K. Gutierrez, Carrie - Milan Area Schools
Are you an incumbent?
Yes
Brief Intro of Candidate
My name is Carrie K. Gutierrez. I was appointed to the Milan Area Schools Board of Education in April 2023 to fill a seat left empty due to a resignation. The term of that seat expires this year, so I am honored and proud to run for the seat so that I can continue working to be an advocate for students, parents, employees, and all stakeholders of Milan Area Schools.
In addition to my current role on the Milan Area School Board, I wear many hats. I am the proud mom of two Milan Area Schools (MAS) middle school students. While not native Milan-ites, my husband and I moved here in 2013 seeking a small, close-knit community with great schools. Every day, we are thankful for living here and recount our move as one of the best decisions we have ever made. In addition to being a proud MAS parent, I am also a proud MAS spouse. My husband has worked for the District since 2017, first starting as a lunchroom helper at Paddock and now working as a paraprofessional with experience in Paddock, Symons, and the Middle School.
For the past 10 years, I have been actively involved in my children’s schools through PTO leadership, and more recently, on the District-wide Sex Education Advisory Board (SEAB) where I served as a health care professional representative and now, for the past 16 months as a Board of Education Trustee. Beyond my MAS-related service, I am an active community member and have dedicated my time to Aid in Milan, the Girl Scout troops in Milan, and the City of Milan’s Parks and Recreation Commission.
In my professional life, I am an Associate Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Michigan, School of Public Health and Director of the Center for Midlife Science. I hold a Masters’ degree in Public Health and a Doctorate in Epidemiologic Sciences. I teach at the undergraduate, masters’ and doctoral level. My research program includes several studies funded by the National Institutes of Health investigating healthy aging and chronic disease prevention.
Endorsements
Pending
Top financials Contributors
Website and social media links
Pending
How would you engage and include parents, caregivers, community members and students in decision-making in your district around things like curriculum, budgeting and district policy?
Engagement with stakeholders - including parents, caregivers, students, employees, and community members is critical when considering critical decisions. To do this, I believe in exercising active listening skills, diplomatic discussions, and informed conversations are critical. Making decisions is not something I take lightly, and as a member of the Board of Education, I am especially sensitive that my decisions have wide-ranging impacts on many levels of our community. As such, I know that every vote and decision must be approached with care and caution.
To do so, I rigorously prepare to fully understand the issue at hand. This includes active listening with stakeholders. Active listening requires not just hearing what one is saying, but consciously demonstrating participation in the conversation (body language, verbal cues), paraphrasing what the other person is saying so that you can ensure you understand their viewpoint, asking clarifying questions to reduce confusion or misunderstanding, refraining from judgement of their viewpoint, and summarizing the key points of the conversation.
I believe active listening is a key tenant of diplomatic discussions. Looking at our society today, we are constantly inundated with reports of how divided and polarized we are as a populous. Despite our differences, however, I believe that there is more we agree on than disagree. This is the premise of diplomatic discussions; by approaching conversations in this way and exercising active listening, I seek to identify those areas of “middle ground” valued by all stakeholders. In making decisions, I leverage points of common agreement and understanding as the foundation of my decisions and the way in which I communicate those decisions to stakeholders.
In situations where I may be asked to make decisions on issues for which I do not have the full range of experience or understanding needed, I express humility at the limits of my knowledge and experience, and actively seek out those with important expertise to contribute. When learning from those with additional expertise, I am committed to the accurate and productive dissemination of information with stakeholders through informed conversations, and cognizant that I must responsibly use this information to guide my decision making.
What are your thoughts on school discipline and the way it is exercised in your school district? What are your thoughts on restorative practices?
I believe that appropriate and consistently applied discipline and utilized without bias is an important aspect of expectation setting for student development and necessary to maintain functional, thriving school environments. In my time on the Board of Education in Milan Area Schools, I have worked closely with our administrators, families, and fellow Board members to address individual cases of disciplinary concerns and to identify tools to help us mitigate future potential issues. In terms of restorative practices, I believe that these processes can be healing, skill building, and productive in many disciplinary situations. For these practices to function well, both parties must be willing to participate, must engage fully and honestly, and the process should be guided by a trained staff member. However, there are many situations where restorative practices are not appropriate to fully address a situation, and so usage of such strategies (in concert with other strategies) should be considered on a situational basis.
