Nierengarten: District 88 at crossroads

Editor's note: This is another article in a series about candidates for District 88 School Board.

By GUY PRIEL

Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM -- Eleven candidates are seeking four open seats on the District 88 School Board. The election is Nov. 7.

Incumbents Brian Wieland, Gene Forstner and Don Potter have filed for re-election.

Other candidates are Renee Otis, Rick Berg, Barbara Becker, Sheldon Rieke, Deborah Hertling, Susan Nierengarten, Duane Hauser and Bruce Schreckenberg.

Nierengarten is running because she believes the school district is at a crossroads and it is important to take the right step down that road to protect the future.

"We are in the beginning of a crisis situation in the district," she said. "What the public needs to do is pick the right mix of people with the best qualifications and abilities to help avoid that crisis."

Nierengarten, 48, has been a resident of New Ulm for the past 23 years. She is an attorney and co-owner of the law firm Nierengarten and Hippert Ltd. She and her husband Hugh have two daughters attending New Ulm High School.

In addition to civic and church activities, Nierengarten has been involved in District 88 activities for a decade. She has worked as a volunteer, serves on the District Curriculum Advisory Committee and has coached the NUHS mock trial team. She is also a member of the Brown County Teen Court advisory board.

"I am running for the board because I want to be a positive member of a forward-thinking board," she said.

One immediate concern for the board is the financial situation because the results of inadequate funding will soon make serious in-roads into the educational process, Nierengarten said. She feels proper decisions must be made to protect current programs.

The underlying problem in the community is a general lack of confidence and trust in the school district, she said. She will seek to restore that confidence if elected.

"The public will be looking toward the school board to work together on the major issues," Nierengarten said. "The board then takes time to analyze the situation and find creative ways to deal with the issues."

One of her goals is to find ways to maximize the amount of funding that is given to the district to help create the best system possible.

"There are lots of good things about the district, and we have a very motivated staff," she said. "There are some things that can be done different."

Communication and interaction between the district and the community are areas where improvement is needed, she said.

"One thing I will strive for is to find money so we can provide the extras our community expects," she said. "We need to have centralized fund-raising efforts in order for us to become more efficient. We can raise more money if we have a person designated to do that. The position would pay for itself."

Because it is difficult to restore educational programs after they are dropped, she feels it is necessary to protect endangered program as soon as possible.

"I am not willing to let this district become substandard," Nierengarten said. "As a board member, I will do what I can to minimize this chance."

A recent proposal would change educational finances to 100 percent funding from the state. That plan changes the source of funding, not the amount. The district's goal is to look at ways more money can be made available from the state, Nierengarten said.

"It is not fair to ask schools to do more while providing less money," she said. "I will help us work harder as a board to lobby for funds. The board needs to be able to look down the road so we don't shortchange our (children)."

As a result of her volunteer activities for District 88, she has learned about policies, finances, and other matters, and has been able to open lines of communication, Nierengarten said.

"I am the type of person who will think things through," she said. "I have a high level of commitment and am very dedicated. I believe I can make the board a better place, which ultimately makes the district and the community better."

Being on the school board is not about politics, it is about what's doing right for the community, Nierengarten said.

"I will be involved with the district in any way possible, as I have done," she said. "But I believe the best way to be involved is to be on the board."