources, programs, and people capacity – and, more importantly, both data-driven and nuanced enough to pull the right levers in amplifying our opportunities.

What do you see as district’s strengths?

We have the groundwork in place to take some amazing next steps. The impetus and people are in place to capitalize on this potential. Resources and multitudes of programming are at our disposal to best fit into our strategic planning.

Careful assessment and review of systems and processes will be integral in ensuring that we can move to a more proactive mindset!

What do you see as areas of improvement at the district?

Communication, bringing people together, leveraging our strengths, and finding effective connections all need to improve. Seeking out our stakeholder and constituent voices is imperative. We must re-instill a continuous cycle of feedback and growth. We must make decisions based on data, good practice, and with our people in mind. High-quality teams build supportive environments where people’s needs are met and leadership has both a vision and plan for ensuring sustained engagement and meaningful growth.

How do you feel about the district’s efforts to address student safety? What changes, if any, would you like to see made?

Safety is of the utmost importance. People do well when they feel good. We all perform at our best when we are able to do so. This includes best practices in safety training, current guidance and collaboration with emergency services and responders, really and truly knowing each other. Mental health supports, social skill building, and trauma-informed learning will be essential to our success.

Screen Shot 2022 10 06 at 3.26.36 PM

Alan Ford

Age: 64

Education: M.S. EE Purdue University, West Lafayette

Occupation: Senior systems engineer, retired naval officer

City of residence: Westfield

How long have you resided in your school board district: 20-plus years

Immediate family: Son, daughter-in-law, two grandsons, one sister

Website or best way for voters to learn more about you: Meet and talk to me.

Previous political experience: Unsuccessfully ran for school board in 2014 or 2016

Why do you want to run for school board?

I am a grandfather, concerned about the upbringing and education of my two grandsons.

What are your qualifications for this office?

For my entire career, learning and teaching has been an integral part of my profession. I am a retired Naval Officer of more than 28 years service. I currently serve as a technical team leader and recruiter. I am also on the board of directors of the Science Education Foundation of Indiana (SEFI), where we host the state science and engineering fair, coordinate the regional fairs, and chaperone 10 to 20 young scientists every year to the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), where I have judged for more than 15 years.

What are the top three issues that your campaign will focus on?

Parents and/or guardians are premier deciders and responsible parties for the upbringing of their children. They should work in conjunction with educators, mentors, etc., to provide the BEST opportunities for their children.

To support the first goal, I believe our schools should provide full, easy and uncomplicated access to the lessons and other activities provided to Westfield-Washington Schools attendees. I feel being a member of the school board will allow me to represent my own, as well as other parents’/guardians’ desires in the leadership of our schools.

What do you see as the district’s strengths?

Westfield Washington Schools has excellent academic programs.

What do you see as areas of improvement at the district?

More parent involvement, and more opportunities for our young researchers to compete for scholarships and meet and interact with peers in the state and country.

How do you feel about the district’s efforts to address student safety? What changes, if any, would you like to see made?

While I am not intimately familiar with the school system’s protocols and procedures, I believe there is always room for improvement. When it does not interfere or detract from instruction, practice in the expected responses by students and staff is always beneficial.

Curt Wyatt
Wyatt

Curt Wyatt

Age: 70

Education: B.S. Agriculture, B.S. Ag Economics, MBA Finance, studied tax law Pepperdine University

Occupation: Real estate broker, FC Tucker/Carmel

City of residence: Westfield

How long have you resided in your school board district: Three years

Immediate family: Four children, six grandchildren

Website or best way for voters to learn more about you: Website is in development.  I am available to meet 1-on-1 or groups,  [email protected]

Previous political experience: None

Why do you want to run?

To support our youth and give back to the community.

What are your qualifications for this office?

Education is very important to me.  Strong financial background and contract management.  What do you not want to see in a candidate?

What are the top three issues that your campaign will focus on?

Representing the students, parents and community.  Academics and test scores.  Community outreach.

What do you see as the district’s strengths?

(Supt. Paul) Kaiser and the current school board.

What do you see as areas of improvement at the district?

I have a meeting (coming up) with Dr. Kaiser and the budget director and I will know more after that.

How do you feel about the district’s efforts to address student safety? What changes, if any, would you like to see made?

At this point, I am fine with current safety provisions.

amber huff willis
Willis

Amber Willis

Age: 42 

Education: B.S. from Miami of Ohio in 2003

Occupation: Sales director, CSI Signs

City of residence: Westfield

How long have you resided in your school board district:  Born in 1980- 2003 | 2008-current.

Immediate family: Husband, Anthony Willis, children, Gabriel, 14, Ava, 13, and, Nora, 2

Website or best way for voters to learn more about you:  Amber Huff Willis for Westfield School Board (facebook.com) 

Previous political experience: Westfield Washington School Board At Large, January 2015 – current

Why do you want to run for school board? 

As a lifelong resident of the fastest-growing school district in the state of Indiana, I want to ensure that all students get the most quality education while providing students with the best possible opportunities and educational experience.  While some fear learning loss, we have an opportunity to use what we’ve learned to guide our schools, teachers, and students toward the future. Expanded technology, higher education partnership programs, and educational opportunities and experiences will encourage our students to be flexible, adaptable, and innovative.

What are your qualifications for this office?

I am a current school board member since 2015, a Westfield Washington Schools alumni — class of 1999, I am a Westfield parent, and an employee of a family-owned, local business which supports our community.

What are the top three issues that your campaign will focus on? 

  1. My top priorities have always been academic excellence while keeping the classrooms safe and for all students.
  2. Continue to retain talented teachers and staff and provide regular professional development opportunities and exceptional working conditions.
  3. To monitor the growth of the district and make financially sound decisions for the taxpayers

What do you see as the district’s strengths?

WWS is a top achieving and growing school district with 98 percent-plus graduation rate. Westfield High School offers a wide variety of classes and pathways for our students, such as food science, agriculture science, construction, and engineering, to name a few.  Over half of graduating students receive college credits while at WHS. All recent WHS graduates continue their education, have secured employment or made military as their initial career choice.

What do you see as areas of improvement at the district? 

We are an exceptional school district but there are always areas we can improve. Our Ag Science class is new this year and we hope to grow the program and build a greenhouse in the future. We offer college credit classes and are working on more partnerships here in Westfield to allow even more local opportunities for our community.

How do you feel about the district’s efforts to address student safety? What changes, if any, would you like to see made? 

We have continued to work closely with the Westfield Police Dept. on all school safety matters and initiatives. We have 5 SRO’s that interact daily with our students and provide guidance. We have created Police Substations in all buildings which allow any WPD officer to complete reports in their own office space within our buildings and get to know the students and have a presence in each of our schools.

Editor’s Note: Get to know candidates Bill Anderson and Patrick Phillips, who are seeking the District 2 seat on the Westfield Washington School Board. Profiles of each candidate will be featured in the Oct. 11 edition of Current in Westfield.


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