Election 2013: Nathan Jaisingh

Campaign Info

• Position Sought: Orland School District 135 Board of Education
• Website:
• Email: Nathanjaisingh@hotmail.com
• Phone:
• Hometown: Orland Park

Personal Info

• Family: Nicole, wife; Maya, daughter; Noah and Elijah, sons
• Education: Morehead State University - Bachelor's 2000; Rush University - 2002 MSN/NP; University of Kentucky - 2013 DNP
• Occupation: President & CEO - Benchmark Psychiatric Services, LTD.
• Political Party Affiliation: Conservative.

Candidate Questions

Why are you seeking office?

I truly believe change begins at the local level, and you cannot get any more local than school board. But it is time to move beyond platitudes and begin the execution of ideas for true change to energize the system.

 What will be your single most important priority if you get elected?

To make sure that in every board meeting, that every board member is reminded that their actions and decisions either directly or indirectly affect the CHILDREN of District 135.

What sets you apart from other candidates? 

I am a clean slate. I have no family in government. I have no friends in government. I have no contracts with local government. I have no aspirations for higher political office. But, unlike the other candidates, I do admit an agenda. My agenda is simple: to leave District 135 better, stronger, more desirable than when I would have served on the board.

 Over the last two years there have been a few sudden staffing changes, including the demotion of Melanie Walsh and putting in an interim superintendent while paying the former superintendent’s salary. Given legal and salary costs involved, should the board consider other means of addressing employee issues, and if so what would you do if elected or re-elected to do so?

To me this is a simple process. If your hands are tied by a golden parachute contract if the employee is a poor performer, negotiate a much better exit contract OR do a much better job vetting the candidate. I would suggest implementing a round of leadership and psychological testing tools, what many Fortune 500 companies do when hiring executives.

How do you propose the school district better communicate the importance of, and better prepare students and parents for, pilots of new educational programs, especially ones geared toward the Common Core standards?

The district seems to be a bit the dark about Common Core and how it will truly affect students and parents. I suggest the district design a website, Twitter, & Facebook pages just to this issue to keep the community informed. Since the information is literally being attained, processed, and disseminated to users, why not keep the community informed in real time?

Concerns have been brought up about communication between board members outside of quorum and in violation of board policy. If elected or re-elected, what will you do to rectify these concerns, and do you recommend any new policies to be adopted? 

I do not believe this needs to be a policy-driven issue, rather a personnel driven issue. Change some personality dynamics, improve communication, thus board behavior realigns.

Do you think the school district should consider a fund balance policy, and why? If so at what amount should it be set?

I think the district should consider all good ideas. In the short time I have been involved, this is an issue that members of the community are very passionate. Honestly, I am still forming my opinion on this issue, as of this writing. In the spirit of fairness to the voters, I will say that I do lean toward a fund balance being set, but I actually believe it needs to be higher than the current reserves. Believe me, owning a practice that receives 80% of its collections from Medicare, being beholden to government as your payor source is not a strong position to be. The district, if funding sources are delayed must still run payrolls, serve food in the cafeterias, and run bus routes, all while generating no revenue from the sale of not one single product or service.

 Revenue from the state continues to dry up, while residents are also dealing with rising costs. Please rank the following in the order you feel the district should be focused on for meeting the district’s costs in light of these issues. 1) Staff Cuts 2) Contract Renegotiations 3) Operating Expense Cuts 4) Tax Increases 5) Other Funding Sources. Please also explain your reasoning.

The first option that should be looked at is other funding sources, i.e. grants, private donors, etc. This option allows for all current contracts, staffing ratios, and tax rates to remain the same if enough revenue can be captured by this technique. If not the second option should be operating expense cuts. Running a more efficient system, especially if it will save jobs and prevent tax cuts is the next best option. Third, would be contract renegotiations. The goal here would be to avoid any staffing cuts, keeping in mind the other steps previously taken. Next would be staff cuts. The last option would a tax increase and further burdening the taxpayer beyond their current point.

Do you think board members, or potential board members, should have to submit for background checks? Why or why not?

Based on access and information a school board member has, I would not have a problem submitting to a background check.

What can schools do to increase safety?

Educate parents, teachers, and children on basic self defense & classroom preparedness. Utilize honorably discharged military to provide security.

The possibility of buying Tax Anticipated Warrants to then loan money out to other school districts and accumulate interest on the return has been discussed in the past. If the district has enough money to be able to loan out to other schools, should the district still be requesting the maximum tax levy possible? Why or why not? 

No, District 135 should be in the education business not the loan business.

Have you ever been charged with a crime? Were you convicted? If yes, please say what the charge was, and what was the case's outcome as it stands.

No.

Are there any candidates in other races you would like to endorse here?

No.

Read about the other D135 candidates in the April 2013 election.