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: Kyle Zelazny

Party affiliation: Republican

Family information: I have three younger brothers (25, 23 and 20), one of which recently moved in with me, and my parents live in Avon.

Primary occupation: Attorney

Previous political experience: None 

Why are you running for office? Because although I truly do respect them, I feel the older generations have let my generation down, and on the flip side, my generation needs to start getting involved in addressing issues facing our community. Step one is getting involved myself.

What issue(s) are your primary area of focus? I’ve been bothered by the actions of the Democrat majority on the BOE over the last couple of years – from curbing public comment to creeping politicization to violating their own BOE policies when its beneficial for the majority’s agenda. 

West Hartford Public Schools, like districts throughout the country, has had the benefit of ESSER funds for additional services and staff to assist students with learning loss and other pandemic-related issues, but those funds will soon disappear. How should the BOE prioritize which, if any, services to continue to maintain and to fund in the future? This is an interesting question, because from my perspective, the BOE should already have explained to the townspeople an answer for this as they were well aware these funds would be disappearing. Having a finance committee that has more than a couple months’ crunch during budget season to address these financial issues would also go a long way. At the end of the day the BOE and the community need to have a transparent discussion on how funds can be allocated to identify now-unnecessary services or expenses, and preserve all other existing services, ideally without necessitating yet another tax increase.

What is your opinion of the role of parents in shaping curriculum for West Hartford Public Schools? The role of parents is crucial in shaping the curriculum for West Hartford Public Schools.  I am a product of public schools and a believer in public schools, the teachers and staff, but the children belong to the parents, and if aspects parents find aspects of a curriculum objectionable for whatever reason they have a right to come before the BOE and speak about it, whether or not it’s on the agenda (this is contrary to the belief of the current majority BOE – see their changes curbing public comment).

What do you feel is the biggest challenge facing West Hartford Public Schools today, and how do you plan to address it if elected? I think the biggest challenge facing WHPS today is in preparing our students for the demands of the real world. During my time in high school from 2006 to 2009 there was a de-emphasis on academics and encouraging true critical and independent thinking, and I feel like this is even more true today. If elected I would fight to 1) undo the BOE’s changes to public comment and implement ways to foster even more transparency and public comment 2) create a curriculum committee with greater parental involvement and 3) create a finance committee that would allow for a more robust discussion of how we allocate our nearly $200 million BOE budget.

Also, while declining academics existing prior to the COVID shutdowns, studies show the decline was exacerbated due to them. While discrimination is a strong word, I also believe the younger generations were treated incredibly unfairly throughout the entire COVID ordeal and thus would not support any shutdowns or suspensions of academic or extracurricular facilities for our students.

What do you feel differentiates you from the candidates from other parties also running for this position? I am 31 years old and trust me, there are plenty of other things I’d rather be doing than running for BOE right now. However, watching what’s going on in town (and society more generally) over the last 7 or 8 years, and I can’t help but 1) feel incredibly concerned about the direction things are headed in and the constant politicization of everything, and 2) feel that the older generations aren’t really going to be able to turn things around, whether due to being in politics for the wrong reasons or just becoming too partisan for either side over the years.

I’m not saying I have all the answers (I don’t), but I’m not owned or controlled by anyone, I’m not afraid to disagree with and debate people in my own party (or any party) and I’ll make decisions based on community input and my values and principles, to the best of my ability.

Anything else you would like to share relevant to earning votes on Nov. 7? I believe West Hartford needs to give new faces a chance to bring fresh perspectives and ideas to the table. The constant politicization of anything and everything needs to stop. Ideally, we as a town eventually return to a Washingtonian citizen-servant model where every election cycle both parties have a handful of new people wanting to rotate in to serve in public office for a term or two, rather than the same ol’s who desire to be perpetual power-players and influence brokers in town. I hope you agree and if elected I look forward to making civics and government not just more transparent and accountable, but interesting, engaging – and maybe even fun – again.

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