McHenry County Blog

Just like McHenry County College, Elementary School 47′s Board has a major infusion of new blood.

Virginia Visin retired.

Incumbents Rob Routzahn and Ruth Scifo ran for re-election.

Pretty similar to the MCC Board of Trustees’ contest.

A former principal, Betsy Les was the third of what I have dubbed “the incumbent slate” for the District 47 Board.

Running from the outside were Donna Ricci and Eileen Palsgrove.

Les had lots of signs, four-by-four foot and regular yard signs.

Routzahn and Scifo shared yard signs. There were a good number.

I saw one joint sign for Ricci and Palsgrove.

Of the candidates, I only heard one in campaign mode.

That was Donna Ricci.

She asked for and received permission to speak to the Nunda Township Republican candidates’ night crowd.

Besides that and the signs, the only campaigning I saw was a post card.

It was sent on behalf of Ricci and Palsgrove by the Pro-Life Victory Committee.

I assume the Crystal Lake Elementary Teachers Association, CLETA, informed its members of its favorites.

The list used was probably the same one that Arne Waltmire used for his McHenry County College campaign mailing that hit my precinct on the Saturday before the election.

Waltmire is the Regional Director of the Illinois Education Association, but he came in seventh of nine candidates in the MCC Board of Trustees race.

A tool for those who want to know where their tax dollars are going went up today on the Adam Andrzejewski’s web site, For the Good of Illinois.

Pick your school district (after signing) in.

Take a look at where the money goes from biggest to smallest vendor. You can put up to fifty vendors on a page.

I decided to look at Crystal Lake Grade School District 47.

I noticed

• $7.9 million for insurance
• $7.3 million to IRS
• $4.4 million to the Teachers Retirement Fund
• $1.3 million to the Illinois Department of Revenue
• $1.3 million to the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund
• $826,000 to Ameren Energy Resources
• $622,000 to Teachers Health Insurance
• $264,000 to CLETA (Crystal Lake Elementary Teachers Assoc.)
• $179,000 to Woodstock Comm School Dist 200

Those above are just some of the first 50 listed in descending order.

Farther down I found these:
$3,069.74 to the McHenry County Treasurer

• $3,016.00 to the Crystal Lake Country Club
• $2,520.00 to the Il Alliance Of Administrators Of Sp[ecial Education]
• $2,240 to Ohio State University
• $1,958 to former District 300 Board member Mary Warren (who teaches in District 47 now)
• $1,250 to William Blair & Company Llc
• $1,213.20 to American Mobile Shredding
• $1,059.96 to the Rockford Board of Education

Take a look at how one of your school districts does with your tax dollars.

That headline is not quite correct.

I did see a yard sign for Carlo Anello after I voted.

In any event, the top three were convincing winners were

• Robert Fetzner – 1987
• Nancy Gonsiorek – 1958
• Ryan Farrell – 1862
• Carlo Agnello – 850

I was told the top two on the list were endorsed by the Crystal Lake Elementary Education Association (CLETA).

The people on the ballot for the Crystal Lake Grade School District 47 School Board number four:

• Robert Fetzner
• Nancy Gonsiorek
• Ryan Farrel
• Carlo Agnello

There are three to be elected.

I’m ashamed to tell you that my level of knowledge about the candidates and where they stand is about as low as in any election in my experience.

I see yard signs in people’s yards that I know and respect for all of the candidates, except Agnello, who doesn’t seem to have yard signs.

No literature has reached me, even my subdivision of Country Club Additions has over 420 homes that can be covered by two people in a car.

Four years ago Gonsiorek ran on a platform of saving music and art and was informally endorsed by elementary school teachers.

This year I’ve been told that CLETA, the Crystal Lake Elementary Teachers Association, interviewed candidates. Further that they favor Gonsiorek and Fetzner. Whether that is an official or unofficial endorsement, my source did not know.