My nonprofit board experience and strong communication and analytical skills will benefit the board in its governance practices, stewardship of financial resources, committee work, and ensuring open and transparent communication between the board, administration, teachers and parents. It will be my priority to listen well and ensure the concerns of parents are heard and addressed. Additionally, I bring a seasoned maturity and diversity of lived experiences not previously represented on the board.

Public education faces uncertain state and federal funding and rising operating costs. The downsizing of the U.S. Department of Education and its impact on the administration of Federal K-12 and special education dollars to states is a challenge for Michigan and school districts across the state including Forest Hills as it navigates this transition.

Additionally, across Michigan, some families have left traditional public schools for homeschooling, private schools, charter schools and Christian schools. Forest Hills has seen a gradual enrollment decline due in part to these other options. The competition is real and I will work diligently to take this seriously and earn the trust and confidence of families with a value proposition built on strong academics, age-appropriate instruction and real partnership with parents.

A school board serves students best when members prepare thoroughly, listen respectfully, and work together. I will come ready, ask thoughtful questions, and treat fellow trustees, administrators, teachers, and families with respect even when we disagree. My prior board leadership taught me that a productive board is defined by clear roles and practices that reflect preparation, data backed information, and a focus on students rather than personalities. I will advocate for transparent communication among the board, administration, teachers, parents, and the broader Forest Hills community, and I will listen and respond to parent concerns. On academics, facilities, budgets, and family engagement, I will look for common ground, examine priorities with care, and keep classroom needs first. Collaboration does not mean rubber- stamping. It means working in good faith toward decisions the community can understand and support and measuring our work by whether it strengthens learning for every Forest Hills student.

My vision is that FHPS remains known for strong academics, age-appropriate learning and genuine partnership with families. Every student, including neurodivergent students deserve a rigorous foundation in reading, writing, math, science, problem solving and communication. These are the skills needed for higher education, careers and life. Students should be challenged to think critically, understand civic responsibilities, and engage respectfully with different ideas. We can better serve students and families by communicating clearly, respecting parents’ rights and responding to concerns. I also believe that students deserve to know a more complete and accurate American story that includes the contributions of Black Americans, Asian Americans and others to this country’s achievements in science, business, military service, civic life and more. I will advocate for efforts to highlight these achievements and solid resources in the regular history curriculum.

Fiscal stewardship is essential for a stable and high-performing school district. We must use taxpayer resources carefully and transparently, while examining priorities and keeping student learning and classroom needs at the center of spending. If we stay student centered and accountable, Forest Hills can continue to give every child a strong foundation for success.

To learn more about my candidacy, please go to VoteClaireHorlings.com

I work hard at understanding the problems I’m being challenged with. I then work to research and reach out to experts to find solutions. I enjoy getting a deeper understanding of the problems, and working to find ways to be more efficient. I hope to be someone that anyone can come to with questions and concerns, and I’ll work to find ways to help you navigate the district with your child.

I think that I’ll be a great addition to the board because I care deeply about this district, the employees, and the students. I’m someone that will continue to push and challenge our administration to not only remain a top tier district, but one that continues to innovate and lead.

As a candidate, I know I have a lot to learn about the day-to-day operations, problems, and priorities of our district. I don’t want to pretend I know all the problems coming in. If I had to pick the biggest issues right now, I would chose the finances of running a district, and retaining a highly skill staff.

I look forward to having the opportunity to better understand these problems, and work with the rest of the board and administration to find the best solutions for Forest Hills.

I pride myself on being someone who listens to everyone and works to find a strong solution. The board is not making decisions for themselves; they are here to serve the students, employees, and parents. The challenge of the board is to set the direction and expectations so that the Superintendent and his staff have the ability to ensure all students are served and have a chance to thrive in the district.

My vision for the district is to continue to achieve high academic success. To me, this means that we continue to prepare kids for life after high school. We continue to offer a wide range of opportunities so that each student leaves our schools with more than just high test scores. I want our students to be challenged, to have opportunities to work together with peers, and to have opportunities to lead. I think we can continue to serve our students with creative ways to engage them in the changing world of education and technology.

Pedagogy, relationship building, educational leadership, and systems thinking have been my life’s work. I’m genuinely curious about how schools work what’s working well, where there are gaps, and how the many moving pieces of a district can work together for students.

I also believe one of my strengths is being able to listen to people with very different perspectives and understand what is underneath their concerns. Our school district has thousands of students and families, hundreds of employees, and a community with a wide range of experiences, priorities, and expectations. Those needs won’t always align, and good governance requires us to listen carefully, ask good questions, and look for workable solutions rather than assume there is always one simple answer.

Finally, I bring the perspective of an educator to the Board table. I understand pedagogy and curriculum, but I also understand that decisions about budgets, facilities, staffing, policy, and operations ultimately make their way into classrooms. I tend to look at decisions as pieces of a larger system and continually ask: How will this affect our students, our educators, and the community?

One of the greatest challenges facing public education is meeting the increasingly wide range of needs students bring to school each day. In Forest Hills, that means serving nearly 9,000 students with varied academic, social emotional, behavioral, and mental-health needs.

Our responsibility is to provide appropriate support and academic challenge for every student while maintaining classrooms where teachers can teach and students can learn. Finding that balance is a challenge facing public schools everywhere and will remain important work for our district.

Another challenge facing every facet of society—but schools in a particularly unique way—is how we harness the power of AI while ensuring it is used responsibly, ethically, and with academic integrity. Forest Hills has already made important strides in this area by creating an intentional position within the district focused on AI literacy and leadership. This work includes helping students and staff understand the ethical use of AI, protecting data and privacy, providing professional development for our educators, and continually evaluating how this rapidly changing technology can best support teaching and learning.

As a governance body, our job is to support district initiatives that are fiscally responsible and create the conditions for our students, educators, support staff, and community to thrive. Over the last six years, our Board has worked hard to build a culture of listening to one another, considering different perspectives, communicating with stakeholders, and not shying away from difficult conversations.

Board members may come to the table for different reasons and won’t always reach the same conclusions. But I believe everyone who serves shares a sincere commitment to the students, educators, staff, administrators, and families who make up our district. Starting from that shared purpose allows for honest, respectful dialogue when challenges arise.

Good governance doesn’t require unanimous thinking. It requires listening, asking thoughtful questions, disagreeing respectfully, and ultimately working toward solutions that serve the district as a whole. I’ve approached my first six years as a consensus builder who values the perspectives of my fellow Board members, and that is exactly how I would approach a second term.

The next six years will bring new challenges and opportunities. We need to continue strengthening academic achievement, supporting and retaining exceptional educators, being responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars, maintaining and improving our facilities, and making thoughtful decisions about new technology. We also need to continue offering a wide range of opportunities and pathways so every Forest Hills graduate leaves our district prepared for whatever comes next.

My vision is for Forest Hills to remain a district where every student is known, challenged, supported, and given meaningful opportunities to discover what they do well. Serving our students and families well means continuing to listen—to students, parents, educators, and staff—and being willing to adjust when needs change. It also means protecting the things we already do exceptionally well while continuing to ask where we can improve. Whether a student is headed to college, the trades, the military, or directly into a career, our responsibility is to make sure they leave Forest Hills prepared, confident, and ready for what comes next.