Campaign Phone
765-357-8456
Education
BS Purdue University, MS Purdue University
Experience in Leadership and Management
Board Member-West Lafayette Library, Board Member-Red Cross, Central Indiana, Board Member,-Adult Learners, Inc. VP- Audiology- Indiana Speech Language Hearing Association, Commissioner-West Lafayette Redevelopment Commission
Increase in funding for traditional public schools that keeps up with inflation. School funding for traditional public schools continues to decrease with every budget cycle making it more difficult for schools to keep up with competitive wages for teachers and paraprofessionals. Appropriate funding would allow Indiana to compete with other states for educators. The excess diversion of funding to private and charter schools has forced funding to fall below inflation levels for traditional public schools. Much research has been done about how to improve education for all students. In spite of this, the state Republican priorities have imposed excessive testing, larger class sizes due to funding shortfalls, & teacher shortages throughout state
I would like to see a substantial increase in protection & access for all voters in Indiana. New legislation passed in Indiana has raised barriers for existing voters and those registering to vote for the first time. Limited voting times on Election Day create a barrier for voters that work or need childcare. False & misleading information, spread through social media, promotes unfounded distrust in our voting system. It is no coincidence that Indiana ranks near the bottom of 50 states for voter turnout. Increased restrictions on access to the polls and loss of faith in voting is eroding our democracy. Voters must participate in the voting process. This lack of voter participation far outweighs the scarce documentation of real voting fraud.
Indiana needs a statewide, in-depth analysis of water availability, projected growth, & long term planning for water use to assure adequate supply for today & the future. Indiana should not only have water regulations in place to protect water use but also protections from overuse or damage to natural aquifers & ecosystems. According to U.S. News & World Report, Indiana ranks 38th for water quality & 50th for pollution. Indiana's current lopsided political situation causes policy that fails to take environmental protection seriously. It values economics, ROI, & GDP over people, air, and water. We CAN balance economic growth with environmental protection. We must do this for a safe & sustainable future for our children.
I will continue to push for legislation that protects communities' freedom to decide how to accomplish their housing goals. The state has provided funding to help with infrastructure costs. This lowers housing costs and encourages housing production. However, I do not feel it is the role of the state to centrally dictate what that development looks like. I continue to encourage counties like Tippecanoe County, among the fastest growing in the state, to make smart plans that reflect its growth patterns and priorities. I will also protect local building ordinance decisions and encourage local units to make choices for their community. Legislation that lowers cost by allowing skipped steps in order to build cheaper houses does not serve us.
Indiana currently does not have a voter ballot initiative found in many other states. Unfortunately, Indiana’s constitution only allows very important questions to be decided by the General Assembly. The argument has been that, since we have elected officials representing the population, a voter ballot initiative is unnecessary. I disagree. Obvious and pervasive gerrymandering has allowed elected officials to choose their voters. Gerrymandering skews representation & thwarts the will of the people of Indiana. Over the past decade, gerrymandering and voter suppression have built a supermajority of elected officials who disproportionately represent minority opinions. Many Indiana citizens live in media deserts limiting access to information
Campaign Phone
717-549-1522
Education
University of Maryland, Bachelors's, Government & Journalism; Purdue University, Social Studies Education;
Experience in Leadership and Management
Purdue University, Director of Nation Broadcast Media Relations; United States Army, Public Affairs Specialist/Platoon Leader; Wake Robin HOA board, Purdue University/Ivy Tech, Communications/Writing Instructor; Faith Church neighborhood outreach coordinator,AFJROTC, Flight Commander
The state is undermining children's ability to learn, specifically properly learn English.
Whole language learning decreased literacy.The state then went to "science of Reading" which includes pseudo phonics.We must return to classical phonics.
ESOL is an over-funded failure. Once a student enters the program they very rarely exit throughout their entire education. It isn't teaching English well.
Purdue teaches teachers to grade students differently depending upon their race/sex/gender. This is racist/misogynistic and must end.
America's peace,prosperity, and greatness is based having been the world's melting pot. The public education system was founded a century-ago to mold children into American citizens. Now it's a Balkanizing force.
Now that COVID is past, we need to return to the tried and true practice of voting in person, on election day, with a state-issued ID (with a birthday, address an expiration date). Under recently adopted electoral processes people who do not live in Tippecanoe County, Indiana, or even America are voting in elections conducted in Tippecanoe County. That is unacceptable.
Elected officials' job is to govern. Citizens have the right and duty to vote. There are no obstacles preventing any Hoosier from voting.
Voter turnout increases when voters feel like there is a candidate that represents them and not the interests of a small but influential and often monied slice of the population.
Fortunately, this year District 26 has such an alternative.
The Indiana Economic Development Corporation has commandeered almost all local natural resources in the state for the commercial benefit of a chosen few. The most egregious example is The LEAP project that will build a 9000-acre business park in Boone County, bringing up to 50,000 jobs to the Lebanon area. But Boone County doesn't have the water to support such development. So, IDEC plans to suck up to 100 million gallons per day (3 billion per month) from the West Lafayette underground aquifer and pipe it down to Boone County (at taxpayer expense). Massive amounts of polluted wastewater will not be treated, much less be returned the aquifer. It will instead be released to affect communities downstream. This is unacceptable. #StopTheSteal
District 26 for decades has had an economy and housing market that has consistently grown at a healthy rate. Sadly, in the last three years inflation rates, interest rates, and property taxes have all soared. This is because a Democrat White House runs annual deficits nearing $3 trillion year. They print money out of thin air, which devalues the dollar, which drives up inflation. To control the problem it created, the feds jack up interest rates, making housing all the more unaffordable. The Biden WH is also ushers in several million illegal immigrants each year. They are consuming vast amounts of public dollars that could be used to assist poor Americans. Solution? Elect fiscally responsible Republicans who protect working-class Hoosiers.
We have ample ways to communicate to our elected representatives what actions we as constituents' would like to see them do or not do. We have a "referendum" every two years as to whether our state representative should remain in office. November's general election is the referendum on the weak, unresponsive, and failed representation District 26 has had since it was resized. Fortunately we now have an alternative with a long track record of aggressively, courageously, and successfully representing the concerns of constituents in our district...something we need desperately need in the state house.
