Donald Moscato III

[admin]

[twhl]

www.204taxpayers.org/

Donald Moscato III

1. My wife and I have four children in District 204 school system ranging in age from seven to thirteen. We currently have two children attending Welch and two at Scullen.
I graduated from Downers Grove Shouth High School in 1988. I attended Western Illinois University, where I received my Bachelors degree in Business management in 1992. I am self-employed and I own and operate two local businesses. One business is Pro-Tac Police and Fire Equipment in Bolingbrook, IL and the other is Major League Auto Spa on 75th Street in Naperville.
I am extremely involved and dedicated to the children who play in the Naperville Patriots Football Organization. The majority of the children participating in this organization reside in School District 204. I am a financial supporter, coach and even a mentor for these young athletes. We are pround to have won National Champiuonships in 2007 and 2008 at the Peewee level.

2. To advocate higher educational standards which will carry into the workplace along with environments that will promote teamwork that is a benefit our children greatly. 204 Taxpayers for Excellence is here to help the community, our students and parents with anything that will make our schools better. 204 Taxpayers for Excellence is a united group that is interested in change for the better in District 204.

3. I believe, the role of a school board member is to represent the community proactively and logically towards a common goal to procure education excellence, to be a voice and facilitator. I plan to do just that, continue to be involved and work together with fellow board members to identify short comings and implement the solutions.

4. Accountability and transparency of the school board
I/we do not believe the current school board has made enough of an effort to reach out and truly listen to the community at large. If elected, we would be committed to clarifying and opening up the process by which decisions are made in the school district, as well as being committed to hearing from every person that wants to have input. We believe the diversity of views in our community is not a hindrance to decision making, but rather, a strength that can be used to our benefit.

Adequate staffing to student ratio
I/we believe teachers and staff in the district are our most valuable resource and we want to give them the best opportunities to succeed. This means being committed to making sure that there is enough staff in our classrooms to meet the educational requirements of our children. Although we are faced with difficult a economic environment, we must think critically before making short-sighted decisions that will hurt the district in the long run. We want to insure that our educational system is not compromised and stays strong for years to come.
Safe, optimal student learning environments
I/we believe every student has the ability to learn and we want to give them the best possibility to succeed by making sure they are in a proper learning environment. We are committed to being creative about financing air conditioning in elementary schools. We are committed to making sure our curriculum and materials are up to date. We are committed to making sure every student feels safe at school and that parent¡¯s are comfortable sending their children to school. We are committed to evaluating policies regarding personal safety on and off school grounds, including on the Internet.

5. I am a very effective and accessible communicator and very involved in the community. I am a local busines owner in Naperville and I invite the community to reach out to me. I will use our website, email and telephone technology to keep an open dialogue. You will be able to reach me and I will always respond either "real time" or in a very timely manner.

6.The 2009/2010 boundaries are already set and been approved by the district. It is time to get all 3 High Schools working together on all platforms.

7. Site-based management in its currect form in district 204 creates quite a few challenges for the board and its ability to enforce district policy. In theory, site-based management works, but only if all personnel resources at the site are uitilized and consulted. Currently that is not in practice so you have only a few making decisions designed for a consensus.

[casey]

I was asked to post this:

Karl's Notes|Notes about Karl|Karl's Profile

What I learned this week.ShareYesterday at 10:32pm
Up until ten days ago, my attitude toward our local school board was quite indifferent. I did not care about what they did as long as my property taxes didn't go up. But when I saw our school board president disrespect the parents of a victim of a sexual assault that occurred between children from my son's middle school, I got angry. I knew what I saw was not right, however I did not know what I could do to help this family. I also needed to get answers to questions that Michelle and I had about this situation and how it was being handled.

As I began to communicate with other parents in our school district and neighborhood, I was quickly learning of a consistent pattern of disrespect, unreturned phone calls, unanswered emails from the board President and other school board members. As my anger and frustration grew, Michelle and I finally decided it was time to take action.

We decided that we would invite any parents from the school district that were willing to get together to come to our home. I can say I did not know what to expect at the meeting. First and foremost, I was impressed by the caring and concern that was expressed by the other parents in attendance. I was simultaneously disappointed and amazed to hear about the years of struggle that these men and women had endured trying to communicate with the school board on variety of topics. These parents really did care, and had been trying to hold the board accountable for the many years when I did not care.

