1. QUALIFICATIONS: How does your experience prepare you for the duties of this office?
As a leader at my company and seasoned career consultant, I have dedicated my life to solving complex problems in a variety of industries. Managing a school system entails navigating a myriad of complexities, particularly since it’s taxpayer funded. Our Board of Ed needs someone with fiscal acumen, great communication skills, and a desire for transparency – all of which I have. As a mother, I am able to keep focus on the primary beneficiary of the system we hope to improve— the children!
2. PRIORITIES: What are your top three priorities as a school board member, and why?
My three priorities are excellence in education, safety for staff and students, and transparency in all parts of the school system (budget, curriculum, policy and operations, etc).
3. BLUEPRINT: What concerns do you have, if any, about the ‘Blueprint for Maryland’s Future’ (major legislation about public schools passed in 2021)?
I am extremely concerned about the Blueprint as a taxpayer and as a Board Member. I believe the Blueprint is well intended however not fully funded by the state which will cause hardship on Calvert families with inevitable tax increases. We are already seeing unfunded expenses from the Blueprint. Other concerns are physical space limitations for pre-k, and classroom time limitations for teachers which will lead to increase staffing by over 50% or double student to teacher ratios, to name a few
4. SAFETY & WELL-BEING: What measures do you support to address issues of school safety and student well-being, including when students are being disciplined?
We need to begin by enforcing the current code of conduct. We need an SRO assigned to every school in the county, ensuring a dedicated presence for maintaining discipline and safety. Additionally, we need to include families significantly more in the behaviors of their children and its consequences within the school environment.
5. TEACHER RETENTION: What can the school board do to help keep highly qualified teachers in our school system?
In order to retain our dedicated staff the school board needs to establish policies that prioritizes a safe, respectful, and productive environment. Our budget needs to ensure our staff are compensated appropriately and every dollar spent fosters an environment of educational excellence. Lastly the Board needs to ensure staff are included in the feedback loop and decision making processes when it comes school operations, ensuring their valuable insights are considered.
6. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: What is a school board member’s role in engaging parents and community members to support student education?
The school board must prioritize transparent and comprehensive communication strategies within its policies and management practices. It is imperative to engage families more intimately in educational decision-making processes while eliminating any barriers to access. We need to reconsider when and how we communicate and the feedback mechanisms being used. 3:30 meetings are inconvenient, board docs isn't the best way to share information, and public comment isn't alway effective.
7. DIVERSITY, EQUITY, & INCLUSION (DEI): Explain why DEI should or should not remain a part of school system policies and procedures.
As a school system, our primary goal should be to achieve educational excellence. This entails recruiting and retaining the most qualified staff members for CCPS and ensuring that every student is challenged to reach their individual peak of excellence. Moreover, we must prioritize equality of access, striving to eliminate any obstacles that hinder students from realizing their full potential and succeeding academically.
8. BOOK BANNING: What is your position on banning books in school libraries?
I firmly oppose the practice of book banning in libraries. My commitment lies in ensuring educational materials have high age-appropriate literary value. I advocate for recognizing the family as the primary authority in determining what is suitable for their child. I will advocate for policies that uphold parental rights to protect their childs innocence by ensuring sexually explicit materials are not available to minor children without parental consent.
9. NON-PARTISANSHIP: In Maryland, school board races are non-partisan. What are your views on keeping them that way?
As a board, our foremost priority must be the well-being and success of each child. My perspective centers on fostering educational excellence within a safe environment, while promoting active parental engagement. As a candidate, I am committed to serving our diverse community with fairness, emphasizing the importance of adopting a nonpartisan approach to policy-making. Just as classrooms should remain politically neutral, school board races should ensure that the focus remains on the students.