BATAVIA — With three Board of Education seats open in the Batavia City School District and four people running for them, the Batavia community had a chance to get to know the four candidates.
The four running in the election next Tuesday are Brenda Good, incumbent Shawna Murphy, Jennifer Lendvay and incumbent John Reigle.
Good has been in education since 2003, including time in Oakfield-Alabama as a special education teacher. She was also director of special education at Oakfield-Alabama for four years, then went to Rochester as a CSE chairperson and is now at Orleans-Niagara BOCES as principal of the BOCES LaSalle Prep Learning Center in Niagara Falls.
Murphy teaches at Genesee Community College and has been on the Batavia Board of Education for six years.
Lendvay is a licensed practical nurse at Genesee Valley BOCES. She graduated from Batavia High School in 1997.
Reigle was appointed to the board after running as a write-in last year. He graduated from Batavia in 1997. He has one child who graduated from Batavia and another graduating this year, with his youngest child in third grade. He runs his own business.
The first question from the moderator, Superintendent Anibal Soler Jr., was “What’s going to set you apart from the rest of the slate as far as candidates? Why should someone choose (name of candidate)?
Reigle: “I’ve learned a lot since being a part of the board in August. I want to continue to learn. I think we do have a terrific Board of Education right now that works really well together. There’s some veteran school board members on there that, if I have questions, they can answer them for me. That way, I can communicate with families. Having the relationship I do with so many of the families here in Batavia, I think, is a great asset of mine that I can communicate things to the family members in the district families. I have a lot of pride in Batavia.”
Lendvay: “I’m actually very green (new) to this. I think that is a benefit because I don’t come in with a preconceived notion. I’m here to learn. It’s one where I can come in and say, ‘OK, here’s what I see. I can take what I see from the outside and say, “Here’s what I see. Here’s what I’d love to do differently. Here’s what I love that you’re doing.’ I was born and raised here ... I have a lot of questions and a lot of ties and feel like I’m fairy approachable and able to ask the questions that may not be the most popular ... The only dumb question is the one you don’t ask.”
Murphy: “I have a daughter at the school. My husband is a teacher. I teach at GCC. I come from all different aspects of education. I think my strongest personality trait is the fact that I change my mind all the time because I’m willing to listen. I don’t come in with any preconceived notions about what I think something should be or shouldn’t be. I’m always listening to all sides.”
Good: “I have been in education for 18 years and I understand the system and the collaboration that’s necessary to meet the needs of all students. I understand that it’s not one perspective and it really does take a village. In my current position, I work with parents and students and teachers and administrators and we come up with decisions together that is going to invest in the needs of all students. Me being on board, it would be beneficial to have that open mind that listening to all sides of everything before making any decisions.”
Another question asked of the candidates was “What do you see as the primary work of the Board of Education?”.
Good: Good said she sees the board together “hearing what’s being presented in front of people, not only from the prospective of a student, but from the perspective of the community, of the schools, of the teachers, of the administrators and taking everything together, collectively and trying to make a decision that’s best for everyone. Really just having an open mind and trying to make sure we hear all sides of everything, making sure that everyone works together ...”
Murphy: Murphy said she agreed with Good and added, “I also think it’s making difficult decisions ... doing triage, which has not been fun over this past year, dealing with that to the point of understanding that every decision being made affects people differently, but have to make those decisions in order for the whole district to continue to grow and do well. That’s been a lesson I’ve learned over this past year — just making those tough decisions and sometimes not being very popular, but (you) have to do it.”
Lendvay: “We’re the ones that have to work together and hear not only the board side, but the teachers, the parents, the students. We need to put together all that information and ... go in with an unbiased opinion and try to come up with the best solution that would work for everybody, including the district.”
Reigle: Reigle talked about the need to communicate with the community — “Being open to change and listening to district families, being available for our district families, and having our community know the Board of Education, the conversations that we’ve had. Make sure as a board member, that we’re at school events ...”
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May 13, 2021 at 11:15AM
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