I invited the local press to the meeting in our home. I did this with intention that having them there would allow us to get media coverage and keep pressure on the school board to act on the situation at my son's middle school. The reporter and a photographer came, and the story was written by the reporter at our dining room table. The next day, the pictures of the meeting were on the front page of the paper, along with ten inches of column space dedicated to the stories that were shared among the parents.

That morning as I was working, I received phone calls from TV reporters wanting to learn more about the meeting. I agreed to speak with them. Having a background in broadcasting, I knew I would have to guard my words, and I tried to answer the questions they asked, in a way that was appropriate and non sensationalistic. I also wanted to keep them in context with the Christian values that I try to live my life by. I am proud to say that approach worked and the coverage of the school board meeting yesterday was accurate and fair.

Looking back, and examining the information I gathered this week, has given me a new perspective. As parents, we have to care what the school board does. We need to research the candidates and not just vote randomly for these positions. I am guilty of having done this in the past. The people that serve in these roles have thankless jobs, they run a huge business, over $270 million dollars in the case of District 204 budget, with total responsibilities that could be close to a billion dollars when you factor surplus funds and properties. We trust them to make wise decisions regarding our children's safety and education.

On Tuesday afternoon, for the first time, I attended a school board meeting, I now understand the process, and how the meetings are organized. As a parent you need to understand this process, in case you ever need to go before the board. Don't get me wrong in the case of this meeting it was like watching grass grow. I did address the board during the public comment time, so I had come full circle from not caring to standing up and fighting for my kids.

On April 7, 2009 we will be electing four school board members in District 204. I have now met many of the candidates and afterward attended a public forum where they answered questions about their beliefs and core values.. For the first time ever, I will enter a voting booth actually understanding where these types of candidates stand on issues that absolutely matter to my children and yours. I encourage you to get educated and become informed. I can promise you that I will take an interest and watch how our school board in District 204 acts from this day forward.

Visit http://www.204taxpayers.org to learn more about the candidates that I will be voting for and helping to get elected. Bottom line: I ask you to get educated and get involved. Our children are the most precious gift that God gives us. He entrusts us to raise them and be good parents in his likeness. That requires that we learn about things like school boards, whether we like it or not.

Thanks for reading.


Karl Cordes

[doctorwho]

www.dailyherald.com/news/politics/elections/2009/race/candidates/?id=707&candidate=1001

Unit D204 board member
Donald J Moscato, III Incumbent: No
Occupation: I am self-employed and I own and operate two local businesses. One business is Pro-Tac Police and Fire Equipment in Bolingbrook, IL and the other is Major League Auto Spa on 75th Street in Naperville.
Age: 40
Address: Naperville, IL

CANDIDATE INFORMATION
Family
My wife and I have four children in District 204 school system ranging in age from seven to thirteen. We currently have two children attending Welch and two at Scullen
Education/degrees
I graduated from Downers Grove Shouth High School in 1988. I attended Western Illinois University, where I received my Bachelors degree in Business management in 1992
Civic Involvement
I am extremely involved and dedicated to the children who play in the Naperville Patriots Football Organization. The majority of the children participating in this organization reside in School District 204. I am a financial supporter, coach and even a mentor for these young athletes. We are pround to have won National Champiuonships in 2007 and 2008 at the Peewee level.



Candidate's Key Issues
Key Issue 1 Accountability and transparency of the school board
I/we do not believe the current school board has made enough of an effort to reach out and truly listen to the community at large. If elected, we would be committed to clarifying and opening up the process by which decisions are made in the school district, as well as being committed to hearing from every person that wants to have input. We believe the diversity of views in our community is not a hindrance to decision making, but rather, a strength that can be used to our benefit.
Key Issue 2 Adequate staffing to student ratio
I/we believe teachers and staff in the district are our most valuable resource and we want to give them the best opportunities to succeed. This means being committed to making sure that there is enough staff in our classrooms to meet the educational requirements of our children. Although we are faced with difficult a economic environment, we must think critically before making short-sighted decisions that will hurt the district in the long run. We want to insure that our educational system is not compromised and stays strong for years to come.

