Tecumseh school board has contested race for two seats

TECUMSEH — Three candidates are running for two four-year terms on the Tecumseh school board while two others are running unopposed for partial terms that end in 2024 in the November general election.

Cleon Broussard, Jacob S. Martinez and Joshua Mattison would be first-time board members if elected. Current board members Becky Brooks and Suzanne Moore are not seeking reelection.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Nov. 8. Absentee ballots are available from township and city clerk's offices.

The Daily Telegram sent questionnaires to the candidates. The following are their responses, lightly edited for clarity, beginning with the candidates for the four-year terms

Cleon Broussard

Age: 52.

Occupation: Physical therapist, wife and mother. I am currently a physical therapist with the Lenawee Intermediate School District working with 0- to 5-year-olds at the Trenton Hills Learning Center. Previous owner of Family Physical Therapy in Clinton for 13 years. Physical therapist at Health Specialists of Lenawee in Tecumseh and Carter Rehabilitation and Aquatic Center in Adrian.

Spouse/kids: Husband, Jude Broussard, and our five children, Airiss, Vaulee, Lailee, Gianna and Jude Paul.

Government experience: None.

Volunteer/community service experience: I have held many offices at my church, vice president of the Tecumseh Mothers of Multiples group, and treasurer at Little Indian Preschool. Also, back in my college years, I served as the treasurer for the Model United Nations in St. Louis, Missouri. Over the last 20 years, I have been an active volunteer in the schools, Tecumseh, and Lenawee County in many different capacities: Tecumseh Strategic Planning Group; Tecumseh Parent Advisory Committee; Patterson Elementary Talent Show for 15 years; lunch time reader program; math tutor; Parks and Rec coach for softball T-ball, soccer and cheerleading; adult chaperone at dances and prom; Appleumpkin volunteer; TYT/Tecumseh Players/Croswell performer and volunteer; as well as a certified U.S. Soccer Federation Referee along with my children.

Why are you running for the school board? To represent families here in Tecumseh that want excellence for our kids and our community. I want to be a part of a board whose focus is on making and enforcing policies that ensure student success, staff professionalism and raising up a community. Respect, professionalism, unity and pride!

What do you think is the main challenge facing the district and what should be done about it? Helping our district to be managed efficiently and productively at the same time as being transparent, accessible and safe are the main challenges facing all schools at this time. First, “highly effective” staff should be supported and productive and in return we should see test scores increase therefore making our district and city desired by others. Next, budgets should be reviewed and held accountable. Finally, safety measures for all students should be addressed and implemented. We must all continue to work together for our kids, schools, and community to be successful.

Why should people vote for you? Vote for me if you want "your voice" on the board as I plan to offer time before board meetings so that you have an opportunity to come in and discuss agenda items in person. After attending board meetings for over the last year, I felt this would be needed to aid in transparency as well as community input. As a professional, I will expect others to act in an appropriate manner corresponding to their job. Finally, as a mother and business owner, I plan to be diligent about budgets as we all need to be fiscally responsible and accountable.

Jacob S. Martinez

Age: 44.

Occupation: family doctor (retired).

Spouse/kids: Wife, Beanna Martinez, and kids, Caysen, 12, and Harper, 9.

Government experience: I’ve never held elected office. I have worked in an administrative capacity in health care.

Volunteer/community service: As a medical resident, I worked to develop a program addressing environmental determinants of health in low income groups. As a physician, I provided several local districts with sports physicals at no cost. I’ve volunteered at my children’s schools for activities, as well as with their reading program.

Why are you running for the school board? My public school education instilled a lifelong love of learning, and I am a passionate supporter of local schools. I believe my science-based background, experience teaching students and previous leadership roles lead me well prepared to serve as a trustee for TPS. Our district has had some instability in administrative over the last few years. I believe I can serve as a consensus builder and help reestablish a sense of trust with the community.

What do you think is the main challenge facing the district and what should be done about it? I believe the main problems facing the district result from the larger questions communities are facing today, including gun safety, addressing inequity and ensuring children the access to the skills they’ll need in the workplace. While these problems create a divide at the national level, locally, the solutions don’t need to. Creating policies that respect each student and family’s right to be themselves, and demonstrate responsiveness and intolerance to bullying, while providing evidence based education, will give our children the best opportunity to succeed.

Why should people vote for you? I believe I have a good balance of leadership skills, education background and compassion to effectively serve the community. I want to use my voice as a reflection of the interests of all students in our district and look forward to hearing from community members and working to give them the best education possible.

Joshua Mattison

Age: 44.

Occupation: Director of physical plant at Ann Arbor Public Schools.

Spouse/kids: Katie Mattison, wife of 21 years. Two children that both attended Tecumseh their entire school career and graduated from Tecumseh. They both attend college currently.

Government experience: Former director of facilities and maintenance at Tecumseh Public Schools; vice chairperson of Tecumseh Zoning Board of Appeals.

