By Anna Paczesny, Current Staff
Chris Zwygart has been a member of the West Bend School Board for the past six years, and he would like to make it nine.
In his time on the board, Zwygart has appreciated learning about the importance of education in the district. He has learned a lot about administration and education, and has enjoyed meeting various students and families over the years.
After attending Horicon High School, Zwygart completed a degree in accounting at Marquette University. He is currently employed as the Chief Legal Officer at West Bend Insurance, one of the largest local employers.
He feels strongly connected to the district and wants to improve the education system to ensure the attraction and retention of quality employees. He also has a strong connection to the nonprofit world through his career and enjoys encouraging charity work in the district, such as Charity Week at West Bend High Schools.
The Leadership West Bend Alumni Association and the West Bend Area Chamber of Commerce announced Tuesday that Zwygart earned the 2024 Betty A. Pearson Community Leadership Award.
Zwygart enjoys traveling and has had many opportunities to travel overseas for work. He enjoys seeing new places and meeting new people. Zwygart also loves to watch movies, specifically science fiction and superhero movies. He also is a big reader, partially attributed to the amount of reading involved with his job, but mostly because he enjoys reading in general.
His favorite thing to read is the Harry Potter series. His favorite drama is “The Shawshank Redemption” and his favorite musician is Sting.
Zwygart is unmarried and has lived in the school district since 2004. His parents and sister also reside in West Bend.
How will your credentials and experiences help you be a constructive member of the school board?
FULL TRANSCRIPT: I’ve been fortunate to have been a member of the school board for the past six years. During that time I’ve learned a lot about the operations of the school district and how the school board works. I’ve had the ability to get to know many members of the school faculty and administration, and I’ve had the pleasure of meeting many students and parents. I’ve also had the privilege of serving as school board president for several years, which has given me the opportunity for in-depth learning about district operations and the role of the board. All of this experience helps me serve as a productive member of the board, and I would love to continue to do so after the election.
My professional credentials help me be a constructive member of the board. I currently serve as the Chief Legal Officer of West Bend Insurance. I’ve worked there for 28 years. I was fortunate to attend Marquette University, where I received an accounting degree, and a law degree. My experience as a certified public accountant is extremely helpful when the board considers financial issues, and my experience as a lawyer is extremely helpful when the board considers matters that involve the law. Overall, my work for West Bend Insurance has exposed me to the opportunities and challenges that businesses face. That experience helps me bring ideas and perspectives when the school district faces similar challenges and opportunities.
How can the district become more safe?
FULL TRANSCRIPT: Improving safety requires a team effort. The school board has a key role in preserving and improving school safety. Many of us think of safety in terms of secure doors, security systems, and partnerships with police departments. These physical safeguards are important for the safe operations of the school, but they often come with a cost in terms of money and convenience. These factors all need to be taken into consideration, and it’s the board’s job to consider all options.
The board needs the help of the community, including our students, to give input to the school board. This helps the board ensure that safety efforts can be prioritized appropriately. The board also has a responsibility to partner with the school administration to make sure that expectations for student behavior are well communicated and understood. While this sounds simple, it’s a process that requires constant feedback and improvement. It is important that behavior issues are addressed on a timely, effective and fair basis. Our schools need to remain an environment that sets a positive example for our students and promotes learning.
What is another significant challenge the district currently faces? How will you address it?
FULL TRANSCRIPT: The district has fallen far behind in addressing the need for maintenance and improvements at most of its buildings. On the one hand, the district’s taxpayers have benefited from lower taxes during this period of time. Unfortunately, the need to fix our buildings hasn’t gone away, and the list of needed repairs and improvements has grown. This needs to be addressed.
This is complicated by the fact that the number of children who reside in our district continues to decline. This is not unique to West Bend; many schools across the state are facing this issue due to the declining birth rate. The state doesn’t expect this trend to change for a while. But, this actually gives us an opportunity. By predicting the number of students we will educate each year in the future, we can make sure we have facilities that are correctly sized. This may allow us to reduce the need for physical space in our buildings, and the need for repairs and improvements may be reduced. This is clearly an important issue for the board and the community. Fortunately, the board has begun efforts to study this issue in greater detail, and asks the community for its thoughts and input. Much more work will follow this year.
How can common ground be found when it comes to divisive topics?
FULL TRANSCRIPT: First, it’s important that individuals with opposing viewpoints be given an opportunity to speak and to be heard. As school board president, I have the privilege of chairing meetings, and ensuring that our community has the opportunity to give public comments at board meetings. Many community members take advantage of their opportunity for public comments, and I learn from their comments.
The board is also very good at diving deeper into issues and finding common solutions. If a board member raises a concern, other board members will ask questions to understand their concerns. The board is also good at taking the appropriate amount of time to develop a solution by involving individuals with varying viewpoints and opinions.
Sometimes, it may be tempting to ignore those who have a viewpoint that differs from yours. But if we create a team that involves individuals with differing viewpoints, we can reach a solution that has a greater chance of success. This is a process that often takes more time, which can be frustrating, but it’s worth the time to develop a solution that’s better in the long run.
Please say one nice thing about each of your opponents.
FULL TRANSCRIPT: Bill is a man who is very, very interested in our school district, and making sure it meets the needs of our community. He has put in significant energy in past campaigns so that his voice is heard. He has lots of energy.
Chris Jenkins has a lot of experience in our community, having served on city government for many years. He’s familiar with the operations of governmental entities, like the school, and is knowledgeable about issues that our district is facing.
I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Sonal. She has a set of skills that we have not seen on our board before. She’s a parent, she works for a company that understands greatly the need for technical education, and she is a Human Resources professional. Human resources skills would be very valuable to our board because one of the largest expenses we have as a district is attracting and retaining teachers. So, human resources skill sets would be a great addition to our board.
Read about the school board candidates at The Current. Three candidates responded to requests for interview. The school board election is April 2.
(Photo courtesy of Chris Zwygart.)
The West Bend Current 