THE FOLLOWING IS A NEWS-GAZETTE STORY BY JENNIFER BAILEY
DANVILLE — Danville School District 118 has three candidates and two write-in candidates running for the four open board seats in the April 1 election.
Candidates are current board member Darlene Halloran, former board member Christopher Easton, Toni Kimberline Towne and write-ins Tom Halloran and Harsha Gurujal. Three current board members in the four four-year terms up for election on the school board are not seeking re-election — President Randal Ashton (a 20-year member), Tyson Parks and Shannon Schroeder.
Election questionnaires were sent to the candidates.
Christoper Easton, 41, of Candlewick Lane, is married to Melanie (LCPC Alliance Counseling and Coaching) and they have a son, Isaiah (first year at University of Pennsylvania), and daughter, Bailee Easton (sophomore at Danville High School). Education: Grand Valley High School (Orwell, Ohio); Mount Vernon Nazarene University, Mount Vernon, Ohio; Bachelor of Arts, Nazarene Theological Seminary, Kansas City, Mo.; Master of Divinity. He’s employed as Illinois Department of Corrections chaplain at the Danville Correctional Center, Danville Area Community College course instructor (Literature and Philosophy) — part time and interim Pastor Grace Community Church of the Nazarene — part time. He was a school board member from Oct. 2021 to May 2023. He’s current treasurer with the DHS Choir Music Boosters.
Darlene Halloran, 71, of Denmark Road, is married to Tom and they have three grown children and seven grandchildren. Education: Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Syracuse University. She’s retired, and this would be her third term on the school board. She’s also worked on numerous political campaigns.
Toni Kimberlin Towne, 57, of Rue Conti St., is married to Curtis and they have three daughters. Education: Schlarman HS Fr; Danville HS So – Sr; DACC Associates of Applied Sciences (Accounting & Business Administration); Illinois State University Bachelor of Science (Marketing). She’s currently a stay-at-home mom/grandma and a volunteer. She’s currently serving on the Danville Public Library Foundation Board and Danville Country Club Board of Directors.
Thomas Halloran, 74, of Denmark Road, is married to Darlene, who was a counselor at District 118 for several years and an incumbent on the school board for past eight years. They have three children, all DHS graduates with all of their primary and secondary education at Danville public schools. Five of their seven grandchildren are in Danville schools, from two high school seniors to preschool. Education: Biology B.S. at St. Bonaventure University, Doctor of Medicine at State University of New York Syracuse, Residency Internal Medicine US Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, Va., Board Certified Fellow American College of Physicians, staff physician Naval hospitals Guam and Bremerton, WA, Commander, Medical Corps, U.S. Navy, 13 years active duty, Navy Achievement Medal. He’s an adult medicine physician with Carle Health, Danville Carle at the Riverfront, for 40 years.
He says he’s not served on a school board. However, “there is a long family tradition and I feel it is my turn. My wife Darlene is an eight-year incumbent and community involved citizen. My dad, and both my grandfathers, had in aggregate over 50 years on the school board in our home school district in Western New York.” Tom also is founder of Trees for Danville, notable for having planted thousands of trees in Danville, and associated with Danville Soccer since before the soccer complex was even an idea.
Harsha Gurujal, 62, of Walnut Street, is married to Susie Gurujal Their four children are graduates of DHS. Education: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign graduate with a B.S. in Basic Sciences and Speech Communication. He’s worked on a post graduate degree in marketing and in social work. He’s taught at DACC in the Speech, Math and Adult Education departments. Employment: Manager with Outback Steakhouse in Champaign. He said he has political aspirations, but he’s lost every election he’s been in. He’s served on several boards in the Danville community including with the 708 Board, United Way, Peer Court and YMCA. He’s an ambassador for the ALS Association.
What’s your top three priorities for Danville School District 118?
