Batavia school board candidates answer questions on issues and experience

(Pictured from left, Wayne Guenther, Al McGinnis, Amy Barone.)

It's that time of year again -- time to vote for the Batavia City School District budget and fill seats on its board of education.

Voting will take place from noon to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, May 17.

Voting locations are: Batavia Middle School (for residents of City Ward 1, District 1, 2 or 3, and City Ward 2, District 1, 2 or 3); Jackson School (for residents of City Ward 3, District 1 or 2; City Ward 4, District 1, 2 or 3, and City Ward 5, District 1); and Robert Morris (for residents of Ward 5, District 2 or 3, or Ward 6, District 1 or 2).

There are three candidates. One is an incumbent, two are newcomers.

Wayne Guenther, the incumbent, is now approaching the end of his second term. He is a retired teacher with years of experience in education.

Amy Barone, one of the newcomers, is a loan servicing manager at Five Star Bank and a lifelong resident of Batavia. She is also the mother of two students in the district.

Al McGinnis, the other newcomer, is a retired manager for Brown & Root Services, an international oil and construction firm. Prior to that, he was a soldier. He has lived overseas, as required by both jobs, but with an official residence here in Batavia for the past 30 years. Places he has lived and worked include the Pacific, Africa, the Middle East and Europe. He is married, and has a son who graduated from Batavia High School.

The candidates took time to answer some questions about the budget, their motivations for running, and other issues.

Wayne Guenther

What changes, if any, would you like to see if you are reelected?

Well, I think as a group we (the school board) do fine. We work out problems that come our way and we try to come to some sort of resolution. The problem is that a lot of things are out of our hands, as far as what the state requires. The local board really has very little say with regard to expenditures. I would like it if we could broaden that a little so that there is more control locally. I would also like to see the mandate relief (the state) promised, rather than having them just tell us what we can and can't do.

What experience do you have that makes you a valuable member of the school board?

I taught fifth grade in Oakfield for 33 years and have dealt with education my whole life.

What are your thoughts on the proposed moratorium on overnight trips?

I think some kind of a moratorium is necessary. In what form, I'm not sure -- we have to talk about that. We need to take a long look at who this would affect. For example, do we want to drop these activities for juniors and seniors who have spent the past few years fundraising (for senior trips)? We'll try to come up with some parameters everybody can live with. But I do think that some kind of moratorium is necessary, because a lot of parents have complained that there are too many fundraisers. Most of the parents of kids who are involved in these trips do the major portion of the fundraising and pay out of their own pockets. We want to see what we can do to help out.

What are your thoughts on the proposed budget?

None of us are real happy with it, but we've checked all of our expenses, and a lot of them (are expenses) we're locked into. That can't be changed. We looked into where we could cut without hurting anyone. None of us are happy with a tax increase, but until we get revenues other than local, we'll have to live with it.

A question that has been asked with regard to the budget is: "Why would they think about increasing benefits for school district employees when the times are tough, and teachers in other Genesee County districts are paying 20 percent or more into their own benefits?

That's a contract item, and right now it's all settled until next year. The board is looking for an increase in pay by the teachers (into their own benefits), but that will have to be negotiated. Also, I'm really not 100-percent sure that many school districts have teachers who pay much more than Batavia teachers at present.

What will happen if the budget gets voted down?

We'll have to present a second budget to the public, or pass a contingency budget. That would mean the district couldn't buy any new equipment (including buildings and grounds equipment and some instructional technology) and there would no longer be public use of school resources without pay. Our budget is pretty much bare bones as it is though. We're not talking about much money, and actually it's less than what the contingency budget would be because the number fell below what that would allow. So if the budget is defeated, that won't change a whole lot.

What made you want to run for the school board in the first place?

I truly believe that each citizen of a given area should give back to (his or her) municipality in some form or other. I do it through education, because it's what I know.

Do you have any closing comments?

I just hope there's a good turnout. Over the past few years, a very small percentage of people who were eligible to vote did so.

Amy Barone

What changes, if any, would you like to see if you are elected?

Well, I'm very new to this whole thing. I'd like to just get in there, learn what the board can do and help improve any deficiencies that exist, if there are any.

