“Young blood” is taking over the Frontier Central School system.
At 19, Davis Podkulski is the youngest person to ever be elected into Frontier’s Board of Education.
On May 20, Podkulski won his race to make it to the top level of his childhood school district. His opponents ranged from previous board members and educators – all adults with experience in the field of education.
But shouldn’t voices of students, teachers, faculty and staff – the people who experience the faults of the education system on a daily basis – be the ones whose voices matter the most?
Podkulski, a junior business administration and political science major at UB, believes so.
“We understand the needs of our students better than anyone in Albany could,” Podkulski said.
Coined as a candidate whose “young blood” brought a new perspective to education reform, Podkulski ran on a platform to bring funding back to the Frontier school system, eradicating a “one-size-fits-all” educational program. He believes focusing on education reform is important to the future success of students.
As a recent graduate of Frontier High School, he recognizes students have varied passions, ranging from the arts to business and trade. New York State’s current education system, however, fosters an approach of emphasizing core classes and doesn’t cater to each student’s specific interests.
“Every student has different talents,” Podkulski said. “There are students that are interested in the arts. There are some kids who just really enjoy electric circuits. And those are the programs that they’re taking away right now because of budget cuts.”
Podkulski believes change in the state’s faulty education system is imperative – it needs a fresh perspective.
At a young age, Podkulski knew that he wanted to be involved in politics and specifically education reform.
“I was the kid who said I wanted to be the president,” he said.
During his senior year, Podkulski became president of Frontier High School’s student government.
Rich Podkulski, Podkulski’s father and a UB alumnus, suggested he his son go to meetings regularly.
“Davis always had a keen interest in politics, so he spoke his mind at board meetings when he felt the board was doing something that was not in the best interest of the students,” Rich said.
Frontier schools have embraced an educational system based on “core classes.” In 2010, former Gov. David Patterson introduced the New York State Gap Elimination Adjustment (GEA), a program designed to close the state’s $10 billion budget deficit.
Under GEA, New York’s public schools funding was cut to help resolve the deficit. The program was initially designed to take place over the course of one year, but Gov. Andrew Cuomo has continued the program today.
Frontier schools have lost $28 million since, forcing the district to cut programs for specialized talents.
“Even more extra-curricular [and] athletic programs have been eliminated along with other miscellaneous cuts,” Podkulski said. “This affects more than just students, their parents and the employees of the school.”
Podkulski’s brother, Hayden, was an officer for Frontier High School’s German club, until the program was recently cut. Hayden also can no longer take a business class that prepares him for college business programs. Podkulski has also noticed how the cuts have affected his younger siblings who attend Frontier’s elementary and middle schools.
“My younger siblings are faced with an increasing amount of homework due to the state’s mandates,” Podkulski said. “The homework is very much a part of the one-size-fits-all educational model and does not encourage understanding, but rather memorization.”
As student body president of Frontier High School, Podkulski advocated for an ex officio, non-voting student representative to be on the Board of Education. He, along with 300 other students, petitioned the vote for the option of having a student representative back on the ballot during the annual budget vote. But the board voted down the measure with a 3-6 vote.
“I believed the position of influence would help bridge the gap that exists between students and the Board of Education,” he said.
Podkulski’s father believes the board’s vote against a student representative only fueled Podkulski’s passion for representation.
Students now have the ability to advocate for themselves during Board meetings and relay information from the Board meetings back to other students.
At UB, Podkulski is a student in the Honors College and has been a member of the Student Association Assembly for three semesters. During his free time, he volunteers for Destination Imagination and High School Parent Teacher Student Association, both programs designed to better involve the community in educational nurturing and reform. He also works for Picasso’s Pizzeria.
Podkulski handed out pamphlets door-to-door to his voters and attended candidate night, where voters questioned the different candidates. Podkulski didn’t have an official endorsement, but district teachers, Parent-Teacher Association members and alumni helped him campaign.
Rich believes the community recognizes how difficult success for school boards can be. They are supportive of Podkulski and the learning opportunities being a member of the Board will bring.
Members of the UB community have also supported Podkulski. Melissa Kathan, a junior political science major and speaker of the SA Assembly, has worked with Podkulski since the fall of 2013.
“When I first heard Davis was running, I was impressed that he was willing to take on such a large job,” Kathan said. “It was evident that he was dedicated to the position and his passion for the school board was obvious.”
During his five-year term as a member of the Frontier Board of Education, Podkulski plans on forming a coalition to bring funding back to Frontier and to eliminate GEA.
Although Podkulski sees his youth as an advantage, there were many in the community who were concerned his age and lack of experience in comparison to other candidates, he said.
He believes the overwhelming sense of support for his candidacy from the community and his family outweighed the negative comments about his experience.
He pointed out that other board members have full-time jobs, but he thinks his youth and energy – that “young blood” attribute – will allow him to meet his responsibilities.
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