Key Issue 3 Safe, optimal student learning environments
I/we believe every student has the ability to learn and we want to give them the best possibility to succeed by making sure they are in a proper learning environment. We are committed to being creative about financing air conditioning in elementary schools. We are committed to making sure our curriculum and materials are up to date. We are committed to making sure every student feels safe at school and that parent’s are comfortable sending their children to school. We are committed to evaluating policies regarding personal safety on and off school grounds, including on the Internet.


Questions & Answers
Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted.

1. What is the most important issue facing Indian Prairie Unit District 204 and how specifically would you address it as a member of the school board?
The current economic situation is the biggest issue currently facing District 204. Eliminating non-essential expenditures is a priority. There are many ways that we can go about cutting down on money spent. We must use all the other possible revenue sources and maximize the use of our buildings and grounds. We must optimize the usage of all district transportation.
2. The district is negotiating a new teachers contract this year. Do you believe teachers should continue to get raises in this economy? If so, what percentage do you think is fair (counting step increases)?
Without a doubt yes. In order to not lose are experienced workers we must provide a competitive wage scale. If we don't do this than we are risking losing great teachers to surronding districts.The administration negotiating team and workforce negotiating team will work through interest based bargaining to reach a contract that everyone can agree with. At no time however does the board of education become involved in the negotiations.
3. The economic downturn will put a strain on District 204's budget. What specific ideas do you have for increasing revenue or cutting spending?
Because of the economic stress of the nation we want the budget of the district to be completly transparent to the community. To cut expenses Co-op procurement agreements with surronding districts can be explored.
4. How can the district improve its curriculum to ensure students are prepared for college and/or the workforce?
The district can improve the ciriculum by updating the materials the students have. Many textbooks are up to 6 years old. The issue with haveing outdated textbooks is that the students will be learning outdated information. Another way that we can inprove education is by reviewing the current ciriculum with teachers and staff to better improve it.
5. If you are an incumbent, outline your three major contributions to the school board. If you are a challenger, outline the three contributions you hope to make during your first term.
Accountability and transparency of the school board
We do not believe the current school board has made enough of an effort to reach out and truly listen to the community at large. If elected, we would be committed to clarifying and opening up the process by which decisions are made in the school district, as well as being committed to hearing from every person that wants to have input. We believe the diversity of views in our community is not a hindrance to decision making, but rather, a strength that can be used to our benefit. We intend to make financial information more accessible by presenting the budget and financial statements in easier to understand formats and making staff available to the public to answer any questions that may arise.
Adequate staffing to student ratio
We believe teaching assistants, teachers and staff in the district are our most valuable resource and we want to give them the best opportunities to succeed. This means being committed to making sure that there is enough staff in our classrooms to meet the educational requirements of our children. Although we are faced with a difficult economic environment, we must think critically before making short-sighted decisions that will hurt the district in the long run. We want to ensure that our educational system is not compromised and stays strong for years to come.
Safe, optimal student learning environments
We believe every student has the ability to learn and we want to give them the best possibility to succeed by making sure they are in a proper learning environment. We are committed to being creative about financing air conditioning in elementary schools. We are committed to making sure our curriculum and materials are up to date and soliciting feedback from teachers and parents as to whether the curriculum is relevant. We are committed to making sure every student feels safe at school and that parents are comfortable sending their children to school. We are committed to evaluating policies regarding personal safety on and off school grounds, including on the Internet. We are committed to improving the technology infrastructure and curriculum in the district.

[casey]

this was just forwarded to me by a friend with permission to post. Wow! I think it speaks volumes about Don Moscato's character. We could all learn a life lesson here.

I'm impressed with Don and I think the author of this email would agree. The SB would be lucky to have him.



From: ***** *********
Date: March 25, 2009 4:50:44 PM CDT
To:
Subject: Follow Up to the concern re: school board election - - PLEASE READ!!!


I am impressed with a very frank & honest conversation that I just had with school board candidate, Donald Moscato. Mr Moscato took the time to call & try to personally address some of the concerns going around about him as a candidate & coach with the Patriots football.

I feel really horrible about forwarding on the email that puts Mr Moscato & Mr DiFusco in a bad light with regards to their work with the football league. It was inappropriate of me to do so. I hope you will forgive me!

