Name and place of residence: Greg Aubert, Luverne
Family information: Wife, Patti, and children, Zane, a fourth-grader, and Wyatt, a second-grader.
Occupation: Plant manager of Gold'n Plump Poultry Further Processing facility, Luverne
Education: Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Pre-engineering courses were completed at U of M, Morris.
Community activities and involvement: Member of the Southwest Minnesota Workforce Council, served as a board member for Luverne Area Chamber of Commerce 1999-2001, coached youth soccer for four years, served on the curriculum committee for Luverne Schools, volunteer for Bookin' Buddies and is a member of St. Catherine Church, Luverne.
Qualifications for service: "I believe that the next few years are going to be very challenging. The State of Minnesota looks like it will be in a deficit situation. The economy looks to be uncertain in the near term. This will definitely put a strain on the amount of money that the state will be able to allocate to education.
"New innovative ideas will be needed if we want to keep the programs and services that we have in place. I believe that my four years of experience as a plant manager and 10 years in areas such as engineering, purchasing, distribution, transportation, etc., can be a benefit to the school district.
I have experience managing a budget, which is very similar in scope and complexity to the school district. I have experience managing overhead expenses and can give ideas to the administrators on how to reduce these expenses without losing quality or service. I hope that I can also add insight into the budgeting process."
If elected, what should voters expect you to accomplish during your term as school board member? In other words, if elected, what issues will be important to you?
"I would like to see a comprehensive drug education and prevention program at all ages, including parents. I would support class size equity throughout the school (i.e. the fifth-grade class size is substantially larger than the rest of the grade school). Equity in the budgeting process needs to be maintained for all grades. Maintenance of programs and services that are presently in place will be a priority.
"My goal would be to keep the school district financially sound while offering as many opportunities as possible for all students."