Easton: 1) Find more ways for the community to connect with the board. Community forums are one way to do this. 2) School boards monitor performance. It would be my priority to measure our efforts to help students better. School boards can help imagine a better future for our students and delegate authority to people who know what it takes to meet our goals. 3) I commit to helping the board take responsibility for itself. We can all do better as board of education members.
Darlene Halloran: 1. Hire a new superintendent. 2. Work to improve the evaluative measures of success of our students. 3. Retain, regain, and hire a full compliment of staff.
Towne: My top three priorities for the school district will be number one finding a new leader in a superintendent that will lead us out of the mirky waters we are currently in. We need a leader that can evaluate our demographics, our strengths and our weaknesses and then has the tools and training to organize and implement a plan that will reach each student and push them to do their best. We must improve on all aspects of the education system and make it a goal to at least meet or exceed the standards of the state.
Number two would be communicating clearly with each family so that they know they are a stakeholder in their student’s education. Including and expecting parents to visit the student’s school at the beginning of the year so they can meet the teachers and principals is an important first step.
A third priority is not ignoring our shortage of teachers for upper-level classes at the high school level. Just as we need to make sure the lowest student is being attended to we also need to make sure the highest learners are being challenged and offered the most rigorous schedules.
Thomas Halloran: Hire a community-grounded enthusiastic public-facing superintendent with roots in the area who is fiscally savvy and focused on excellence and success for all of our students and staff. Establish that we are fiscally sound with a sensible sustainable direction. Hire when possible people with local roots and an intent to make a long-term commitment to the schools and to the community.
Gurujal: My top three priorities for District 118 are: 1. Find a superintendent who is willing to put our teachers, our students and our community above their own aspirations. I want a superintendent who is willing to take us from a failing school district to a top 25% in the state school district. My ideal candidate will have a proven track record of improvement at another district and he, or she, needs to regain the trust of the teachers and the community.
2. Teachers and students need to have a safe environment that is conducive to learning. Fighting, disrespectful behavior, assaulting teachers, there’s no room for that in school and people who cannot abide by rules of decorum have no place in District 118. As a board, I want teachers and students to know that we support and protect them.
3. I want to increase teacher staffing and retention and decrease the administrative side of education. I want more social workers who can come up with solutions for our increasing disadvantaged student body. I want to have more vocational programs and take the focus off of getting into college and place the focus on being a productive member of society. I want community leaders to mentor students. I want community service to become part of the requirement for graduation. I want to encourage and reward parental involvement in the district.
What are you looking for in a new superintendent?
Easton: I would be excited to find a leader with a clear, student-centered educational vision. I hope to see someone with strategic planning experience who can improve academic outcomes. District 118 needs a leader who has shown they can motivate and inspire teachers, staff and students.
Darlene Halloran: One who is invested in the community of Danville and most especially invested in the successful education of all of our students. I would like to have someone who can build morale in our staff and return the pride in our schools. We want to again be the flagship institution for our community.
Towne: I believe our new superintendent should have a solid background with matching integrity. We need a leader who naturally and willingly leads by example daily. The candidate should be willing to communicate openly and honestly while engaging with staff, students and parents. A minimum of 10 years of classroom experience would be desirable but not demanded, but a leader who has not experienced the daily demands and challenges of a classroom will not have the insight to navigate a district through these same challenges.
And while I think reaching our students with teaching techniques is more important than state scores, I know our state scores need to improve. This person should be able to articulate and draft a plan with a vision for improving learning in our district. The candidate needs to be adaptable and accessible.
This person should plan on attending school and extra-curricular events along with their daily activities. They need to be personable and approachable and be ready to assimilate into the culture of D118 where we support each other and work together for a common goal that benefits our entire community and not just our district.
Thomas Halloran: Implement what I talked about in the previous question.
Gurujal: Our next superintendent should have practical and successful experience leading another school district from a low status to a higher status. They should have a “nothing is written in stone” attitude which means that there shouldn’t be a “one approach fits all” mentality. They have to want to get to know our teachers and our students before they make changes to the system. Our next candidate should understand that they work for our students through our teachers – their goal should be to better the lives of our students by utilizing the strengths of our teachers and our community.
