Critic of PW-S School Board aims to join its ranks

A man who pulled his children out of the Port Washington-Saukville School District because of concerns about how it was being run now wants to be a member of the board that oversees it.

“We left our public school system. Best decision we made in the last 18 months!” Johnny Lanser, who is running in the April 5 election for one of two City of Port Washington seats on the School Board, posted on Facebook at the time. “You should think about it too!!”

In an interview Monday, Lanser, whose four children now attend St. John XXIII Catholic School in Port Washington, said his decision to make his first bid for elected office was motivated by the district’s lack of communication with parents and his belief that some School Board members have overstayed their welcome.

“I’m the father of four school-age children and I didn’t know what was going on in the school district,” he said. “With this lack of transparency, I thought it’s the time for me to get involved.

“It’s a time when there are a couple of people who have been on the board for a long time, and there needs to be a change.”

There are two City of Port Washington School Board seats on the April ballot, and incumbent Brian Stevens, vice president of the board, is seeking a return to one of them. 

The other City of Port seat on the ballot is currently held by Kelly O’Connell-Perket, who with 24 years in office is one of the board’s three senior members. She is not seeking re-election.

O’Connell-Perket did not respond to messages seeking comment this week.

Brian McCutcheon, who was elected in 1998 with O’Connell-Perket, and Sara McCutcheon, his sister-in-law who was appointed to represent the Village of Saukville on the board in 1997 and elected the following year, are the other two longest-serving members. 

As of Dec. 23, Stevens and Lanser were the only candidates registered to run for the two Port seats. If that doesn’t change by the Jan. 4 registration deadline, there will be no contested races for the Port seats.

Also on the April ballot is the at-large School Board seat that can be held by a resident living anywhere in the district. As of Dec. 23, incumbent Yvonne Klotz was the only candidate registered.

Lanser’s criticisms of the district echo those of parents who turned out at School Board meetings a year ago in numbers of more than 100 to protest the district’s hybrid approach to teaching during the pandemic.

At the time, middle and high school students attended in-person classes only two days a week and were taught online the remainder of the week.

The School Board capitulated and returned students to classrooms full time for the start of last school year’s second semester, but parents’ criticisms of the board and administration went beyond the approach to teaching during the pandemic. They said district leaders were out of touch with parents and failed to communicate with them.

In response, the district created what it calls an in-touch parent group that meets regularly with administrators. It also dedicated part of a recent survey to gauging how well it communicates with parents and other district residents.

But Lanser, a 35-year-old real estate agent and Port Washington High School graduate, said improvement is still needed.

“I feel the board needs to listen more to our community members and there needs to be more transparency,” he said. 

With a new administration in charge, this is a critical time for the district, he said. Dave Watkins took over for longtime Supt. Michael Weber in July and Director of Business Services Mel Nettesheim was hired a year ago. In addition, the district’s other top two administrators, Director of Special Services Duane Woelfel and Director of Instruction Chris Surfus, are retiring at the end of the school year.

“With the old administration, things were done a certain way for a very long time,” Lanser said. “I definitely think this is a critical time for change in the district, and if I’m going to complain about things, I should be the one to step up and do something about it.”