Five candidates are on the Nov. 8 ballot seeking three, four-year terms on the Van Buren Public Schools Board of Education.
Andrew Frazier
Andrew Frazier, 46, of Van Buren Township is seeking his first elective office as a school board member. He and his wife Amy have a daughter Alyssa and son Avery.
His is a Public Transit Line Haul driver and holds a bachelor’s degree from Eastern Michigan University.
Frazier served on the City of Riverview Planning Commission and Zoning Board for 10 years. He was a member of Kiwanis for the Riverview Chapter for five years and also a member of Riverview Goodfellows.
“I am running for school board for Van Buren Public Schools. As a former alum who has worked in education and has had numerous family members serve and graduate from VBPS, I believe that I possess knowledge needed to have each one of the students gain and obtain the highest quality of education to become a productive adult. As a board member not only would I serve as a voice for the community but also always vote for what’s in the best interest of our students.”
When asked about the most pressing issues our of our school district, Frazier wrote: “The most pressing issue of our school district is test scores. If we can’t get these up, we are all in trouble. We need to make sure all of our teachers and staff are given the tools to do their jobs. Make sure all kids are placed in the programs that will help them succeed. We also have to make sure we have plans in place so we can operate safely and efficiently in the next pandemic.”
Darlene Loyer Gerick
Darlene Loyer Gerick, 55, of Van Buren Township is seeking reelection to the school board. She ran for unsuccessfully for the office in 2016 and was appointed to a vacancy in 2017. In 2018 she ran again and was elected. She has lived in the school district for 55 years.
She is married to Ron Gerick and they have a daughter, Marina Gerick.
Gerick currently serves as board secretary.
She holds a dual bachelor of arts degree in Computer Science and Organizational Leadership. She is Facilities Manager at Michigan Medicine – HITS.
She is a Girl Scout Leader, Girl Scout Community Support Specialist and works with her daughter on the Benches for Belleville project.
When asked why she is running for this office, she replied: “Born and raised in Belleville, I am a 1985 graduate of BHS. I left the state for college but returned to raise my family in my hometown.
“Now my child will be a second-generation Tiger grad. I am running for school board because this is my town, those are my schools. I care about our community and our children. I have been on the board since June 2017. I have attended several Michigan Association of School Board (MASB) trainings to understand the responsibilities and limitations of being a board member. I have achieve the Level-2 Award of Merit from my MASB classes.
“I am not the candidate that will be knocking on your door. I feel that we don’t get enough home time, family time, or time to ourselves. I don’t want to be the one who interrupts this time for you. This being said, I am here if you want to talk and/or ask me questions. You can email me [email protected], Facebook message me fb.me/LoyerGerick or come up to me when you see me in the community out and about. Just please don’t let that be during a BHS football game. And, definitely not when the Marching Tigers are on the field. I take my football and band very seriously.”
As to the most pressing issues, Gerick said: “Student performance is the reason we have schools. It is hard to see our scores below state averages, but our student growth scores have advanced. If a student is at a 20 percentile and the next year they are at a 40 percentile, they are still not where we want them to be, but a 20 percentile growth is huge. We need to keep that growth going. We have an upward progress on performance, and we need to keep trying new methods, empowering our teachers, keep remembering students all learn differently, and keep reaching for improvement. We need to keep offering alternative learning and programs for multiple skill sets and interests. We need to keep our students engaged in learning. We need to support our teachers and administrators in their efforts.”
Terrance Goff
Terrance C. Goff, 50, of Van Buren Township did not return his candidate’s form, but when he ran unsuccessfully for the school board in 2020, he did fill out a form and so we will give some information from that form.
Goff has lived in the school district for five years. He and his wife Kera have three daughters, Anaya, Ivana, and Hosanna.
He is a Building Inspector and a high school graduate. This is his second run for public office.
Goff had served an appointed position for a three-year term on a Farmington Hills charter school. He said, in 2020, that he recently stepped down as Parent Coordinator for the Detroit Youth Choir to pursue election on the school board. He also enjoys fitness.
“I believe that we can have the finest schools in the area and I see that our district believes that, as well,” Goff said in 2020. “I want to be part of that!”
As far as his goals: “I would like to attract all families in the community to our schools / retention of our students through high school.”
Calvin Hawkins, Jr.
Calvin H. Hawkins, Jr., 58, of Van Buren Township is running for reelection to the school board. She is married to Trunita Hawkins and their children are Paris, Deral, Angelica, Camille, Joshua, Lashez. He has lived in the school district for 25 years.
