We-Ha.com is offering our readers the opportunity to meet the candidates running in the Nov. 7, 2023 municipal election. 

Compiled by Ronni Newton

We-Ha.com is offering our readers the opportunity to “Meet the Candidate” – designed to help them get to know the candidates running for office in the 2023 municipal election.

Identical questionnaires have been sent to all candidates, and each profile received has been submitted directly to We-Ha.com by the candidate or the candidate’s campaign management. The responses have not been edited but have been formatted to match our publication style. Questions left blank have been deleted.

As profiles are received, they will be published on We-Ha.com under the “Government” tab. We-Ha.com is not making endorsements of any political candidates but we are publishing this information in order to assist voters in being informed and prepared when they go to the polls on Nov. 7.

If you are a candidate and wish to submit a profile, please return it by email to Ronni Newton at [email protected] as soon as possible.

BOARD OF EDUCATION CANDIDATE

Name: Kristyn Rosen-Jacobs

Party affiliation: A Connecticut Party (Democrat)

Family information: Kristyn moved to West Hartford in 2018 from New Jersey. She is married to Ross and the couple have two children in a blended family – Jack, 12, and Arielle, 8. They also have two dogs, Lola and Lucy. In her spare time, Kristyn loves to read, cook and travel, and is dabbling in the world of knitting.

Primary occupation: Kristyn is employed as a Learning and Development consultant in Human Resources for Capital One Financial. Her offices are based in Manhattan.

Previous political experience: Kristyn is a city appointed commissioner on the West Hartford Human Rights Commission and has previously sat on the Board for several private schools in New Jersey.

Other relevant experience that may be related to your desire to serve the community, and further qualifies you for the office you are seeking: I come to this electoral season with 18 years of experience as a public school teacher and curriculum expert. Now in a new role at Capital One Financial, I am still activating my teaching in human resources and learning and development. I had extraordinary experiences as a student as well and I did not know that, years later, I would still be calling on these moments to guide my practice as an educational advocate and leader. Today, it is that same visionary approach I was raised on that is vital to success in public education. It must exist, regardless of the social, emotional, and inequitable hurdles educators face today. It was those relationships that left an indelible mark on my heart – the same ones I plan to build as a democratic and fair member of the Board.

Why are you running for office? Today, we face what feels like insurmountable walls. We swirl through an educational tornado, impacted by the divisiveness of standardized testing. We brace ourselves to help children overcome inequity, growing like viral weeds out of every corner. We raise our fists in solidarity against the palpable tensions of a renewed language of hateful racism. We soothe the after-effects of the Pandemic that still affect our community in devastating ways. Despite the height of this masonry, I want to collaboratively create a school culture that stares in the face of this adversity and smashes it to pieces. This is why I am running for the Board of Education.

What issue(s) are your primary area of focus? What makes a school district great? Just as large, beautiful vessels don’t sail alone, schools and their districts require leaders full of tenacity, patience, and empathy to sail into that sea. Integrity drives them forward. Passion drives them forward. Embracing the art of delegation drives them forward. Relationships drive them forward. Educational leaders not only serve as administrators but truly are the stewards of the profession by spearheading and supporting the teachable moment through educational advocacy. They are mentors for staff and champions for children. Extraordinary leadership makes a school district great. But, empowered students make a school district great as well. Phenomenal and loving families make a school district great. A sound and observant board of education that listens makes a school district great. One cannot exist without the others. Supporting our extraordinary faculty and staff is a primary area of focus for me.

What do you feel differentiates you from the candidates from other parties also running for this position? Unique to other candidates, I am running as a Democrat under the A Connecticut Party. I feel that the role of the Board of Education should NOT be one of political voice, but rather a collective voice that fairly represents students and their caregivers, as well as our superior faculty.

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