Sheila Whitelaw is running for the District 3 seat on the Citrus County School Board.
1. Why are you running for this office?
I have been involved with education for the past 35 years in one way or the other. For 12 years, I have been a full-time teacher in the classroom and witnessed many changes implemented with no regard for the reality of the consequences. I want to bring COMMON SENSE back to the decision-making process and provide realistic solutions which will provide optimistic outlooks for our students.
Our leaders, regardless of the office, need to look beyond the faces of lobbyists and consider theactual benefits and consequences of their decisions. I believe that my practical classroom experience will enable me to consider the implications of each of the issues before they become policy.
2. Why do you think you are the best qualified candidate for the office?
As previously mentioned, my experience sets me apart from the other candidates.
When you climb aboard a plane to travel across the country, you want an experienced pilot. When you entrust someone with your health and well-being, you want an experienced physician. Why wouldn't you want to elect a School Board Representative who has the ability to envision how the policies will affect your students?
Experience in the classroom and knowledge of how the system affects the classroom is key to realistic solutions.
3. What will be your top priorities if elected?
I want to restore a COMMON SENSE approach to ALL the issues and my first objective would be to empower the teachers by acknowledging their professionalism, by providing meaningful training for the high-stakes demands that threaten their careers, and by recognizing that they are not the problem, but rather the catalysts for moving our district forward.
The second issue would be to lobby Tallahassee to put the real focus on our students by taking a Common Sense approach to school reform! Common Core/Florida Standards will not solve the issues facing our classrooms. It is just a new version of FCAT-standardized testing, data analysis, punishment for failure, a bureaucratic nightmare, and an astronomical expense for taxpayers.
Finally, I would like to expand the trade schools and technical schools to offer more career options for our students in high school, realizing that all are not going to college. Our students need hands-on learning in the career fields they are interested in long before graduating from high-school. The world offers a lot of choices, so should the schools.