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I bring more than 20 years of public service in Vermont, including my experience representing Essex and Essex Junction in the Vermont House. As Vice Chair of the House Human Services Committee, I work on complex issues including health care, child care, housing, and supports for vulnerable Vermonters. My career in state government gives me a strong understanding of how policy translates into practice. As an immigrant who came to this country as a child, I also bring a unique perspective and a deep commitment to ensuring people have a voice in their government. I am a practical, collaborative problem-solver focused on making Vermont more affordable and strengthening our communities.
We need to control education costs without sacrificing the quality of our public schools. I support moving toward a well-designed foundation formula that provides predictable funding based on student needs while increasing transparency and accountability in spending. I also support using Cooperative Educational Service Areas (CESAs) to help districts share services, purchasing, special education resources, and administrative functions where doing so can reduce costs. Our focus should be on finding efficiencies outside the classroom while protecting educators, student supports, and strong educational opportunities in every community.
We should make it easier to build housing where density and infrastructure already exist, including our downtowns, village centers, and other designated growth areas. Vermont should continue modernizing Act 250 and local zoning to encourage infill, multifamily housing, and redevelopment in these areas while reducing unnecessary permitting barriers. Concentrating growth in existing communities can help lower infrastructure costs, support walkable neighborhoods, and increase housing supply while protecting Vermont’s forests, working lands, waterways, and rural character from sprawl.
I have been a lifelong volunteer and engaged community member. When I was a kid, I trick-or-treated for UNICEF, helped out at the food shelf, and painted the floors at the first Good News Garage. In high school, I organized a clothing drive that sent half a ton of winter gear out to the Pinewood and Rosebud reservations in South Dakota. I volunteered for more than a decade with the Essex Community Justice Center. I am a career civil servant, a Certified Public Manager, and a graduate of the Vermont Agency of Human Services Leadership Academy. Beyond all that, though, I am a neighbor. I live in the same community as you, and share many of the same struggles. I know what it's like, and I will serve with empathy, humility, and responsibility.
My wife is a public school teacher, as is my sister-in-law. I get to hear firsthand from them what it's like working in education these days, and I know it isn't easy. Education costs are inextricably linked to health care costs: Rising premiums raise school budgets raise property taxes. Yet, we should be compensating our educators, administrators, and support staff for the vital work they do in and for our community. That's why I'm excited to get behind the push for Universal Primary Care, so that we can help people access care to stay healthier and avoid costlier, more debilitating chronic illness down the line. Any attempts to consolidate school districts must be done with care to ensure local voices remain centered.
Affordable housing in Vermont is often anything but affordable. I know I can't afford $700K for a starter home, and you probably can't, either. And don't get me started on the usurious rents being charged for rental units, when they haven't been turned into short-term housing (which should be discouraged, in my opinion). Clearly we do need more housing -- everybody deserves a place to live -- we also want to preserve the natural beauty of our state. I think there's an opportunity to redevelop dormant properties so that we're not significantly changing the footprint, even if we're changing the land use (from commercial to residential, for instance). In our city centers, that would also present a chance to build walkable micro-communities.
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