Traverse City Record-Eagle

Election 2009

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October 21, 2009

Former attorney views schools as business

BY LINDSAY VANHULLE

Editor's Note: Second in a series of profiles of Traverse City Area Public Schools Board of Education candidates. Read the entire series in our election section at record-eagle.com/election.

TRAVERSE CITY -- Kelly Hall thinks of public education as a business.

She calls it a "customer-driven enterprise" and cites real-world analogies from the private sector when discussing ways public schools can improve.

These days, with increasing competition for students' attention from other public, private and charter schools, Hall isn't wrong.

"I'm willing to consider and try new ideas to remake our education business as necessary," said Hall, a Traverse City school board candidate. "If you're faced with a crisis, you have to evolve or you're not going to survive. The strongest ones become better for it."

Hall, 41, is vying for one of two, four-year terms on the board. She is running against incumbent Suzann Brooke and challengers Julie Davis, Mary Ufford Manner and Julie Puckett.

She handles tax, accounting and staffing responsibilities at Hall Periodontics, her husband's dental practice. Prior to that, she was a financial and regulatory attorney for Consumers Energy.

Her family moved to Traverse City in the late 1990s. Her five children attend school in the district.

Her youngest son attends a special education program at Traverse Heights Elementary, and she said it's important the district provides opportunities for all students -- regardless of ability.

Hall was a candidate for a January appointment to fill 2008 member-elect Amy Sutherland's seat, and decided then she would seek election in November.

Her legal background taught her to be analytical, and she said she wants to improve an "impasse in approachability" within the district and find a better way to garner input from citizens.

"We have a wealth of knowledge in this community, and talent," Hall said. "We need to take advantage of that."

Her ideas include holding town hall-style meetings with the board and the community, and having board members regularly attend parent meetings at schools.

Parents still suspect their concerns aren't being heard, Hall said, adding that good communication can resolve many issues.

Communication will be particularly important as the board implements budget cuts next year, she said. Hall wants to see student programs and employee compensation preserved in the process.

Families have to feel confident their children are getting the best education in Traverse City's schools, she said, and that will require the district to be creative in what it offers.

"I don't think we should do things the way they've always been done," Hall said. "We really need to have a culture of excellence from top to bottom."

About the candidate

Name: Kelly Hall

Age: 41

Residence: Traverse City

Education: Graduated from Manton High School in 1986; bachelor's degrees in history and political science from Alma College; law degree from the University of Michigan

Work: Performs tax, accounting and human resources functions for Hall Periodontics, a family-owned dental practice; previously worked as an attorney for financial and regulatory matters for Consumers Energy

Family: Husband John, 40; son Christopher, 14, eighth-grader at Traverse City East Middle School; daughter Erica, 10, fifth-grader in Talented and Gifted program at Central Grade School; son Jackson, 8, third-grader at Eastern Elementary; daughter Elizabeth, 6, first-grader at Eastern Elementary; son Henry, 6, attends a Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District special education program at Traverse Heights Elementary

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