BETHALTO - There are two new members of the Bethalto Community Unit School District #8 Board of Education, and new member Dana Aronin looks forward to using her expertise to contribute to the Board.
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Aronin has one son who attends the school district. She said her role as a parent and her 25-year career as a pediatric nurse practitioner has prepared her to step into this new position.
“I am a strong advocate for children in all areas,” Aronin said. “I felt that my expertise and where my background is as far as with children would be very strongly suited to help this community grow.”
Aronin’s addition to the Board comes after the resignations of Board members Jeff Whaley and Kory Stassi in June. The Board reviewed 21 applications for the Board seats before choosing Aronin and Natalie McCoy to fill the vacancies. Aronin and McCoy were sworn in during the Board’s regular meeting on July 18, 2024.
Aronin noted that she hopes to increase communication between the district and the community. She wants to see more conversations that include staff members, parents and students along with the Board.
“My number one goal is to enhance communication between staff, between parents, between students and the School Board to bring a more united front back to this community,” she said. “It’s a very strong community, but I think that some of those reinforcements in those community areas would help. Communication, getting involved, making sure parents are heard, making sure teachers are heard, really strengthening the community as a whole, I think, is very important.”
She noted that a strong school district benefits everyone in the community, not just those with children, and she hopes to contribute to this culture going forward. Aronin encourages everybody to work toward a strong community, whether that’s by getting involved with the School Board or another organization to push Bethalto forward.
“I think everyone should make it an objective of theirs to join some kind of community event to help strengthen our community,” she added. “If you’re a homeowner, even if you don’t have kids, this is valuable to you to make sure that your school district is strong, that you’re raising respectable and effective kids for the future. And I think that Bethalto has done that for years and years and years, and we’re going to continue to do so.”
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