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@shebraevans
Campaign Phone
2406724554
Campaign Instagram
ShebraEvans
As a current board member, my track record and eight years of experience has me uniquely positioned to continue moving the district forward with a laser focus on the board priorities to address disparities in student outcomes in the area of math and literacy to ensure success for all students.
My position is consistent with state law.
COVID caused school and classroom disruptions. Students faced depression, family conflict, anxiety, trauma, and more. As a board member, I fully supported the investments made in counseling and mental health services. The challenges for students remain. Together, the school system and our community at large must address these pressing issues.
As Board president, I supported and testified on the recommendations of the Commission on Innovation and Excellence in Education back in 2019. The legislation was passed as the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future in 2021. The law ensures equitable outcomes for every student. The pillars are a focus of my work on the board and reflected in past and current budgets.
On the board, it has been important for Human Resources to strategically use the recruitment calendar, build relationships with colleges, and support staff that needs to work towards certification or hold conditional certifications. Offer a competitive salary to attract highly qualified and diverse teachers. Our “Grow Your Own” initiative can retain staff from within MCPS to become certified teachers.
Campaign Twitter
@Bethany4BOE
My background and experience as a writer and commentator with a laser focus on children and education, as well as the fact that I'm the parent of 6 children have all prepared me for this time to come forward as the voice for our county's children and families. I am beholden to no political organization and am prepared to place the children of our community first. I am an educator: both of my own children and a former classroom teacher in Cambodia.
Parents are crucial partners in the education of their children. I will continually represent parents to be included and not treated as second class citizens by a board and system that does not have their best interests at heart. I am prepared to listen to all parents, including those with sincerely held religious beliefs and help bring our school system to true inclusions and respect for our families of varied religious backgrounds.
I support ensuring safety of all of our students, starting with calling for an all deck review of serious safety incidents within MCPS. I support a bullying task force to reduce bullying within our schools. All of our students deserve a learning environment free from discrimination and harassment. I will call on our schools to involve parents in the mental health concerns of their children, and to partner with families and not keep secrets. Phones should be banned during the school day.
I embrace and support the planned expansion of the science of reading initiatives within the curriculum. As a writer, literacy and ensuring that all of our students have the opportunity to read fluently must become our highest priority. I will support initiatives that prioritize teachers in classrooms over expanding a bloated administrative workforce. We need to spend community resources on education, not lawyers or bloated administration.
We need to have a serious conversation about safety and respect, and that means having a serious conversation about restorative justice. Teachers need to feel supported and safe, and the climate inside of MCPS does not engender that feeling.
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@LauraStewartBoe
Campaign Phone
2406019519
Campaign Instagram
Stewart.laura
I am a mom of two recent MCPS graduates and I have been in PTA and other children’s advocacy leadership positions at the local, county, and state level for over a decade. I have been able to rebuild organizations after controversy and then develop productive relationships with decision makers at every level of government, leading to initiatives like the Safe School Drinking Water Act and funding for construction and wrap-around services. I’ll be ready to achieve results from day one.
I am a founding member of the Coalition for Inclusive Schools and Communities, formed to support MCPS’s position that there should not be an opt out policy for approved curriculum and books. We gathered over 3,000 signatures from Montgomery County stating that children should be able to see themselves and others in curricula. Allowing system-wide opt outs would lead to children leaving the classroom during science, language arts, and social studies, creating a chaotic classroom environment.
I support fostering more student connections to fellow classmates and trusted adults in schools. MCPS should implement intentional direct outreach programs for extracurricular activities, clubs, and lunch bunches. MCPS should also expand mental health services at school, providing more access to telehealth appointments and fully implementing Handle with Care. I have advocated for both initiatives at the state level. Parent support should also be offered through the parent academy.
Work to close the opportunity gap with comprehensive parent resources starting at birth. Universal Pre-K should be prioritized and funded, including offering scholarships for teacher training. Third grade literacy gaps should be a focus by using the science of reading, an early warning system, and intervention teams. In secondary school, equitable access to quality teachers should be ensured through incentives, in cooperation with the union. Close the tutoring gap by partnering with nonprofits.
First, we should implement and fund “Grow Your Own” initiatives. Fully fund the current program that enables MCPS employees to become teachers. We should grow our career program to train students to become effective teachers and then offer scholarships if graduates teach in their home district. We must also look at financial and benefit incentives to remain competitive with neighboring districts. Finally, evaluate exit interviews and ensure that MCPS has a positive growth mindset culture.
