I have been blessed with many things in my life. I am running for the Lyons Township School Board to be of service to our students, school, and community I hold in such high regard. We all have a responsibility to care for one another. For me, I do this when I can, with the time I have, in the areas where I feel my experience can benefit others.
While I feel the most effective board is one with diverse experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives, I also feel that a board should not lack someone with educational experience. While having community members with law, finance, or business backgrounds is beneficial, it is also important to have someone with inside knowledge about how districts are run and how decisions affect all stakeholders.
I believe my 24 years as a social worker and administrator in many different environments would be an asset to our community. I have worked in small and large districts; urban, suburban, and rural communities; group homes and residential facilities; wealthy communities and poor communities.
The one constant throughout all my experiences is that kids need people who will care for them. While everyone has different needs, it all starts with someone who cares. I believe that all my experiences will give me the perspective to make decisions that will always put kids first.
One of the most important characteristics of any good leader is being a good listener. That starts with listening first to the students and staff that work in the building. While some decisions can be made without student input, the current board initiatives require the knowledge of those who work within the walls of LTHS.
The concerns of equity and belonging in schools is not singular to LTHS, our community, or even our state. This is a national and global concern that hundreds of thousands of people dedicate their lives to.
It is important to note that what might work for one school or community, may not work for another. This is why an informed, individualized approach is necessary. While we cannot fix this problem overnight, we can continue to teach, dedicate time, energy and resources to working through these issues.
In my opinion, this cannot be an initiative or a movement. This needs to be addressed on a regular, consistent basis as we would work on curriculum or instruction. It needs to be part of the conversation with any decisions that are made and must include conversations with our feeder and neighboring districts.
This is where my connections with other districts can be utilized to collaborate and share ideas that will only make LT an even better learning environment for all students.
I am fortunate enough to have many personal and professional experiences that, I believe, will allow me to support LTHS. For more information you can find my personal and professional experiences at timalbores.com
Or you can find me on Facebook at facebook.com/Tim-Albores-Lyons-Township-School-District-204-School-Board-Candidate-106832701334516
Tim Albores is a candidate running for a seat on the Lyons Township High School District 204 Board of Education.
