Traverse City Record-Eagle

Election 2009

October 25, 2009

Our recommendations for TCAPS Board

Traverse City Area Public Schools voters could add as many as three new members to the seven-member school board in voting Nov. 3.

Five candidates, including one incumbent, are vying for two four-year terms. Two candidates, including an appointed incumbent, are competing for a partial term that ends in December of 2012.

-- For the two four-year terms, the Record-Eagle endorses JULIE PUCKETT and KELLY HALL.

The two newcomers would bring needed skills and energy to the table and appear ready to speak up and be heard; both have said they will demand greater transparency from the administration.

Incumbent Suzann Brooke has not impressed in her four years on the board. While she seems to have a grasp on many issues and has been endorsed by the teacher's union, she has consistently failed to speak up and speak out; she has not earned another term.

Puckett is a 40-year-old Cheboygan native who now lives in Williamsburg; she has a master's degree in educational administration and policy from the University of Michigan.

Puckett said key issues are creating a vision for the district and strategies to attract new students. A priority would be to see that cuts are made in services that are "furthest away from students."

Hall is a 41-year-old mother of five who lives in Traverse City. She previously worked as an attorney for Consumers Energy.

Hall has said she views public school education as a "customer-driven enterprise" that must evolve to survive pending cuts. She said administrative salaries have to be "in the forefront" of pending cuts and the district needs to break what she called an "impasse in approachability.

-- For the partial term, the Record-Eagle endorses GARY APPEL, who was appointed to the board in January.

The 58-year-old Appel lives in Traverse City; he has worked as an education consultant for governments and nonprofits and is a former science teacher.

Appel brings a wealth of experience in education and has had a significant positive influence on the board in just 10 months. He said the district needs to be "relentless in pushing innovation" to survive coming cuts.

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