July 13, 2026 Board Meeting: Trust Is Through Actions, Not Marketing
Update – July 13, 2026 @ 3:13pm
The video recording of last night's Rockford Board of Education meeting is now available. I encourage anyone interested in this topic to watch the discussion firsthand. The meeting can be viewed here:
July 13, 2026 @ 9:12am
Last night's Board meeting reinforced exactly why I'm running for the Rockford Board of Education. Throughout the meeting, one theme kept resurfacing: trust.
One of the Board's most important responsibilities is evaluating the Superintendent. During the meeting, the Superintendent requested that his evaluation be conducted in closed session, and the Board voted to approve that request. While Michigan law permits this process, I believe our community still deserves access to the clear, measurable standards by which the Superintendent is being evaluated.
The only publicly available goals I found were from January. While they identified important priorities, I believe they lacked the measurable benchmarks needed to help the community understand what success looks like, how progress is evaluated, and how accountability is measured. A mid-year performance review should help the public understand not only what the goals are, but also how progress toward those goals is being assessed.
The Board also heard a presentation from the district's public relations firm outlining a communications plan focused on rebuilding trust.
As I listened to the presentation, I couldn't help but think that rebuilding trust doesn't begin with a communications strategy.
In my view, the district shouldn't need a public relations firm to improve public perception. Trust is built by engaging stakeholders, genuinely listening to their concerns, being transparent about decisions, establishing measurable accountability, and demonstrating through consistent actions that community input matters.
When people feel heard, respected, and included, trust follows naturally.
Trust is built by engaging stakeholders, listening to the community, being transparent about decisions, and demonstrating through actions that community input matters.
That message made what happened during public comment stand out even more.
A parent came before the Board to share a deeply personal experience involving her son with special education needs. She described an incident in which she said he remained on a school bus for a period of time while still secured in a five-point harness. She also shared additional concerns and what she hoped the district would do differently moving forward.
As her three minutes expired, the Board President abruptly interrupted her comments with, "Okay, thank you."
I understand that public comment has time limits, and those rules should be applied consistently. But leadership is about more than following the clock. It also requires empathy, compassion, judgment, and respect.
When a parent comes before the Board to speak about the safety and well-being of their child, they should leave knowing their child mattered, their concerns were heard, and their voice was valued.
Later in the meeting, the discussion turned to the ballot proposal expected to appear before voters this November. The Board voted to place the Headlee restoration and the operating millage together as a single ballot question. During the discussion, district leaders explained why they believed combining the two proposals was the best approach. They also stated that if the proposal is not approved, the district would be forced to make program reductions.
As those discussions move forward, I believe our community deserves complete transparency about what is included in the proposal, why the decision was made to combine the two measures into a single ballot question, and what the potential impacts would be if it passes—or if it does not.
When multiple issues are combined into one ballot question, voters cannot express support for one component while opposing another. Regardless of where someone ultimately stands on the proposal, I believe every voter deserves clear, complete information so they can make an informed decision.
Trust is built by listening before decisions are made.
Trust is built through transparency.
Trust is built through measurable accountability.
Trust is built when people know their voices matter.
These are my observations from last night's meeting and part of the reason I'm running for the Rockford Board of Education.
I believe we can do better.
We can build trust through thoughtful leadership, transparency, measurable accountability, and meaningful community engagement—not just before a ballot proposal or during election season, but every day.
Our students deserve it.
Our families deserve it.
Our community deserves it.
Note: This post reflects my observations from attending the July 13, 2026 Board meeting and reviewing the meeting materials. I have linked the Board packet below. Once the official meeting video is posted, I will review it and update this post if any clarification or corrections are needed.
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