I do want to inform you of my feelings after our conversation. Mr Moscato could have been really angry with me for this email, but spoke with great respect & kindness!!!

I was honest with him that many people are feeling very suspicious of the intent of this group of 4 men running together - and that I have a heightened sense of suspicion because of how the current board has so horribly handled the Gregory situation.

I was really touched by Mr Moscato's passion for the children of our district!!! He directly spoke about the districting issue & said that the issue is closed & was very passionate about explaining how he really wants to see the focus put on improving Waubonsie High School - rather than complaining about it not being as highly ranked as Neuqua. He wants very badly to immediately pass policy to protect victims such as in the Gregory situation. He is in the business of safety every day & his passion is so evident!!!

Just want to let you know - that this truly seems like a quality, concerned & energentic person. My suspicions are much more at rest after having the chance to speak with Don Moscato!!!

Hope you are having a wonderful day & getting ready for spring vacation!!!!

Sincerely,
***** *********

[doctorwho]

Mar 25, 2009 16:19:53 GMT -6 casey said:

this was just forwarded to me by a friend with permission to post. Wow! I think it speaks volumes about Don Moscato's character. We could all learn a life lesson here.

I'm impressed with Don and I think the author of this email would agree. The SB would be lucky to have him.



From: ***** *********
Date: March 25, 2009 4:50:44 PM CDT
To:
Subject: Follow Up to the concern re: school board election - - PLEASE READ!!!


I am impressed with a very frank & honest conversation that I just had with school board candidate, Donald Moscato. Mr Moscato took the time to call & try to personally address some of the concerns going around about him as a candidate & coach with the Patriots football.

I feel really horrible about forwarding on the email that puts Mr Moscato & Mr DiFusco in a bad light with regards to their work with the football league. It was inappropriate of me to do so. I hope you will forgive me!

I do want to inform you of my feelings after our conversation. Mr Moscato could have been really angry with me for this email, but spoke with great respect & kindness!!!

I was honest with him that many people are feeling very suspicious of the intent of this group of 4 men running together - and that I have a heightened sense of suspicion because of how the current board has so horribly handled the Gregory situation.

I was really touched by Mr Moscato's passion for the children of our district!!! He directly spoke about the districting issue & said that the issue is closed & was very passionate about explaining how he really wants to see the focus put on improving Waubonsie High School - rather than complaining about it not being as highly ranked as Neuqua. He wants very badly to immediately pass policy to protect victims such as in the Gregory situation. He is in the business of safety every day & his passion is so evident!!!

Just want to let you know - that this truly seems like a quality, concerned & energentic person. My suspicions are much more at rest after having the chance to speak with Don Moscato!!!

Hope you are having a wonderful day & getting ready for spring vacation!!!!

Sincerely,
***** *********

so very nice to see- someone who got caught up in forwarding one of the slanderous e-mails making the rounds without knowing or even asking if there was any truth in it. Unfortunately they are getting them from people one would think you could trust - and that is not turning out to be the case. Yet there was a good person who took the time to find out for themselves and found out something completely different.


I encourage everyone- if you get one of these nonsense e-mails- don't take it for face value...go and find out for yourself if it's true. And if like here- you find out it was lies - confront those who sent it to you and seek the source. This nonsense has to be cut off at the source - those 'authors' need to know they are risking their reputations and positions putting out falsehoods and people are going to call them on it.

[Arch]

Some believe that just because it comes from a PTSA officer that it must all be truthful.... It's nice to see that people are starting to see the 'games' being played for what they are.

[SouthernWolf]

Mar 25, 2009 17:44:03 GMT -6 Arch said:

Some believe that just because it comes from a PTSA officer that it must all be truthful.... It's nice to see that people are starting to see the 'games' being played for what they are.

I agree, this is really good to see. Kudos to the emailer to stand up, call and retract/regret the auto forward of yet another slander email from the campaign trail.

ok I cant resist: Why yes Arch; if it comes from a PTSA member it must be true!!! I beleived every word from our current administration and current board and they have never steered me astray. ;D The same holds true for PTSA and PTA officials. whatever they spoon feed me, I say yes sir/mam and may I have another? I want to ask the question why the food tastes so bad and is so smelly and why there are 100 dogs in the other room, but I am trusting....oh so trusting.