I want our next leader to be a visible part of our community, one who shows up for community events like Summertime in Downtown Danville, the Peer Court Auction or movie night at the Fischer Theater, one who doesn’t just take from us but who gives back more to Danville and lastly, one who wants to leave Danville better than they found it.
How will you be an involved school board member?
Darlene Halloran: I will continue to do my homework on issues, challenge any improper issues and attend as many school activities as I can. I will be transparent in my actions and be open to any community effort or concern.
Towne: As a member of the school board, my primary responsibilities will be to attentively listen and observe the activities and developments within the district. I will try to regularly visit all the schools and meet all the principals. This could be on any random Wednesday or Thursday to see what an average day in that school is like.
I will also attend special events such as awards days or assemblies for the student bodies as well as some extracurricular events. I have been a past volunteer and donation organizer for the Christmas/Holiday stores at NRMS, and most recently SVUE, and plan to continue that role and even expand this extremely rewarding program into other schools.
Just as importantly will be keeping up to speed on current board and education issues locally, statewide and nationally in the news and in publications. And of course, monitoring the progress of the goals and tasks the superintendent will have in moving our district forward. I will consider my work on the board to be a full-time job and will therefore invest the time and energy needed accordingly.
Thomas Halloran: Learn the nuances of the job and do my homework.
Gurujal: As a board member, I vow to meet with teachers, principals, parents, librarians, custodians, food service workers and students every week. I plan on visiting a different school weekly and work in food service so I can see what we’re doing for our students and our staff.
I want to communicate with principals and share their needs and their ideas with the board. In my business experience, the people at the top know very little about making life better for the people who do the actual work. If I want make things better in our district, I need to get the input of the people on the front line doing the work.
Why should people vote for you? And any other comments?
Easton: I have prior board of education experience and promise to help our board of education imagine a better future.
Darlene Halloran: I ask for your vote because I have the experience necessary for a successful board member who can lead in the efforts to create a positive environment and outcome. I believe that I have been receptive to concerns and issues brought before me. I have a vested interest in this district as I believe that Tom and I raised three children who were beneficiaries of the system and are now successful in their careers. I want to provide the same opportunity to my five grandchildren who reside here.
Towne: I have been involved in D118 since 2007 as a mom of three students. I have seen the good and the bad in our district. I have spoken up and stepped up when things needed attention. I have done a lot behind the scenes and have discovered that doing what I do and having a vote is the best way for me to have a positive impact on the district and the community.
I am a good listener, researcher, and advocate for those needing help. You will find that when I share information it is factual and from reliable sources.
I find it rewarding to help any student gain a little confidence and to help our community gain self-respect along the way. I believe all of the candidates have a very strong desire to better the school district and the community and there is not a bad vote to be cast this election. Good luck to all.
Thomas Halloran: I bring a five-decade legacy of community service. I know that school success is community success, and am eager to get started.
Gurujal: I can give you a dissertation and I can give you a simple answer. The simple answer is, the people who have served on the board up till recently, have betrayed our community. Thankfully, two of them are not seeking reelection but some are. Not only is one seeking reelection, she’s also enlisted her husband to run as a write-in candidate.
I have respect for both the wife and the husband. Each has given their time and their finances to multiple organizations in our community. Without a doubt, Danville is fortunate to have them live here. However, the previous board allowed Dr. Geddis to run unchecked for years. They tolerated her absence from community functions, they gave her an incomprehensible contract which will result in our community paying her a substantial amount of money to leave, in almost every scenario, they settled rather than fight her.
If you want more of the same because you believe they have experience, then, by all means, you know who to vote for. I’m not that person. I revel in change and challenge, I question, I seek to understand, I want the why before I give the yes. Most importantly, my philosphy is, I am an employee of the community who is tasked with making our lives better. The community is my boss.
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