Q&A with the Glenville-Emmons school board candidates

Published 4:22 pm Tuesday, October 29, 2024

Lindy Fredrickson

Q: Please tell us a little bit about yourself.

I grew up outside of Glenville and graduated from G-E in 2002. After high school I attended Southwest State University and graduated with a BA in Business Administration-Management. I have worked for 17 years in the Retirement Business on Projects and in IT. I am currently the IT Manager-Business Solutions for Alerus Financial. My husband and I are raising our 2 children outside of Glenville and enjoy sending our kids to G-E where they are currently in 5th and 9th grade.

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Q: What do you see as strengths in our school district?

The strength of our school is our community and staff. We may be a small district, but with our smaller class sizes, our kids can get more one on one time with our teachers and aides. Our staff truly care about our kids, which gives them the foundation for their education. Our community has also really started to step up and be active in our district, which helps build that pride in our school. Without community support, you cannot run a district.

Q: What do you see as areas for improvement in our school district?

We have improved in many areas, but there is always room for improvement. Areas I want to continue to work on is our student success rate, finalizing better facilities that make sense for our district and continue improving communication.

Q: What particular experiences or skills have prepared you to serve as a board member?

The 10+ years of serving on the board has given me great experience on policies, finance and overall process of being a board member. Outside of the great experiences and time on the board, my career has helped me being part of many large projects and acquisitions in the business I am in. Also, having a Dad to learn from that was on our board for many years. He has given me great knowledge and advice.

Lisa Hajek

Q: Please tell us a little bit about yourself.

I was born and raised in Marshall, MN and am a 1995 Marshall High School graduate. After high school, I attended South Dakota State University in Brookings, SD. I graduated in 1999 from SDSU with 2 Bachelor Degrees in both Microbiology and Spanish. It was at SDSU that I met my future husband, Ryan Hajek, from Glenville. Ryan and I are proud parents to two sons — Logan and Ethan. Logan is a junior Agriculture Science major at SDSU and Ethan is a senior at Glenville-Emmons High School, also with his sights set on becoming a Jackrabbit! I have been employed with Hormel Foods Corporation for over 23 years in the Research and Development division and am currently an Asst. Packaging Scientist in R&D Package Development. I am proud to say that our sons are the 5th generation of our family to attend school in this district.

Q: What do you see as strengths in our school district?

School staff: We are blessed with an incredible and talented staff to teach our students and help them to succeed. In the words of the Glenville-Emmons School District Mission Statement, our staff helps to “Develop responsible and confident individuals who will succeed in and contribute to a changing world.”

Students and their families: We have a wonderful student population and their families who support them in all their endeavors throughout their educational experience.

Our communities: District residents support our students in all facets of their educational experience and want to see our students succeed.

Atmosphere: Our small school atmosphere creates more of a sense of family and belonging among the students, staff, and families in each building.

Facilities: We have made a number of improvements to our facilities to create a better learning environment for our kids. I am excited to see what the future holds as we continue to look forward with endeavors for our district facilities and what that may look like 5, 10, 15 years down the road!

Q: What do you see as areas for improvement in our school district?

We need to continue to seek out facility improvements to help provide our administration, staff, and students with a safe and healthy learning environment. Just recently we completed some great projects but there is more to be done to meet long-term goals of the district facilities and shaping what the future will look like for our facilities.

With more needs for students, we need to continue to support staff to figure out ways to support our staff. Educator burnout is a real issue in Minnesota so continuing to support our staff and finding new, innovative ways in which we can help them in all ways possible is important.

Q: What particular experiences or skills have prepared you to serve as a board member?

I have a son currently enrolled in the district and a son who graduated from the district that is pursuing secondary education. One of the most important things a person can do to support children is to volunteer in some way. I have been actively involved volunteering to support not just my children but other children as well. A few of the ways in which I do so is by being an active member in our GE PTC group (Parent Teacher Connection), Myrtle 4-H Club, Freeborn County 4-H, and youth sports for many years. Since January 2023 I have served on the SMEC Board as the GE representative. These experiences have allowed for additional leadership opportunities and networking experiences by giving me the additional tools to succeed in my role as school board member.

