District 96 School Board Candidate: John Rouleau

Name: John P. Rouleau

Age: 41

Town: Lake Zurich

Incumbent? Yes, elected to school board in April of 2007

Family: Wife, Catherine, of 16 years and children, Michael & Jack, age 13
(twins). Both children attended District 96 schools – Willow Grove Early
Childhood & Kindergarten Center, Kildeer Countryside Elementary and
now Woodlawn Middle School.

Community Involvement: Outside of my School Board position the past four years, I am also involved with various baseball and soccer youth coaching related roles.

Why are you running for a School Board position?

I was elected to the school board in the spring of 2007 and have been on the board for the past four years. Through positive interactions with teachers, principals and various district-level administrators, I was originally encouraged to seek a position on the board and become more involved with the schools. My interests with the school board are general in nature. I believe that my background in finance and communications along with my sincere interest in doing what is best for kids while balancing the needs of the community is a solid background for a board member.

What are the key issues that the district will have to address in the next four years?

Better integrating technology into the every-day curriculum and classroom is a key priority. Technology today is no longer a subject matter, but a tool that can and should be used to enhance the learning experience. However, this requires classrooms to be equipped with different resources and teachers to change up some of the lesson plans and in some cases, the way they teach. So it’s a transformation process that will take a few years to properly administer. Other key issues include
balancing student academic achievement with social and emotional development and improving communication with parents and all district stakeholders.

What are some of your goals as board member?

With over 96% of our kids meeting or exceeding state standards, four Blue Ribbon schools, and the highest financial recognition by ISBE for the past six consecutive years, my goal as a board member is to maintain the academic, financial and operational strength of the district. Other goals are to expand the use of technology into the everyday classroom and improve communication between all district stakeholders.

What are some of the district’s strengths?

The strength of the district is its talented staff, involved parents and the collaborative professional learning community (PLC) model in which it operates. Under the PLC model, teams of teachers and administrators work collaboratively and inter-dependently to: 1) clarify exactly what each student must learn, 2) monitor each student's learning on a timely basis, 3) provide systematic interventions to deliver additional support for struggling students, and 4) extend and enrich learning when students have already mastered the intended outcomes.

What do you think can be done to improve the district?

The area which I believe the district has the biggest opportunity to improve is the use of technology in the classroom. Given the rapid advancements and widespread adoption of technology in society, we have an obligation to continue integrating technology into the every-day classroom.

What distinguishes you from the rest of the School Board candidates?

Four years of District 96 board experience, a business background that is rooted in financial analysis, communications/public relations and corporate governance, and the ability to listen, think independently and work collaboratively in a group.