Frank Zykan For Wright City School Board 2024

Vote April 2, 2024

On The Issues

Academic Excellence

55% of Wright City students are not proficient in Math, 57% are not proficient in English Language Arts, and 63% are not proficient in Science.

I am in favor of a knowledge-based curriculum with a strong emphasis on traditional core subjects free from ideological or divisive slants. With few exceptions, I am opposed to our schools wading into issues involving morals, religion, or sexuality as I feel those topics are best left to the individual families. The public should also have easy, full, and transparent access to all curricula.

Safe Schools

Bullying continues to be common complaint from parents and students. As a board member I will support utilizing existing anti-bullying policies more effectively and/or modifying our policies to better address the needs of our students.

I proposed that we should have one school resource officer assigned to each building in our district. We have now grown from one resource officer to three, which is a great improvement, but still short of our needs.

Fiscal Responsibility

I believe there is much room for improvement when it comes to our districts use of tax dollars. The first phase of the new high school which was $15,000,000 over budget, a $171,000 trailer to TEMPORARILY serve as early childhood education classrooms, and a tax abatement that will cost our district over $82,000,000 in tax revenues over the next 20 years are all examples where I feel better decisions could have been made. I will advocate for better fiscal control and oversight.

Parental Rights & Involvement

Parents have the right to make decisions regarding their children’s education, health care, morals, and beliefs.

I will foster higher levels of transparency and communication with parents to ensure that their concerns are not only heard, but also taken into account.

Attendance

Only 76% of our high school and middle school students attend school more at least 90% of the time. Our district has failed to take action to determine the root causes and formulate corrective measures. Our students need to be (and feel) safe at school, know that we care about them and their success, and be treated with dignity and respect. I believe that relationships can be established which would motivate students with attendance issues to participate on a more regular basis. Our first attempts to correct this issue SHOULD NOT involve law enforcement.

Radical Agendas

I am against all attempts to cause confusion and harm to our students, and am for policies that will protect our children and promote a safe educational environment.

I am against the lowering of educational standards, gender and racial indoctrination, inappropriate materials within our schools, and biological males competing against biological female athletes or being allowed access to their restrooms and locker facilities.

My Commitment

To Our Students:

I believe that all students in our district should receive the most robust, knowledge-based, traditional education our tax dollars can afford. I will support a learning environment where our students are safe, supported, treated fairly and equally, and inspired to achieve.

To Our School Staff:

I believe that our teachers and staff are the greatest contributing factor to student achievement. I will endorse fair compensation and benefits, a supportive work environment, and training and development opportunities. Teacher recruitment and retention are a priority.

To The Parents:

I believe that parents have the primary responsibility for the education of their children and that the fundamental obligation of our school district is to support that role. I will defend parental rights, encourage involvement, and restore productive dialogue.

To Our Community:

I will continue to engage with our community, promote conversations, improve transparency, and support responsible stewardship of your hard-earned tax dollars. I believe we can build upon our current foundations to provide an exceptional public education to the next generations of our community.

Meet Frank

I was born and raised in St. Charles, MO. I attended the St. Charles School District graduating from St. Charles High School, then attended SMSU (now known as MSU) to study business management with an emphasis in entrepreneurship.

My partner Renee and I purchased our home within the Wright City School District in 2012 when our oldest child was two. Our son now attends Wright City Middle School as a seventh grade student while our daughter attends Wright City West Elementary as a second grader.

I am a business veteran that has been involved with several small businesses, many of which I founded. I am best known for my security business which I founded at the age of 14. This company specializes in the sale, service, and rigging of safes and bank vaults.

My Involvement

School Board Meetings:

I have attended every regular board meeting in person dating back to August 2021 with a single exception. This is more than some of our sitting members.
I have attended most special board meetings in person.
I have addressed the board as a member of the public on multiple occasions. These comments pertained to a number of issues including our district’s handling of Covid, lack of communication and transparency, systemic student bullying, our district expansion and construction projects, local tax concerns, and other topics of concern.

Parent Engagement:

I actively participate in local parent groups which focus on student and district related issues.
I meet with parents to assist with the issues they have experienced. These situations involve topics such as bullying, being new to the district, missing children, making reports to law enforcement, and navigating general bureaucracy.

Public Engagement:

I began video recording and publishing our school board meetings as of May 2022 at my personal expense. This is the first time our board meetings have ever been available to the public in video format, allowing viewers to witness public speakers, student presentations, guest speakers, and regular board business at a time and place convenient to them. These videos have resulted in over 1,000 views allowing members of our community to watch a board meeting who otherwise would not have had the opportunity.

GET INVOLVED

Participate In Person

For the sake of our students and the Wright City community, we must be involved. Please consider attending our board meetings where many of these topics are discussed and voted upon. You can make public comments, simply observe, or support others in attendance who share your concerns. Board meetings are held at 6:00 PM at the administrative offices located at 90 Bell Rd. Future board meetings: January 25th, February 15th, March 21st, and Tuesday April 16th.

Participate Online

You are not alone! There are many other parents who share the same concerns you do when it comes to our children, and our voices are louder as a collective. You can find Wright City Parents For Change, and WC Parents Against Bullying on Facebook. If you do not use Facebook let an involved parent know as there are other ways to participate.

I also post videos of our board meetings on Youtube. If you are unable to attend meetings in person, please consider watching them online.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfBVH0doQwgBHNI6h2DdAMw

Talk To Your Children, Friends, & Neighbors

We are a tightknit community and communication is key. Help by starting conversations, discussing ideas, and encouraging involvement within our school district.

Vote On April 2, 2024

You should vote and encourage others to do the same. Municipal elections have a notoriously low turnout, yet these elected positions have the greatest impact on our community and everyday lives.

2024/04/02 08:00:00