[footballmom]

Mar 25, 2009 17:10:36 GMT -6 doctorwho said:

Mar 25, 2009 16:19:53 GMT -6 casey said:

this was just forwarded to me by a friend with permission to post. Wow! I think it speaks volumes about Don Moscato's character. We could all learn a life lesson here.

I'm impressed with Don and I think the author of this email would agree. The SB would be lucky to have him.



From: ***** *********
Date: March 25, 2009 4:50:44 PM CDT
To:
Subject: Follow Up to the concern re: school board election - - PLEASE READ!!!


I am impressed with a very frank & honest conversation that I just had with school board candidate, Donald Moscato. Mr Moscato took the time to call & try to personally address some of the concerns going around about him as a candidate & coach with the Patriots football.

I feel really horrible about forwarding on the email that puts Mr Moscato & Mr DiFusco in a bad light with regards to their work with the football league. It was inappropriate of me to do so. I hope you will forgive me!

I do want to inform you of my feelings after our conversation. Mr Moscato could have been really angry with me for this email, but spoke with great respect & kindness!!!

I was honest with him that many people are feeling very suspicious of the intent of this group of 4 men running together - and that I have a heightened sense of suspicion because of how the current board has so horribly handled the Gregory situation.

I was really touched by Mr Moscato's passion for the children of our district!!! He directly spoke about the districting issue & said that the issue is closed & was very passionate about explaining how he really wants to see the focus put on improving Waubonsie High School - rather than complaining about it not being as highly ranked as Neuqua. He wants very badly to immediately pass policy to protect victims such as in the Gregory situation. He is in the business of safety every day & his passion is so evident!!!

Just want to let you know - that this truly seems like a quality, concerned & energentic person. My suspicions are much more at rest after having the chance to speak with Don Moscato!!!

Hope you are having a wonderful day & getting ready for spring vacation!!!!

Sincerely,
***** *********

so very nice to see- someone who got caught up in forwarding one of the slanderous e-mails making the rounds without knowing or even asking if there was any truth in it. Unfortunately they are getting them from people one would think you could trust - and that is not turning out to be the case. Yet there was a good person who took the time to find out for themselves and found out something completely different.


I encourage everyone- if you get one of these nonsense e-mails- don't take it for face value...go and find out for yourself if it's true. And if like here- you find out it was lies - confront those who sent it to you and seek the source. This nonsense has to be cut off at the source - those 'authors' need to know they are risking their reputations and positions putting out falsehoods and people are going to call them on it.

Casey, thank you for posting this. I hate these negative emails that people forward without finding out the truth for themselves. I have gone to every candidate forum and meet & greet to make sure I was very informed about each candidate and also be able to talk with each of them and ask some hard questions. When I say hard questions I mean about finances. I am very concerned about sustaining the quality education our children receive in District 204 without raising taxes. Tightening belts does not qualify as a plan in my book. Looking at every line item is not a plan. And please don’t tell me you want to hire a consultant. I am so done with wasting money on that. I want to hear about real ideas and a vision for what we can do in the face of some grim numbers that are coming all too soon. Each one of you should ask these candidates if they’ve ever developed a business model. Have they ever had to manage numbers bigger than what is in their 401k? Have they ever managed a large staff? Have they ever had to fire anyone? Do they know what that feels like? Have you ever had anyone, besides your family, depend on you for their livelihood? And most of all, if you had to look at a spreadsheet with our $518,000,000 in long term debt, and an annual budget that will be pushing $300,000,000 in the upcoming years, do you have a clue what you are looking at?
I have talked to Don at two of the meet & greets. (Disclaimer - even though my son was a Patriot, I had never even heard of Don before this election.) There are a lot of things I like about Don. He has real world experience managing a business and people and he gets what we’re up against here. He understands the numbers. There are some hard decisions coming up and I think he will consider them without an agenda and with what makes the most sense for the children and fiscally for the taxpayers. He is very passionate about the kids, puts my volunteer hours to shame, and I think every decision he makes will be for the benefit of all. He is intent on improving communication and reaching out to the community so parents feel involved. My impression of Don is that he is a very straight up guy and would do a good job for us on the school board.