Voters in the Northwest R-1 School District will be able to choose from a field of five candidates when they go to the polls on April 5 to choose two members of the Board of Education.
The two incumbents, Gary Bonacker and Jeffrey M. Hanewinkel, are in the race. Bonacker is seeking his fifth three-year term and Hanewinkel his third.
They will be challenged by Michelle Y. Coats, Janice M. (Jan) Karsten and former Jefferson County Councilman Don Bickowski.
However, Karsten has said she plans to move from the district and is not campaigning. She did not return a Leader candidate questionnaire.
HANEWINKEL, 49, lives in Byrnes Mill. He and his wife, Angie, have two children. He is a key account manager for the sales department at Major Brands. A 1991 graduate of Northwest High School, he has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Lindenwood University.
His wife and daughter are both third-grade teachers for the district.
COATS, 39, lives in High Ridge. She and her husband, Bryan, have two children. She is a full-time parent. She received an associate degree from St. Louis Community College-Meramec in 2004, a bachelor’s degree from the University of Missouri-St. Louis in 2009, and a master’s degree in media literacy from Webster University in 2012.
BONACKER, 66, lives in House Springs. He has a son and a grandson. A farmer, he graduated from high school and has taken some college classes.
A first cousin’s daughter teaches in a district school.
BICKOWSKI, 65, lives in Eureka. He and his wife, Susan, have one stepdaughter and two grandchildren. He is a senior network administrator and has taken some college classes.
What experience do you have (elected office, civic organizations, volunteer work, etc.) that might serve you well in this position?
Hanewinkel: I have been on the board for six years and am the president of my subdivision’s homeowners association. I also have coached local boys and girls soccer, softball and football teams.
Coats: I am a parent of elementary-age children, which gives me the perspective of looking ahead to the future of the district 10 years and beyond. I am invested in my community and the district and if elected I will do my best to listen to parents, teachers and staff when the board makes decisions.
Bonacker: I have served with the Jefferson County Soil and Water Conservation District for 15 years.
Bickowski: I am a former councilman for Jefferson County’s District 1.
What are the biggest problems facing the district and how would you address them?
Hanewinkel: Getting all kids caught up on filling gaps in their education. During the first year of COVID, we had all secondary students in a hybrid system, only attending school in person two days a week. We also had more than 1,500 kids voluntarily attending school 100 percent online. We all know this was not optimal for education. This is being addressed by the hiring of more staff in every building who specialize in identifying kids who are behind and working with the classroom teachers to provide interventions.
Coats: Low teacher pay, transportation budgets are two big problems facing our district and districts across Missouri. The solutions aren't black and white, but I would start with learning all I can about how the board and district handle these challenges and work together to find solutions so we can attract and retain the best teachers and also find solutions to our transportation issues.
Bonacker: Money to pay staff is always a challenge. Retaining our certified staff is a top priority. The board recently redid the salary schedule to get our minimum salaries up to a more competitive salary scale. Hopefully, with COVID moving along, we have weathered the worst of that. Some of the proposals in Jefferson City for public education are not good for public education. This desire to take money from the public schools is only going to make it harder to educate our kids.
Bickowski: Access to current state-of-the-art technology programs and high-speed internet.
Why should voters elect you to this position? List your goals, if elected.
Hanewinkel: I want what is best for kids and I believe in the Northwest community. My goals for the next three years if elected are to continue to get every kid in the district caught up on their education, using the interventionists and promoting smaller class sizes. Also, I would address building needs with the use of no-tax-increase bond issue extensions rather than looking at property tax increases. Retaining and recruiting highly qualified teachers while maintaining a competitive wage is important, too, as well as recruiting teachers from within our current student body.
Coats: I am invested in this district. Every teacher my children has had to date has become friends or family. I am focused on not only the education our children receive, but making sure we continue to hire and retain the best teachers and staff while also being accountable for everything the board does.
Bonacker: I’ve sat on the board for 12 years now. I feel that I have made a real contribution to the makeup of this board. As a lifelong member of the Northwest community, I have a relevant set of knowledge and skills that benefits some of our decisions we make.
Bickowski: I would bring my experience as a council member for the advancement of the district and leverage my global relationships with high-tech firms to bring cutting-edge programs to the district.
What letter grade would you give your school board on its policies regarding the COVID-19 pandemic? Why?
Hanewinkel: B+. We offered an online option by hiring 28 additional staff, maintained regular elementary in-person instruction and kept all secondary students in school two days a week. One regret was that we chose a hybrid model for the secondary students; this was not optimal for learning and social emotional development. The quarantine requirements led us to this decision. As data came in, we were able to shift to having all kids in school for the fourth quarter of the 2020-2021 school year and came back to this year with every student going five days a week with no mask mandate.
Coats: C-. The board did not do its due diligence to look at the district as a whole when making decisions about protocols. While we have children and families who depend on schools for things like meals and a safe space while parents work, enough was not done to take into account the children who needed extra precautions due to issues such as immune systems being compromised, cancer treatments, disabilities that make wearing a mask impossible. The board didn't do enough to ensure that all students had access to a safe learning environment.
Bonacker: A if not A+. The administration did an excellent job of guiding the district through the crisis. The board saw the value in its recommendations and supported the procedures used. Having already having distributed computers for our kids made the use of virtual education much easier for students. We were able to allow those who didn’t want to learn virtually to come to school at least two times a week and elementary kids a full at-school schedule with enough distancing. Moving to masks optional, this worked out great with acceptable numbers of quarantining.
Bickowski: B. The current board provided decent guidance based on the information that was available to it at the time.