For immediate release

December 17, 2014

Jennifer Phillips
Phillips for School Board
www.phillips4d65.com
phillips4d65@gmail.com
773-501-6439 cell
On Monday, December 15, 2014, I filed my nominating papers to run for the Evanston-Skokie
District 65 School Board on April 7, 2015.
I am a parent of three boys who attend Dr. Bessie Rhodes School of Global Studies. My
husband and I have lived in District 65 since 2000, first living on the southeast side of Evanston
and more recently closer to Rhodes in Skokie.
I am a kid-person. I love playing with, talking and listening to, and generally making
connections with children. They are a source of inspiration for me and a constant reminder to
value creativity. I believe that seeing education through their eyes and life experiences is
critically important.
I have been an active parent at Rhodes since 2009 when our now fifth-grader started
kindergarten. I volunteered on the committee to re-theme the magnet school; I launched a Lego
club and ran it for three years; and I was the PTA secretary in 2012-2013. Last year, I organized
parents district-wide who think that math education can be improved. This group is over 150
parents strong and has written two parent memos to the District on math differentiation and
acceleration (grade skipping). Click here for D65 Math Matters website. This fall I have served
on the High Quality Teaching and Learning subcommittee for the Districts strategic planning
process.
I have a lot to learn and have more questions than statements or positions right now. I look
forward to learning from other parents and community members throughout the campaign
process. That said, I consider myself a connector of ideas, people and resources. I am running
for school board because I believe that Evanston schools could and should be even better than
they are now. We have so much to celebrate about our schools but it is not a reason for us to
stop striving to be better.
My initial campaign theme is: REACHING. EXCELLENCE. TOGETHER. The three words
work to make a message but also stand for three strands I believe are important (and hope other
parents do too):

Reaching. Lets reach in both senses of the word. Not resting on our laurels but
stretching further. And reaching as in arriving at our goal destination. Lets use the best
that technology has to offer for pre-K to 8th grade education. Lets make sure that we are
innovating and improving so that Evanston schools are admired by parents across the
Chicago metro area.

Excellence. What does better look like? Academic and educational excellence mean not
letting the idea of students meeting state minimums on standardized tests become our
collective purpose but setting goals well above the bar. I believe that implementing the
new District mission every child, every day, whatever it takes means supporting every
student to achieve to his/her full potential and setting more aspirational goals for all
students.

Together. For Evanston to reach higher and provide a new level of academic excellence
it requires an all-in community effort. It has to be about all students not just those
who are behind academically or those who are already excelling. It has to use fresh and
different approaches to address why some students are not currently succeeding. It has to
acknowledge how much farther we can get working in unison as principals, teachers,
parents, and community members. In order to reach educational excellence we will need
collaborative ingenuity and creative community problem-solving, especially in an age of
diminishing educational resources.

I had to create a list of issues that I think are the most important for our school district to address
in the coming years when I applied for the board-appointed seat over the summer. I will post
that list on my website and keep editing and adding to it during the campaign.
I grew up in Wisconsin where my mom served on school boards in both Madison and
Shorewood (a suburb of Milwaukee). She has been the ultimate role model teaching us to get out
there and make a difference in the world. Work for what you wish for and believe in.
My professional career has focused on poverty and employment policy in the U.S. From 1996 to
2009, I worked for two philanthropic institutions The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation and
The Joyce Foundation. President Barack Obama (then State Senator Obama) was on the Joyce
Foundation board of directors during my tenure as a program officer. I am not an educator but
know how important education is to future employment and income. The predicted skills gaps in
STEM (science, technology, engineering and math), as cited by employers themselves, is worth
our attention. Click here to read more. I also serve on the board of directors of the National
Skills Coalition, a national workforce advocacy organization in Washington DC. Since 2009, I
have been an independent consultant working on strategic planning for foundations and nonprofits.
My undergraduate degree is in political science from the University of Wisconsin Madison and
my graduate degree is in public administration from the University of Michigan Ann Arbor.
I am excited about the possibility of applying my personal and professional experience to
continue to move our community forward as a member of the Evanston-Skokie District 65
school board.