Beth Niznik

Education:

  • BA in Psychology, Summa Cum Laude, with honors, University of Colorado, Boulder
  • M.Ed in Educational Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle
  • M.Ed in Educational Leadership, University of Washington, Bothell
  • Mediator Certification, Seattle University

Relevant Work Experience:

  • Special Education Regional Facilitator/ Mediator with Colorado Department of Education – current position
  • Student Services Coordinator (administration) – 3 years
  • School Psychologist, Washington state – 8 years
  • Special Education teacher, Kennedy Krieger, Baltimore, MD
  • Professional Research Assistant, CU Boulder, Cognitive Neuroscience

Digital Presence:

Website: https://bethforbvsd.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bethforbvsd/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bethforbvsd/

Twitter: @BethforBVSD

Q: Why are you running, and why do you deserve a seat on the BVSD Board?

While I bring over 15 years as an educator to the board—having worked preschool to high school—and experience in the classroom, building, district, and state levels, it was my role as a parent and community member that inspired me to run. I am running for school board because I believe that we are all in this together and what happens on the board truly matters. The school board decides if our kids go to school, how we interpret polices, etc. These decisions have both immediate and long-term impacts on our kids today and on our community tomorrow. I want to be part of the solution in these difficult times.

I bring an informed and broad perspective to the school board. I have sat in almost every seat at the table as a teacher, administrator, and now as a parent. I have a strong background and understanding of the challenges faced by our students with special educational needs. I am a systemic thinker and an expert question asker. I am committed to being a thoughtful, collaborative board member who asks questions, relies upon the data to guide our decisions, and seeks out community voices.

BVSD District E

Q – You are running to represent a geographic district, though you would be part of a board that oversees the entire BVSD district if you win. What are some top concerns or needs in your specific district?

While I would represent District E, I firmly believe that I will be a board member for all of BVSD. Within District E, some of my greatest concerns include:

  • Declining enrollment districtwide
  • COVID learning loss
  • Closing the opportunity gap
  • Substitute shortage

Q – COVID-19 has been an all-consuming challenge for schools in general. In your opinion, is the current “Back Together BVSD Reintroduction Plan” sufficient to provide the greatest level of safety for all at this time? Should parents, students, faculty and staff feel reasonably confident about COVID-19 safety within BVSD?

I am pro in-person learning because I believe it is overwhelmingly the best place for our kids to learn and have their social-emotional needs met. Accordingly, I support the district’s goal of in-person learning five days per week. I support the district’s partnership with local health experts and continued efforts to follow science. If wearing a mask means my daughter can go to school, then I support in-person learning with layered measures of protection until otherwise directed by health experts.

COVID has created anxiety and profound uncertainty in budgeting and in programming. Moving forward we need to have a good relationship with the state to facilitate seamless support, open communication with teachers and parents to best navigate this together, and school board leadership that can be responsive in these unprecedented times.

Q – What are your top priority strategies to boost or maintain BVSD’s educational performance levels?

Educational performance is multifaceted and complex, but some of my strategies would include:

  • Invest in people: attract, retain, and hire the best and most diverse staff possible. We need to offer competitive wages and create an environment that is inclusive to all.
  • Support policies that seek to narrow the achievement and opportunity gap at both the elementary and secondary levels by prioritizing engagement for students who have been excluded from our AP classes, offer enrichment opportunities (e.g. high-intensity tutoring), and improve access to dual enrollment programs

Q – Do you believe BVSD has done a good job managing educational achievement gaps? What can BVSD do to narrow the gaps?

I believe that BVSD has made strides in narrowing the achievement gap by examining the sources of disproportionate discipline and greater parent engagement, but we still have work to do. We need to be diligent in our work as a board to support policies that increase engagement of students historically-marginalized from our advanced classes, offer enrichment opportunities, improve opportunities to access dual language enrollment programs, and revisit our bullying policies. Additionally, we need to be working in coordination with our community partners to address widespread and systemic issues, including transportation, mental health, and affordable housing.

Q: What is your take on the use of or reliance on standardized testing in today’s educational environment, and would you favor changes?

I believe that standardized assessments offer a data point and have their place in our education system, but these tests are often held up as the only data point of student learning. This is problematic. I believe that we need to be engaging in formative assessment throughout the learning process. This provides ongoing feedback to both student and teacher, where instruction can be adjusted, and progress can be readily monitored.

Q – Students may have suffered learning losses due to the pandemic. How can BVSD help prevent these losses from getting worse, and/or help affected students catch back up?

The pandemic took away so much from all of us. It’s hard not to focus on the loss, but I have been thinking about what opportunities might exist as we build back our lives. We have an opportunity as an educational community to bring intentionality to our work like we never had before. We get to decide what we put back in place and how we reimagine the educational experience moving forward. With that in mind, I think we need to leverage how we engage parents and community members in our schools. We will need increase differentiated and small group instruction in our classrooms, create afterschool enrichment opportunities, and incentivize student learning through greater home and school collaboration.

Q – Do BVSD students have access to the best educational resources when it comes to understanding race relations in the United States? This question is not necessarily about Critical Race Theory, but would you favor taking a fresh look at BVSD’s curriculum or approach to race education, and why or why not?

I am absolutely in favor of taking a fresh look at BVSD’s curriculum and approach to race relations education. I think BVSD’s work in equity is better than many other parts of the state, but I think it is undeniable that we have issues of race that need to be addressed. I support rewriting the narrative to represent history more accurately. As a board member, I would rely upon the recommendations of the Equity Council to guide us in policy and curriculum development.

Q: BVSD is a big organization, with lots of people involved, lots of transportation needs, and many facilities. What are a few strategies you’d support to reduce BVSD’s carbon footprint? 

I think reducing the carbon footprint for BVSD requires coordination between the district and the city in the area of transportation. I would support electrification of our buses, incentivizing alternative modes of transportation (e.g., bike to school), and finding novel ways to increase the efficiency of our current transportation infrastructure.