Skagway City School Board

2008-2009

School Board

Darren Belisle, President
Christine Ellis, Vice-President
Chris Maggio, Treasurer
Robert Murphy, Clerk
Joanne Korsmo, Member

Board Goals

Encourage academic excellence for staff and students

College readiness, study skills, advanced placement and honors
Continuation of the Foreign Language program

Ensure the continued improvement of the school environment

Student pride in school and community

Continue to improve school/community communications

Develop student community service
Open up channels of communication through community and media
Develop website

Examine ways to increase enrollment

Committee Assignments

Policy - Korsmo and Murphy
Evaluation - Entire Board
Negotiations - Ellis and Murphy
Curriculum - Belisle and Maggio
Voc. Ed / Technology Advisory - Murphy and Maggio
Legislative Liaison - Korsmo
Child / Youth Advocate - Belisle
Staff relations - Murphy and Ellis

School Board Members

Darren Belisle

President

Age: 40
Occupation: Lineman, Alaska Power and Telephone
Education: College
Years in Skagway: 15
Public offices held: School board last several years
Interests, hobbies: My family, fishing and camping

The reason I want to be on the school board is the children of Skagway. The children are our most valuable asset, and without the great education we give them here in Skagway where would they be. I want to be able to continue to offer them that ability to learn, and we need to find ways to keep the funding to keep offering this. We need to find a way to keep Dr. Dickens at the school, he has been a HUGE player in bringing our school to where it is. He puts in many hours looking for grants and other monies to keep things rolling. He has put the Skagway School District on the map for us, as we are starting to get national recognition. People are starting to look at the school as a reason to move to Skagway which in turn helps us all. I want to keep up the fight for our school. Enrollment issues are a huge issue going on right now. We need to find a way to bring people to Skagway and want to enroll their children in our school. If numbers do not go up we are looking at cutbacks at the school. WE DO NOT WANT THAT. It would be nice to have public input at the meetings to help brainstorm ideas to help this happen.

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Christine Ellis

Vice-President

Age: 44
Occupation:Landscaping
Education: High school, 2 years college for business
Years in Skagway: 44
Public offices held: School board, 9 years
Interests, hobbies: Family, gardening, learning

I enjoy the students at the school and being involved in different aspects of their education. We have an outstanding student body and I’m proud to offer them support, at the board level and on a personal level, to assist them in becoming successful individuals.

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Chris Maggio

Treasurer

Age: 57
Occupation: Pilot
Education: AA degree
Years in Skagway: 14 ( 5 years full time res.)
Public offices held: School Board member
Interests, hobbies: Guitar, woodworking, metal fabrication

My name is Chris Maggio and I’m running for a School Board seat. I have been a member of the Skagway City School Board for the last four years and would love to continue to serve this school and to give something back to this community that is very dear to me. My background for this position was working for the Los Angeles Unified School District in the maintenance division in my younger years and my current position on this board here in Skagway.

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Robert Murphy

Clerk

Age: 36
Occupation: Shore Excursion Provider
Education: 6 Years College, Computer Science, Music
Years in Skagway: 30
Public offices held: City Council, ER Elks Lodge #431
Interests, hobbies: Family, music, fishing

I believe that any community with a great education system will prosper. I would like to help make our school one that attracts families and insures longevity through outstanding achievement, fundamental values, and a true sense of community.

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Joanne Korsmo

Member

Age: 49
Occupation: Station manager, Wings of Alaska
Education: 3 years of college
Years in Skagway: 23
Public offices held: Two terms on School Board, Library Board
Interests, hobbies: Hiking, reading

My reasons for running for school board are simple. I have two children attending Skagway School. They are getting a wonderful education with qualified teachers, strong curriculum, and the latest technology tools offered. I have worked closely with my fellow school board members and Dr. Dickens the past few years tackling many problems and challenges facing our district. We have seen some exciting new programs emerge, such as Drama, Debate and Forensics, Physical Education PEP grant, and Foreign Language Learning with technology equipment in place to keep foreign language studies alive in our small school. These programs were made possible by the hard work and dedication of our Superintendent Dr. Dickens and also the support and vision of our school board. My goals would be to keep a few of these programs alive and reinstate music back into the school curriculum. Serving on the Skagway School Board has been a very rewarding experience and I would like the opportunity to learn more and hopefully contribute more.

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