After abandoning a music major at Arizona State University to study political science, Phil Roeder entered that field professionally with the 1984 presidential campaign for California Sen. Alan Cranston, “when politics went from being a hobby to paying rent.” His continuing work on campaigns and for politicians led Campaigns & Elections magazine to name him as one of the 100 “rising stars” in American politics in 1991. He left Washington, D.C., in 1993 to return to his home state of Iowa with his wife and three children. His five years as the public information coordinator for Polk County included coordinating the planning for the Iowa Events Center. Now assisting clients of the Crawford Law Firm on public policy matters, Roeder was elected to the Des Moines School Board in September and is prepared to sink his teeth into issues that he hopes will benefit the educational development of the district’s 30,000 students.

When you were a kid, what did you aspire to become?

I always had an interest in three things when I was growing up. One was politics and government. Another was music. And I have a big interest in architecture. I wanted to be the next Frank Lloyd Wright. But there was something about math requirements. I thought it was just a matter of drawing neat pictures.

How big a role did music play in your life?

Music and golf were my two big extracurricular activities in high school. I was a total nerd I guess. I went to Arizona State on a full-tuition music scholarship and was a saxophone player majoring in music performance. The only thing that you can do with that degree is to teach college, and in my first year at ASU there was exactly one saxophone professorship nationwide that opened up. And I came to the realization that I was good, but probably not that good.

Did you ever see yourself running for office?

Seeing my name on a ballot for anything was never in my mind. I shared my youngest son’s concern about running for the school board, which is that it’s kind of embarrassing to see your name on yard signs. I’d always been very much a behind-the-scenes person in politics.

After stints in Chicago and Washington, D.C., what made you want to return to Iowa?

It’s almost a given that (in Washington, D.C.) you’re either going to spend tens of thousands of dollars every year to send your kids to private school, or they’re not going to get a very good education. In some ways, getting elected to the school board has brought me full circle back to the reason we returned to Iowa in the first place, which was largely to raise our kids and their own education.

Did you ever feel like you were getting caught up in Washington, D.C., politics?

You couldn’t swing a dead cat out there without hitting somebody with almost the exact same resume as you. The only difference between people is whether you’re a Democrat or a Republican, but other than that, you’ve all done more or less the same amount of work. We got to a point where we realized that it’s a great place to live on the weekends, but the Monday through Friday grind wasn’t worth it.

Through all of your work in the public sector, do you have any experiences that you consider your favorite?

In some ways, the most interesting public position I’ve had was when I was working in the Polk County manager’s office. I oversaw the media relations and was also very much involved in helping with coordination of the Iowa Events Center. It helped me further realize that the further down the government ladder you go, the more of an impact you have. My experience has been kind of upside down in terms of what people might think of career progress, but there’s definitely a reverse proportion between the level of government and what you can actually accomplish.

Why did you decide to run for the school board?

My wife and I have always been very involved in our own kids’ education. We’re the kind of parents who had to visit a museum every weekend, or when they were in their cribs it was either Miles Davis or Mozart on the stereo. Then I got very involved with the schools’ first campaign that initiated the local option sales tax, and I had the opportunity to co-chair the planning committee for Greenwood School (renovations). It helped me get a better perspective on some of the issues facing our school district overall. And I felt that there was a need for some new leadership on the school board.

You said you would visit all 62 schools in the district in your first 62 days on the board. Were you able to do that?

I got through 40-some, and with the combination of work and the holidays, things got thrown off. I was at three schools last week, and I’m going to three schools this week. That has been one of the most rewarding parts of the job so far: to get out and see what’s going on in our schools.

Do you ever have thoughts of running for a higher office?

The only way I would is two ways: kicking and screaming. I know the rule of politics is never say never. But for me, that’s not the reason I got involved. I’m strongly committed to public service, and I think it’s an obligation, not an option.

After your involvement with the Iowa Events Center leading up to the ground-breaking, does it make you proud to see it taking shape?

It does make me extremely proud. Arthur Davis (former Des Moines mayor and former head of the Iowa Democratic Party) used to talk about obituary material: In other words, when you’re gone, what you will be remembered for. At this point in time, I hope one is the school district and two is the Events Center.