Q&A: School board candidate Patti Coutre

Patti Coutre faces a crowded field of five candidates in her bid to be re-elected to the Maricopa Unified School District governing board. The lone candidate with prior experience in public office, Coutre hopes to leverage that experience and earn one of two school board seats.

Family: Married with four children

Education: Some college

Occupation: Parish secretary at Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church

Schools kids attend: ASU, Maricopa High School, Desert Wind Middle School and Pima Butte Elementary

Hobbies: Reading

Community service: Volunteer as a Sunday preschool coordinator, chairperson of the Maricopa Chamber’s Community Impact Committee, various committees with the schools, and soccer coach.

Maricopan since: 2005

Why are you running? I want our students, not just mine, to receive the best education possible so they are ready for a very competitive world when they graduate.

What qualifies you for the position? I am a collaborative leader who listens to all stakeholders and takes all information available into consideration before making decisions that are going to be best for our students and district and are in line with the district's strategic plan.

What do you hope to accomplish during your term? I would like to recruit more community members to be advocates for our schools and students, and for our schools to continue to improve their ranking and become an A district.

How will you accomplish that? Attend as many school and community events as possible and participate in committees like the homecoming planning committee; and to make sure our staff, especially teachers, have the support and tools necessary to complete our goal in becoming an A district.

What are the three biggest challenges facing MUSD? Large class sizes and academic offerings for our students, teacher recruitment and retention, and funding.

What will you do to overcome them? Continue to be an advocate for our students and educate our community about the issues our district faces and to ask for their support and involvement, not only at a local level but at a state level as well.

Do you support MUSD's effort to pass a budget override? As a parent I wholeheartedly support this override. When approved, the funds will go directly into the classroom where it is most needed. Our district continues to move forward in becoming the schools of choice, which continues with each school having an academic focus to supplement the curriculum. I believe our community is different than it was two years ago. We have seen the support of the community at our recent homecoming activities. Maricopa schools are not the same schools from years ago. Our students and staff have accomplished so much and, given more resources, they can do so much more.***ADVERTISEMENT***