The Dare County Board of Education is the local governing body of the County Public School System. Its members represent districts but are elected county-wide in partisan races and serve staggered 4-year terms.The 7-member school board has 5 primary responsibilities:1. Employ the superintendent2. Establish policy3. Determine annual operating and capital budgets4. Approve student assignment boundaries5. Oversee the management of the school district’s major systems, including budget and finance, curriculum and instruction, personnel and auxiliary services
Position/philosophy statement
I bring real, local classroom experience to promote academic rigor through differentiated instruction, strong teacher support and parent involvement.
Current Occupation
Retired Teacher
Campaign Phone
252-216-1100
Campaign Youtube URL
I hold a Master of Elementary Education with graduate work and certification in gifted education. I have over 22 years teaching experience, all right here in Dare County. I taught 4th grade, differentiated 4th grade advanced classes in math and reading, differentiated 5th grade advanced classes in math and reading, and provided enrichment for K-5 students as the AIG Facilitator at Kitty Hawk Elem. I was consistently rated as "Exceeded Growth" by EVAAS, an independent rating system.
I also hold a B.S. in Computer Information Systems. I was a part owner and CIO in a multi-million dollar company. I wrote all applications from accounting systems to web design. My experience and skills in data analysis will serve me well as a Board member.
Key responsibilities include providing policies that promote student academic success, teacher support and clear communication to parents. I have specific policies that I want to work with the Board & administration to implement. For example, if the district requires testing, parents should be informed of their child's score to the fullest extent possible.
Overseeing fiscal responsibility is another. With the proliferation of ED Tech, I believe we need annual evaluation system for all materials purchased by the district. Teachers are evaluated on their effectiveness. We should do the same for store-bought resources and programs. My familiarity with data analysis and accounting practices will be advantageous here.
One critical need includes academic rigor. Having lost 3/5 of the Academically & Intellectually Gifted teachers at DCS's elementary campuses, I'm concerned that we are loosing differentiated rigor in our instruction in favor of everyone being on the same program.
Another critical need is a mind-set shift. I will promote teacher expertise above Ed Tech and store-bought programs. Teachers need enough autonomy to differentiate their instruction in their classrooms. I value a teacher's decision of when/how to use district purchased materials above mandated requirements. I believe this will promote teachers' creativity and enable their ability to differentiate appropriately for their individual classroom.
I will support the Board's efforts to provide affordable housing for teachers and staff.
I will support greater teacher input and autonomy in how they manage instruction in their classrooms. I believe this will reduce teacher frustrations and build a collegial atmosphere where teacher's feel valued.
I will support efforts to reduce teacher meetings, and to free-up teacher work days so teachers can spend time in their classrooms. Next to more money, more time is the next best thing we can give teachers.
I will support efforts to allow teachers to pick their own professional development (PD). There is nothing more frustrating than sitting through a day of PD knowing it's inappropriate for your students. I've been there too often.
Pre-K programs are extremely important, and I will support all efforts here. Research repeatedly shows that early intervention, for both high and low learners, reaps the biggest long-term academic success of all student. Students, regardless of ability, benefit from early exposure to the whole concept of school and learning.
At this point, I think this is just common sense. Start them early.
I consider myself a blue collar candidate. Someone who has never held or desired to be an administrator. My love was the classroom.
I was in the trenches all through COVID. We must not ignore what went wrong, but instead be reflective and learn from those experiences. For me, the biggest lesson from COVID is that the teacher is the most import element in a child's education. It's certainly not the laptops. It seems like students are on laptops more than ever. But is that true? We need data, which is why I suggest we collect data on how much time our kids are on their laptops, share that data with parents, and if appropriate, set policy limiting laptop time as other districts have done.
Kids in my classrooms knew that having fun while they learned was fundamental in my teaching. I want our most precious to be taught by happy, stress-free teachers who feel valued and respected. Reducing teacher stress is an essential first step before the fun can begin.
