McLean County Times

Jeremy DeHaai has a singular focus in his run for the McLean County Unit 5 school board.

“My focus is strictly going to be on the kids,” DeHaai told the McLean County Times. “I'm not knocking any of the other candidates, but I think some of the other folks, for them, this is potentially a launch of their political career or it's a stepping stone.”

DeHaai is one of six candidates vying for three spots, but the longtime Bloomington resident is convinced none of them has all the same concerns that he does.

"There are kids in the community that maybe don't have good Internet access,” he added. “They have a single parent that is working and they don't have somebody that can be there with them. They're not going to be able to get the education via the remote learning.”

A sales manager by trade, DeHaai said he has a plan that makes sure schools are properly funded without having to tax more residents out of Illinois.

“I'd like to see if there's potential for getting donations to the school district for other things — if there are grants that can be provided by organizations like State Farm or other corporate entities in the area that can provide grants to the school district for programs and for education," DeHaai told WGLT.org.

He pointed to the $1 million Rivian and Reditus Labs recently donated to Unit 5 schools to provide COVID-19 testing as an example of what he has in mind. DeHaai said his whole run has been fueled by the pandemic and the damage he thinks it’s caused to his community.

“As a taxpayer in the district, I plan to do my part to ensure that the school board pursues efforts to be fiscally responsible and financially stable,” he posted on Facebook. “In these economically challenging times, most people have had to closely monitor spending and make changes as needed to ensure fiscal stability and I feel that we should expect the same of our governing bodies.”

Consolidated elections across the state are slated for April 6.