He is retired as Operation Manager at the Ford Motor Company. He has a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from Cleary College.
He won election to a seat on the Van Buren Public Schools Board of Education in 2018.
His hobbies are: fishing, league bowling, camping, youth football and basketball coaching.
He said he is running for office because: “Our children are our greatest resource and future leaders of this country. It’s extremely important that they’re prepared to lead and are given all the tools needed to succeed in life.”
When asked what are the most pressing issues in our school district and what should be done about them, he replied:
“Right now it’s the safety of our children and educators, as we’ve seen across the country and here in Michigan with Oxford. We can never be over-prepared or over-trained on safety. Now the question is how do we implement changes proactively but with great tact and care? Children’s education experience should be joyful and exciting. Not full of fear and anxiety while attending school at any level. The next challenge is ensuring all our children are succeeding no matter in what social economic group they find themselves. It’s imperative that the leadership is tracking these gaps and continuously developing strategies to address such gaps.”
Amy T. Pearce
Amy T. Pearce, 49, of Van Buren Township, is school board president and she is running for reelection to the board.
She is married to Douglas, an airline pilot at Kalitta Air, LLC, and they have three daughters. Taylor, 26, is a 2014 BHS graduate as well as a 2018 Brown University graduate who currently is working as an economist in London, England. Nicole, 24, is a 2016 BHS graduate and a 2020 University of Michigan graduate who is currently in medical school at Western Michigan University. Addison, 15, a BHS sophomore who participates in volleyball, track, and band. They have lived in the school district for 17 years.
She is Vice President of Event Production at Underwood Events, LLC out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She graduated from Brookfield Central High School in Wisconsin, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and Marquette University (Wisconsin).
She first ran for the school board in 2018 and was elected to a four-year term.
“I previously sat on the board of the Van Buren Public Schools Education
Foundation and still enjoy helping them with fundraising efforts when I can. I have
also served on the Executive Board of the Belleville Band Boosters since 2012 and remain very active in this role.”
Her hobbies include traveling with her family and boating on beautiful
Belleville Lake and Lake Charlevoix.
When asked why she is running for this office, she replied: “My past four years on the Board of Education have been filled with highs and lows. Helping
to steer this district through the Covid pandemic was both exhausting and incredibly rewarding. It was certainly something we never expected to face as a board, and we came together with our staff and families to create the best learning environments possible despite
the circumstances. We were able to offer unique options to our families that other districts were not even able to consider due to staffing issues. I am very proud of what we accomplished during an extremely challenging period. Now we have come to a point where we are rebuilding, both literally and figuratively. Thanks to our voters, our bond work continues, with wonderful enhancements being made to many of our buildings. Our new Early Childhood Center is thriving and welcoming our youngest learners into an environment that can truly launch them into the future. Our students are
back in their buildings and finally experiencing what a ‘normal’ school year feels like. Sports are back. Dances are back. Clubs are back. All of the things that help our children grow
both in and out of the classroom are back. My hope is to devote at least another four years to helping this rebuilding continue. We have a board that works extremely well together and represents all of the diverse areas of our community. We are not afraid to challenge each other when necessary, and we ask the difficult questions when they need to be asked. I take great pride in the role I have been elected to serve in, and I am excited to continue in this position for years to come.
When asked what she thinks are the most pressing issues in the school district and what should be done about them, she replied: “This district is unique in many ways, the most important being its diverse social and economic roots in the community. We have the opportunity to bring families from all over the area
together with a unified goal of providing the best learning environment for our children. This means we must welcome the voices of all of our families as we plan for the future. Does that mean we will disagree on some issues? Yes. Does that mean can still reach a common ground on the things that will have the most impact on our learners? Also, yes! Right now, we need to continue to streamline our curriculum between buildings, which is
being facilitated by the addition of two district Instructional Specialists. These specialists were hired at the request of our board and continue to serve as much-needed additions to our instructional staff. The hiring and retention of teaching and support staff is by far the most
important issue we are facing right now. The hiring pool is dry, and the number of individuals entering the teaching profession is dwindling. We must start planning for this challenge now, not when our teachers retire. This means ensuring we offer competitive pay and benefits and
that we empower our staff to take a collaborative role in the development and presentation of curriculum. We need to offer as many reasons as possible for our wonderful teachers to remain right here in our district. Helping to educate the community on both the bond and
the upcoming sinking fund vote are crucial in reaching our staffing goals. Obtaining the bond and sinking funds to keep our buildings and grounds in tip-top shape allows us to use our state funds in our classrooms, where they belong.”