One thing I would like to see is an improved public perception of the school board. I think a lot of people are looking at the school board and saying that they're not doing their job. But I don't think they understand everything that goes with being on the board. This involves trying to come up with a budget that's good for the kids while also satisfying the taxpayers, faculty and staff, etc. They're really doing the best they can for all parties involved.

What experience do you have that makes you a valuable member of the school board?

I'm a lifelong resident of Batavia with two children in the Batavia schools. I served on the City of Batavia Youth Board from 2008 through 2010 -- I stepped down when my sister was appointed director, so there wouldn't be any conflict -- and I currently serve on the Genesee County Youth Board.

In addition, I am actively involved with the Five Star for Kids program, which is a partnership between Five Star Bank and the YMCA that allows us to work with fifth-graders in the district. This is a program that helps prepare them for the middle school and teaches them about how to treat others and be responsible members of their schools and community. Finally, I've worked with the United Way Day of Caring on behalf of Five Star Bank for the past four years.

What are your thoughts on the proposed budget?

It's been a tough budget year, from what I've heard. I don't know if the community really, truly understands the budget process. Not that I fully understand it myself yet, but I believe the board did the best they could with what they had to work with.

The community should understand that if the budget is voted down and we end up with the contingency budget, things are not going to be any better. We're not going to be able to bring back anything we've already cut.

What made you want to run for the school board in the first place?

I have two children and several nieces and nephews in the district, and as a member of the community I have a vested interest in its success. I feel that my financial background can benefit the board, the school district and the community.

Alfred McGinnis

What changes, if any, would you like to see if you are elected?

Well, first of all, you don't make changes until you've actually sat on the board and found out what's going on. If I'm elected, that's what I'll do.

I will say this: One item I dislike is their cell phone tax. In opening up my cell phone bill a short time ago, I reviewed it for nothing better than to see why my bill was 20 percent higher than the offered charge. In truth, it wasn't very much of a pittance, and Albany allows cities to affix a cell phone tax on city residents. Fair enough. I could easily move, (but) I choose not to do so. What bothers me is that our school board chose to remain silent on this issue, rather than explain to the public that they could and would (impose the tax) and, more importantly, where the windfall is going. It was a failure on the board's part not to sit down with Batavia residents beforehand. When you're in that position, you have to be up front with people on what you do. Not being up front questions your value and integrity. We are the people they work for, not the other way around.

What experience do you have that makes you a valuable member of the school board?

My life has been constant, non-stop budgets. I worked for Brown & Root Services for over 20 years as a manager, (after spending years as a professional soldier). In the business world, we refer to a budget as a W.I.P -- a Work In Progress. They have to be modified all the time -- sometimes they need to be expanded, sometimes they need to be constrained. Schools are no different. A school district is like a business. The superintendent is your CEO or manager, and the school board is your Board of Directors.

The budget involves a detailed study, and unfortunately sometimes personal issues. When you eliminate a position, you're not just impacting one person. You're impacting a whole host of people you don't see. Every employee has a family he/she won't be able to support because he/she no longer has a job. Initially, you look at it as a cold number, but then you have to look deeper. You have to look at how it affects your bottom line long-term. For example, if you decide to cut a position, you've taken care of a fiscal issue -- but then who's going to do the job? You can't cut a teacher's position and then say, "So now I'm going to cut 15 students, too."

Tangibles (meaning returns on investments) are the same in schools as they are in business. In schools, the return on our investment is how well educated our children are and how fortified they are for higher education and for life. If they do well, they'll make our country stronger. That said, you still have to be straightforward and honest. If I tell the shareholders -- which are the taxpayers -- that I'm raising their taxes, I have to be able to tell them why. And I have to be able to tell them that I raised their taxes -- I can't just blame it on the board; there's no such thing. Even if you didn't vote for a tax increase, if you're on the board you had better be able to explain yourself. As a manager at Brown & Root Services, I couldn't just hide behind statements like, "Well, the company told me this." If you're going to do that, you shouldn't be in that position. You either own up to your responsibilities or get out.

What are your thoughts on the proposed moratorium on overnight trips?

In the business world, your product has to be the best on the market. (In the schools), our product is our children. That said, I view overnight trips as educational experiences. It broadens the students' horizons, lets them see something they haven't seen before, talk to kids outside of their school, live with the difficulties of being on a bus...these help prepare them for real life.