What are your thoughts on how to improve student mental health
Across the country, we see the importance of mental health for overall well-being and the need for resources to take care of one's mental health. Like physical health, strategies to address mental health must be multi-pronged and implemented as part of ongoing wellness strategies rather than launched only in response to crises. Specifically, we must move beyond thinking about the mental health responses for individual students and instead prioritize supporting the mental health of students as part of our core mission. While school districts are not the appropriate avenue to provide mental health therapy or treatment, the institution of schools can play a vital role in supporting student mental health. Such strategies may include:
* Promote mental health education and awareness. This includes normalizing discussions about mental health, and creating environments of belonging and trust so that students feel safe when talking about their own mental health, as well as supporting others.
* Ensure access to mental health resources for all students. In the past several years, many schools including Milan Area Schools, have made important investments increasing access to mental health resources. This includes things like having access to additional behavioral specialists and social workers, resources for families to receive information about local mental health resources and therapists, and additional support staff and safe spaces for students to utilize as part of their mental health strategy. Unfortunately, cuts to mental health and student safety in this year's state education budget jeopardize many of these investments so it is vital for all of us to continue to advocate for the financial resources needed for students to continue to offer this support to all students.
* Help students manage interpersonal relationships and academic pressures. Students, across all levels, experience multiple stressors that may impact their mental health. Schools can take an active role in promoting mental health by helping students develop the skills needed to manage these changing roles and responsibilities and by working to not place undue pressures or hurdles on students as they traverse their education.
What are your thoughts on ways to improve Black student achievement in your district and in Michigan schools overall?
As Trustees of a school district, one of our key responsibilities is to set long- and short-term goals for the district and to approve activities to help achieve these goals. This includes goals that may be focused on certain groups of students, including but not only limited to Black students. School Boards must regularly evaluate progress through stated goals and work to identify those students who may not be receiving the full set of supports and resources needed to foster their success. In the case of students who are from diverse racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic backgrounds, it is important that they see themselves in the representation of staff and other adults and that they (and all students) learn through exposure to educational resources including books, narratives, and imagery, that celebrate the diversity of identity, experiences, and expectations. Beyond these specific examples, school boards must broadly support strategies to make progress towards stated goals; this may include professional development activities, student development activities, and investing in key initiatives to help prepare our students to live and work in a diverse democratic society.
What are your thoughts on how to ensure that all students and their families, regardless of race, gender identity, sexuality, disability, religion, income status, etc., feel safe and included in your district?
No child or family should feel unwelcomed or unsafe in any environment, particularly their educational environment. Beyond important strategies to make students and families feel welcome broadly (such as welcome events, meet & greets, personalized assistance from staff), we must consider the importance of ensuring that all feel welcome regardless of their unique identities.
The US population is rapidly diversifying, particularly among younger persons. As these individuals are the next generation of our American citizenry and leaders, it is critical that we provide the education needed for all to work and thrive in this diverse nation. Central to this is the need for us to acknowledge and understand the diversity of experiences present among students and families, and to encourage the development of skills needed to thrive in a diverse educational community. Active and respectful discussion is the cornerstone of democracy and so opportunities for discussion-based learning provides students the time and space to learn about others experiences, and to become tolerant, compassionate and active members of a diverse community.
The uniqueness of educational institutions offer supports such as meals, safe people and places, and physical and emotional support, to help make schools a safe place for students and families. Availability of such resources to students and families is an important way to help all feel welcomed and included. For these supports to be most effective, it is critical that district staff and leaders create inclusive, culturally-competent environments and model good citizenship by treating others fairly and without prejudice. As such, districts must model dignity and respect and commit to shared decision making and inclusion of all individuals and opinions. Doing so can fosters inclusion and belonging, and displays a welcoming environment to all, regardless of their situation or background.
What are your thoughts on how to recruit and retain staff, particularly staff of color, in your district with regard to pay, benefits, and working conditions?
One of the most pressing challenges facing school districts is the nation-wide educator shortage that threatens the long-term success of our district and students. In particular, the recruitment and retention of staff, particularly of staff whose identities may not be highly represented in a district, is especially challenging. Understanding the the unique needs and challenges of diverse staff is critical, and so districts must commit to listening and respecting educator feedback and expertise. Because educators across diverse backgrounds have experience, perspectives, and expertise that may be unique, it is important that their voices are heard and that space and resources are made available for their important contributions to be included and celebrated. One particularly successful strategy, first launched in Washtenaw County and now gaining popularity across the country is the "grow your own" training program for educators, including those that may be under-represented. Individuals from groups under-represented in the education work force may have experienced a variety of factors that have limited their opportunity to obtain the training and education needed to become a certified teacher. Thus, programs such as the one through the WISD have been extremely successful in the growth and development of staff committed to working and staying locally. The program, which identifies promising educators within a local district (such as paraprofessionals or other support staff), provides financial, social, and career development support to these individuals while they pursue their college degree in education. This is just one example of the creativity and agility needed to expand our education work force and invest in a wide variety of individuals.