Meet the Candidate
Gail Swenson
Sioux Falls School Board
Occupation: Retired K12 Superintendent
Education: B.S. Speech/Theatre Communications, SDSU M.Ed. Curriculum and Instruction/Administration, SDSU Ed.S. Education Administration/Superintendency-District Leadership, University of Sioux Falls
Family: Single
Years in Sioux Falls: Moved to Sioux Falls in 1991 when Roosevelt High School opened. 33 years.
What issues do you want to focus on if elected?:
If elected to the Sioux Falls School Board, the issues I would like to focus on can be summarized into three priority areas:
- Engaging All in our children’s education – to encourage our students, families, and community to be engaged in our district and our children’s education.
We need to engage our students and families in children’s learning. We need to engage our community in the opportunity for partnerships and support. And we need to engage all stakeholders in the vision of our District.
- Prioritizing Safety for the well-being of students and staff – to ensure that we are doing everything possible to create buildings and learning environments that are safe for our students and staff to be in every day.
The Board must provide safe learning environments for students to learn, staff members to work, and for teachers to teach. I pledge to strive to create safe spaces for education and to oppose violence, including bullying, and unwelcoming schools.
- Maintaining Excellence – to build a culture of excellence in all aspects of the district: academics, student opportunities, facilities, programs, and environments.
As Board members, we need to ensure that we live the District motto of educating and preparing students to succeed in a changing world and the goal of creating a best-in-the-nation district. We need to set the standard of excellence with our academic offerings and results, with opportunities we provide our students, with facilities, with a variety of programing, and with our learning environments.
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