Jesse Knaack

Q: Please tell us a little bit about yourself.
I grew up on a dairy farm outside of Glenville. I attended G-E schools and graduated in 1997. I currently farm and I’m a licensed contractor. My wife and I have a two year old son and are expecting a daughter in February.

Q: What do you see as strengths in our school district?

By far our district’s biggest strength is the people in it. We have kids who are experiencing and learning small town midwestern moral values and work ethic. We have parents and community members who want what’s best for our kids and understand the importance of having our own district. We have staff who are vested in our communities and have stuck with the district through some difficult teaching conditions. And we have a new superintendent who believes in transparency.

Q: What do you see as areas for improvement in our school district?

I think there has been some management and accountability shortcomings. Attending most of the school board meetings over the past year has kept me up to speed on what’s going on. There is a lot of work to be done but I am optimistic about the future of the district.

Q: What particular experiences or skills have prepared you to serve as a board member?

Working in the construction industry and farming has given me experience in problem solving. Attending most of the school board meetings over the past year has helped keep me up to speed on what is going on.

Trista Nelson

Q: Please tell us a little bit about yourself.

I live in Emmons with my husband and three year old son. I was born and mostly raised in Minnesota. I spent 15 years living in Metro Atlanta and moved back to Minnesota in 2015. I enjoy being outdoors, fishing, gardening, painting and playing with my son.

Q: What do you see as strengths in our school district?

This community is amazing. Glenville really supports the school and sees the importance of keeping a school in their community.

Q: What do you see as areas for improvement in our school district?

Obvious issues are the age of the buildings and safety of the children. Finding a way to accomplish all issues within a tight budget is key. There is a significant amount of tension in the Emmons community and I hope to help bridge that. I am very aware of how people feel after the referendum. I’d like to help keep the school, build a better relationship between our two communities, and remain mindful of voters’ budget concerns. We are all feeling the pinch in our pocket books so finding creative solutions to keep our school local is key for me.

Q: What particular experiences or skills have prepared you to serve as a board member?

I am open to productive discussions. I am eager to hear people’s thoughts and ideas, but I will not tolerate bullying. I firmly believe that if there is a problem, individuals should bring ideas and solutions to the table instead of negativity. I thrive in situations requiring problem solving and developing plans. I’m not afraid of a challenge.

Kyle Utpadel

Q: Please tell us a little bit about yourself.

Originally from Hartland, MN. I have had a few jobs in my day starting with 5-star restaurant manager. After that I did over 10+ years for the Union Pacific Railroad as an Operator, Forman, Track Inspector and Safety Coordinator. Currently I am employed with Ellingson Companies as an Environmental, Health and Safety Supervisor. I have lived in Glenville for over 3 years with my wife Chelsey (GE alumni) and two kids (Warren 4 & Marlee 2).

Q: What do you see as strengths in our school district?

The strengths in this district are the obvious, small towns bring everyone together. The older kids know the younger kids. The staff is as reliable as it gets, I would definitely like to get to know more of them. The community as a whole stands behind the district and the understanding of their relationship is working together to make the town thrive.

Q: What do you see as areas for improvement in our school district?

I for one am a huge fan of having a new school. I see the trends around our area and understand the importance of keeping up with those trends. I have friends and family that are moving out of the big towns to get to the smaller districts. It’s happening everywhere, and with the new school I believe that we would most definitely profit from a new school. (Financially & Enrollment)

Q: What particular experiences or skills have prepared you to serve as a board member?

In my previous employments, I have learned to be open-minded about anything and everything. Take the positives from every scenario or suggestion and use them to my advantage when problem solving. I know more than ever that working together is imperative to make sure we keep GE moving forward and surpassing everyone’s expectations. I like to think I am a very competitive person and if any district/community around me is doing better, I will make sure to try harder and let us set the bar of success for other districts to reach.

Kassi Wallin

Q: Please tell us a little bit about yourself.

My name is Kassi Wallin, I grew up in Clarks Grove and attended school in Albert Lea. I loved growing up in a small town. The small-town environment holds a special place in my heart.

