Eleven candidates for Barrington School District 220 Board of Education took part in a candidates forum March 3, 2021 and are pictured in this screenshot with three members of the Barrington 220 PTO Presidents Council and forum moderator Chris Bibby. (Barrington School District / HANDOUT)
Eleven candidates running for one of four seats on the Barrington School District 220 Board of Education in the April election took part Wednesday in a virtual forum sponsored by the Barrington 220 PTO Presidents’ Council.
The long list of candidates includes incumbents Sandra Ficke-Bradford and Michael Shackleton, as well as Katie Karam, Lauren Berkowitz Klauer, William Betz, Jonathan Matta, Thomas Mitoraj, Steve Wang, and Robert Windon – all from Barrington. Also on the ballot are Erin Chan Ding, of South Barrington, and Malgorzata McGonigal, of North Barrington.
Karam said she grew up in Barrington and moved back about eight years ago to raise her three children in the village. Karam listed three main reasons for her run.
“I believe (first) the district focus should be to return to full-time in-person school,” she said.
Her other priorities are fiscal responsibility and transparency in how taxpayer dollars are spent and making sure board decisions reflect “the voice of our great community.”
McGonigal introduced herself as a first-generation immigrant who originally came to the United States on a student visa. She has three children, including a sophomore at Barrington High School. She is running, she said, because of the effects of the pandemic on children.
“The mental and physical health of our children should be our priority,” she said.
Wang came to the Midwest to study at Notre Dame University. He has a 7-year old daughter at Countryside Elementary School and credits her with inspiring him to run for a board seat. His professional background is in consulting and strategy for nonprofit health care organizations. He said he’s always had a heart for service.
“I’m all about fiscal responsibility and transparency,” he said, “and being a voice for the community,” said Wang.
Read more perspectives in the Barrington Courier-Review here.
Related: “March 3rd District 220 Board of Education candidate forum recording released”
Vote for citizen supporting 220 candidates who teamed up and want our kids back in school now. Even better they want to stop raising our levy (taxes).
Vote YES to Karam, Wang and McGonigal. If you need a 4th go for Shackleton.
They above are NOT endorsed by the teachers union and BEA
NO to Bradford, Klauer, Ding and Mitorjaj.
One smart vote for Karam, Wang , McGonigal and Shackleton takes the board back from the radicals and puts our schools in the hands of citizens.