Traverse City Record-Eagle

Election 2009

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October 22, 2009

Retired teacher seeks second TCAPS term

Brooke draws on 29 years experience teaching

BY LINDSAY VANHULLE

Editor's Note: Fourth 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 -- Suzann Brooke believes being a school board member comes with a learning curve, just like anything else.

Brooke used to be a teacher in Traverse City Area Public Schools, and didn't know much about the operations department before winning a seat on the board four years ago.

Then discussion started about redrawing the district's boundaries, and she had to learn a lot of information in a short amount of time.

"It helps me now to have a perspective when new issues come up," said Brooke, 70, who is seeking her second term on Traverse City's school board. "You begin to see another side of things."

Brooke is being challenged for one of two, four-year terms Nov. 3 by newcomers Julie Davis, Kelly Hall, Mary Ufford Manner and Julie Puckett.

Her decision to seek re-election is motivated by looming budget cuts that will be recommended in December and set in place next year.

She has drawn on her experience as an incumbent throughout her campaign, and she said she doesn't want to leave the board in the middle of significant cutbacks.

No one group should have to shoulder the weight of reductions, Brooke said. But more than that, the district will need to adapt to changing times and uncertain state funding by looking closely at what it offers families.

The board is planning to launch a committee to discuss school innovation, an initiative Brooke said should include students and have diverse, open-minded participants.

"We hear about their achievements, but we don't have direct dialogue from them," she said of students. "We need to find people who are not going to preserve whatever cause or program is dear to them."

Brooke advocated for public meetings to be televised during her first term, but she doesn't think the board has achieved perfect communication.

Board members would benefit if they regularly talked with citizens, she said, since public comment sessions at meetings don't allow for two-way conversation.

Administrators and teachers also must work toward repairing an "aura of mistrust" that surfaced during contentious negotiations this year, she said.

The board is working on a new tool to evaluate Superintendent Jim Feil so results are more encompassing, Brooke added. It could be ready before the end of the year.

Brooke missed a number of meetings in early 2008 while recovering from complications from hip-replacement surgery. She has not been absent since April 27.

She said she is healthy and able to commit to another term.

About the candidate

Name: Suzann Brooke

Age: 70

Residence: Traverse City

Education: Graduated from what is now Grosse Pointe South High School in 1956; bachelor's degree in special education from the University of Michigan

Work: Special education teacher for 36 years, 29 of them in Traverse City Area Public Schools; retired in 2001

Family: Husband Lewis Brooke Jr. died in 2002; son Tres, 38; daughter-in-law Melissa; grandson Quaid, 5

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