My husband, Matt Wallin, grew up in Glenville and attended Glenville-Emmons school. Since we met, I have grown to love this town and community. We relocated to Rochester for many years to attend college. When we decided to have kids, we knew we wanted to move back to Glenville to give our kids that small town environment that we love. I didn’t want my kids to get lost in a sea of 200+ classmates. We now have 3 young kids attending Glenville-Emmons and they absolutely love being a Wolverine! When the referendum didn’t pass my oldest was so scared that she would have to attend a larger school district. I told her that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon. Our community will continue to rally together to keep the school going.

Q: What do you see as strengths in our school district?

Our strengths as a school district are passion, dedication, courage and strength as a whole community. Our teachers and staff are dedicated to our small-town school district. They build relationships with their students on a more personal level. They strive to help our students to succeed, not only academically, but in all areas of life, socially, mentally, emotionally and physically.

Q: What do you see as areas for improvement in our school district?

We need to continue to work on improving our buildings. The safety for our children and staff is number one! Secured entrances, new roofing, etc. These are the main priority at this time. I have been very passionate about building up our youth sports programs, along with the support of other parents. We created the Youth Sports Program to improve our kids’ opportunities that small districts don’t always have. Since we have started this program, we have been able to raise money through local business donations, fundraising and concession stand. The Youth Sports Program has been able to provide our sports programs with new safety equipment like helmets, catchers gear and face shields. We also purchased new volleyballs, basketballs, uniforms and a pitching machine. Our Youth Sports Program offers scholarships for families in need of assistance. Our program has gained a large number of new kids to our summer ball programs. We will support the growth of other sports as well. We opened our concession stand this summer during baseball and softball practice. We received a lot of positive feedback from it. People from the community would come out to have supper just to support our program and watch our kids play ball. In addition to providing new equipment, tournament fees and scholarships, the Youth Sports Program gives our kids better opportunities in youth sports at a young age and will help them learn teamwork, dedication, respect and boost their confidence. It will also encourage them to do well in school. They will need to work hard at their academics to be able to participate in the activities they love. Kids need something exciting to look forward to. All the success of the Youth Sports Program is due to the parents involved in this group, in addition to the parents who volunteer their time and Sarah Gehring, the Community Ed director for trusting us. I will continue to support the improvement of our youth sports and ensure a safe environment for our kids to learn. I will also continue to bring in new opportunities to help kids thrive in their confidence as a whole.

Q: What particular experiences or skills have prepared you to serve as a board member?

I can put my personal feelings aside to hear all sides of a topic before making a decision. I am not afraid to ask questions to get more information before deciding. I am motivated to bring in new opportunities and resources that will help our kids and staff members thrive.

Sean Willaby

Q: Please tell us a little bit about yourself.

I graduated from G-E in 2001. I then joined the Army National Guard, and during my service I had two deployments to Kosovo and Kuwait. I have three kids, one has already graduated and the other two are in fifth grade and eighth grade. I am a member of the Glenville Fire Department, and I work for the city of Wells as a police officer.

Q: What do you see as strengths in our school district?

The problem solving to get the roof on the high school fixed. The communication from the new superintendent before the school year started, and then when there was an issue recently from the rain resulting in closing school for the next day. The staff adapting to the stressful situation with the leaking roof at the high school. Having a behavioral specialist in the district. The Title 1/ Special Education Program being revamped is a positive. Having low interest from students going out for sports, then teaming up with Alden-Conger so there are enough students to make a team.

Q: What do you see as areas for improvement in our school district?

With past events all over the United States, I would like to see the district work with the Freeborn County Sheriff’s Office to implement a school resource office. This would be beneficial for the students and staff. Communication can always be improved. I know with social media, it is easier to post things on Facebook or the district’s website, but sometimes things get overseen and forgotten about so either reminders be sent via email, social media or papers sent home with students.

Q: What particular experiences or skills have prepared you to serve as a board member?

Being a police officer, I have good listening skills. I give others the opportunity to express their concerns. I also have management experience from working in retail and fast food.