Volunteer/community service experience: Michigan School Business Officials member and certified facilities director, U.S. Green Building Council member and green classroom professional, member of Project Management Professionals, Tecumseh Center for the Arts donor and volunteer, National Society of Leadership and Success (NSLS) member, and Lambda Sigma Beta Professional Fraternity alumni member.

Why are you running for the school board? I have worked in education for the past 10 years. This time has been spent in the facilities and operations of public K-12 schools and a private college. I believe this experience in providing exceptional indoor and outdoor learning environments for staff and students gives me a unique perspective on what is needed to support the amazing teaching staff of our schools.

What do you think is the main challenge facing the district and what should be done about it? I believe that one of the biggest problems currently facing our school system is a lack of trust between the stakeholders of the community, including taxpayers, staff, school administration and the board. Our community has experienced many challenges over the last few years, including a district reorganization, changes in the Tecumseh Board of Education, a pandemic and bond proposals. It is important that we make a priority of bringing the community together to provide a solid education experience for our kids through transparent communication and feedback from those stakeholders.

Why should people vote for you? I believe there is currently a need for a candidate that can work as a team member to support our school system, provide constructive advice and be someone the community can trust to make sound decisions that are in the best interest of the students, school staff and taxpayers of Tecumseh.

The following are the responses from the candidates who are running to complete partial terms:

Mary L. Tommelein

Age: 63.

Occupation: Retired counselor and teacher.

Spouse/kids: Mark Tommelein. Two children both graduates of Tecumseh Public Schools: Melissa and Matthew.

Government experience: Appointed to Tecumseh school board in June 2021.

Volunteer/community service experience: Currently serve on the Tecumseh school board and serve on both the policy and curriculum committee. Member of Tecumseh Kiwanis Club, currently serving as vice president and help with Tecumseh Middle School’s Builders Club, member of Orchard Terrace board. Helped create Community Learning Connections and continue to volunteer for CLC. Most of my volunteer work centers on creating opportunities for youth through career exploration, job shadowing, scholarship help, connecting students to a number of community service opportunities within our community.

Why are you running for the school board? The most important reason for wanting to serve is to help ensure academic success for the students. Our community, staff and present board have worked to implement an aggressive school improvement. This plan ensures that our students have the best educational experience. We have some great ideas of how to help students excel. I want to continue to help with the mission and goals that were established.

What do you think is the main challenge facing the district and what should be done about it? There are many challenges facing the district but the one that I feel is most important is that of providing a curriculum that will prepare our students for a future career and success. We must continue to evaluate and assess and support methods of instruction that help students advance academically and make real world connections. Finding ways to best support our present staff as they work to implement academic achievement is also something that is a challenge. Teacher retainment and recruitment is an important topic to address. (Tommelein's response has been truncated due to exceeding the word limit given to each candidate.)

Why should people vote for you? The students of Tecumseh Public Schools have always been near and dear to my heart. I have had the opportunity over the last 30 years to be a teacher and counselor within the district. It has been a privilege to work with so many great students and families and watch them succeed in life! We have much to be proud of in our district, and I have tried my best to lift up those success stories. I very much want to use my experience to pay it forward and make a difference in the lives of students. (Tommelein's response has been truncated due to exceeding the word limit given to each candidate.)

Lynne Davis

Age: 48.

Occupation: Senior manager of technical strategy, planning and operations at Toyota Motor North America Research and Development.

Spouse/kids: Winn, Kailley and Molly.

Government experience: Tecumseh school board, 2018 and May 2021 to present; director, Toyota Supplier Public Advocacy Network (2018-May 2021); USMCA implementation lead, Toyota R&D (2020-May 2021).

Volunteer/community service experience: Great Lakes Women’s Business Council board of directors, January 2018-present, currently vice president; Junior League of Ann Arbor. 2002-04; Junior League of Cincinnati, 2004-08.

Why are you running for the school board? I believe public schools are the cornerstone of our communities. I believe all kids deserve equitable opportunities to become whoever they wish to be. Being a school board member is a great honor and direct opportunity to steward resources for my community, families and children.

What do you think is the main challenge facing the district and what should be done about it? Preparing students for careers of the future is a challenge for every district. In Tecumseh, we are continuing our curriculum refresh and improving our data gathering and interpretation to prioritize our resources accordingly. We are moving the right direction. But it’s not just about curriculum, it is also supporting our teachers and families in understanding the opportunities available to our students and working together as a team to make each child’s dream a reality. The opportunities could be from trades to Ph.D.s, from STEM to the arts, and everything in between.

Why should people vote for you? I am a certified Michigan school board member and continue my education in the areas of governance and state laws. I lead talent pipeline activities in our area for a major corporation and have learning and networking resources that help me share best practices to our district. I am a mother of two children in the district, both with IEPs. They motivate me to do everything in my power to provide every kid the opportunity to reach their full potential. (Davis' response has been truncated due to exceeding the word limit given to each candidate.)

This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Tecumseh school board has contested race for two seats