I understand the financial concerns. There are taxpayers on fixed incomes, and believe me, I understand that. But we can't afford to have a product out of our "factory" (school district) be inferior to other districts.

I think we can find the money.  We may have to go to unconventional sources, just like in business, but we can't be narrow-minded about this. Narrow-mindedness has destroyed businesses and can hamper our children's education.

In my experience, it is imperative that we broaden these kids' horizons. They should see that there are different communities and cultures out there that are not necessarily better or worse than their own. We need to enrich the students so that they can put their prejudices aside and see the world as a great place to live. As a result, they will be able to enrich others when they go out into the world. Will we see a monetary gain here? Not right away, but five years from now...

What are your thoughts on the proposed budget?

I went to a school board meeting in June, and I thought both the board and (Superintendent) Margaret Puzio did an excellent job of explaining the budget and how it had mostly to do with state mandates. Did I agree with everything they said? Well -- I can't make any negative comment until I've been there. As in business, you've got to go through the books. I will not fire a shot at the board of education until I've had a chance to sit there and see what they do. I have no right to do that until I've see how they operate; that's just unprofessional. When I'm in that position, then I'll have valid reasons to make suggestions.

A question that has been asked with regard to the budget is: "Why would they think about increasing benefits for school district employees when the times are tough and teachers in other districts in Genesee County are paying 20 percent or more into their own benefits?

That's a valid concern, but I've got to look at the whole picture. The worst thing you can do is take a snapshot and then make decisions based on that. I have to be able to look at the past history and the evidence. Talk is cheap -- cold hard facts are what drive a budget. You can say (hypothetically) that Oakfield teachers pay more into their benefits than Batavia teachers, but show me. It may be true, but I have to present facts. Emotions have no place in budgets. All they do is destroy your bottom line, which is: Are you getting the best product for the money you're spending? (If you let your emotions impact the budget), you'll regret it.

What made you want to run for the school board in the first place?

I've been retired for some time, but I liked being a manager and working on budgets. Even if I had strong dislikes while I was doing (a budget), there was the ultimate satisfaction that came with it.

As citizens, we each have not only the right but the obligation to contribute what we can to our community. One would have to ask oneself why at age 61, and retired, I would want to run for a school board seat that pays nothing, takes up my time and otherwise disrupts my retirement. I'll actually be spending more money on this than I'll ever see a return on (financially), but my return will be satisfaction. If one of our young grows up to be a successful professor or doctor, then I'll have a return on my investment.

When I say "our young," I mean all of our young. Even if we don't have children in school -- my son is all finished with his schooling -- they are all our children, and we have a moral obligation to make sure they get the best education possible.

I'm well retired and certainly neither need the money nor wish to waste my time on vendettas. My only goals are a better run board and a school budget that I feel can be better managed and at a lower cost to the Batavia stockholders (aka taxpayers).

Do you have any closing comments?

Well, this is disconcerting to me: There are two candidates running together -- one of them is on the board already, the other one is trying to get on the board -- and I found out that both of them are members of the Democratic Party, and that the Democratic Party wants them to do this. This smacks of Third World politics. It's the kind of thing I would see in the Pacific, in Africa and in the Middle East, and we don't need to see it in Batavia.

When you see something like this, it means there's a hidden agenda. People are supposed to run on their own merits so that the populace can have a choice. You don't run as a gang. This looks like a way for the Democratic Party to influence the outcome of the election. The school board should be nonpartisan. This makes it a political toy, and that's wrong -- purely wrong. Taxpayer money should not be any party's political tool.

What will happen is that taxpayers won't get a return on their investment because partisan politics will interfere. The way information is presented to the public will be based on a single party's standpoint, and we won't get an honest, balanced budget.

McGinnis claims to have received this information from a source from within the Democratic Party. Guenther and Barone were both given a chance to respond.

Here are their replies:

Wayne Guenther

I'm not a member of any political party -- I'm registered as unaffilliated. I met Amy the night of the budget hearing, and I know her sister and her dad but that's it. And I agree -- political parties should not have anything to do with the school board. I'm really surprised to hear this kind of stuff (referring the accusation).

Amy Barone

The only response I have to that is that this is not a political race -- it's a race for the kids. I don't feel that party lines are relevant. I'm running for my kids and for the district, not for any political party. That said, I may have supporters in the Democratic Party, but I also have supporters in the Republican Party.