How many years have you lived in Maine?: 13

What experiences,  motivations, and leadership styles will make you an effective School Committee representative?:
I have experience working among diverse groups to develop an action plan and implement it.  In 2004 & 2005 I co-chaired a partnership effort between Portland Trails, the City of Portland, and the Nathan Clifford School community  to revitalize the school grounds at the Nathan Clifford School in Portland.  The project was over two years in the making, during which time relationships were developed, budgets were set, funds from various sources were secured, volunteers were coordinated and a plan for multi-stage action was implemented. I understand the importance of meaningful compromise, and I am willing to work for it.  I am committed to developing strategic plans that respond to stated educational goals that have support and buy-in from educators, staff, parents, students and the voting public.

If elected, what would your top three priorities be?  How do they affect young people in Portland?:
1)  Establish clearly defined educational goals that serve as a guidepost for all decision making.  (Students will benefit from the clarity of purpose.  Everyone will benefit from the linear process that establishes policy from pre-stated, accepted educational goals.)
2)  Develop and manage a budget that reflects educational priorities.  (Responsible budget management and oversight that uses stated educational goals as its defining principles will best respond to the needs of the students and the educators.)
3)  Evaluate programs and policies to leverage strengths and understand and address weaknesses.  (Students should be the beneficiary of programs that are evaluated - and therefore understood.  Our district will benefit from analysis that seeks to define strengths and weaknesses and respond accordingly.)

Please share one positive change you have seen in our schools and in the School Committee over the last year?:
I believe that public participation and investment in the schools and related processes has increased over the past year.  The role of the School Committee has, and will continue to be under scrutiny, therefore making them more accountable and responsible for the strategic direction of the education in Portland.

Please share one frustrating change you have seen in our schools and in School Committee over the last year?:
I have seen policy advanced without due diligence, public involvement, and therefore public buy-in.  The School Committee, in the past year, has become more and more divided along political lines.

What competing responsibilities do you have: professionally and personally?:
I am married and am a parent of three.  I am a graduate student.  I work part-time.

How would you make Portland schools more effective and cost efficient?:
I would be dedicated to understanding the budget, line by line.  I would seek to achieve cost savings and increasae efficiency through the consolidation of administrative functions, and I would seek to realize economiesof scale within the City of Portland and in collaboration with other school districts.

Where do you see Gov. Baldacci's consolidation plan or school closings fitting into your measures to increase cost effectiveness?:
Governor Baldacci's plan speaks to creating greater efficiencies within districts by not only potential school closings where appropriate, but also by realizing greater efficiency potential within the district's administration.

What is the role of School Committee in determing the school budget?  What ways would you improve the process of school budgetting?:
The School Comittee, as overseer of the district, policy-making body, and supervisor to the suprintendent, is absolutely accountable for responsive fund allocation and responsible management and of the dictrict's school budget.
School system budget oversight, as we have learned, cannot be relegated to individuals or departments without consistent oversight.  The Committee's Finance Committee must be in constant communication with the school department's (or city's finance department) in order to understand the status -- and the effectivity with which the budget reflects priorities.  I believe quarterly budget review by the full committee is appropriate.

With the current reality of Portland's school budget, cuts seem likely.  What would you cut and why?:
Again, I would be very intentional about establishing clearly defined educational goals that serve to guide all decision-making.  I believe our primary task is to effectively educate K-12 students so that they consistently surpass academic adequacy.  Programs that are peripheral to that goal, or fall outside the clearly defined educational goals, will have to be cut.

What priority in funding would you give Portland's new Expeditionary Learning High School?:
Portland's Casco Bay High School is a perfect candidate for the program evaluation that I referred to earlier.  We have the opportunity to understand what precisely the school offers to the dictrict, to students and to families, and to ascribe value appropriately.  I believe we should prioritize funding that directly affects the most positive outcomes for the most students as identified through the district's educational goals.

How do we increase the number of graduates that go on to pursue post-secondary education?  What benchmarks would inform Portland schools towards reaching these goals?:
Maine has a wonderful university system as well as a thriving community college system.  I believe that High School partnerships with these institutions is one way to expose students to the opportunties that exist beyond 12th grade.  We need to get students excited about education, and make the tangible results of additional educational attainment understandable and relevant to them.  I also believe it is a valuable exercise to look beyond Portland's city-limits to towns and cities (in or outside of Maine) whose population composition is reflective of our own, who send more students onto post-secondary education.  What can we learn from them?

Data shows enrollment is declining in Portland schools.  Why do you think this is?  What, if anything, should be done about it?:
I believe there are families who want to send their children to public school, but fear that Portland's system is not good enough.  The reputation of Portland's schools has been seriously tarnished, for a variety of reasons.  People who are uncertain either move from the city when their children reach school age, or they opt for a private or parochial school.  Portland's schools must be positioned to compete with all other school options.  We must improve public confidence and therefore the reputation of the schools.  I believe the best way to capture the students who we currently fail to capture is to galvanize the people within the system who will ultimately be the best source of positive public relations.  Those people currently in the system need to be satisfied that the school district is responsive and responsible.

Do students for whom English is a second language have access to a quality education?:
Yes.  Portland provides quality English-Language-Learner programs.

Do you think student transportation needs any changes?  Why or why not?:
I believe that the reduction in exemptions for bus-ridership is a good thing.  I also believe that more, reliable crossing guards at key, identified intersections can safely improve walkability for students.

Do you have children and where did/do they attend school?  If they were schooled privately, what was the single biggest factor in removing them from public education?:
I have three children; two daughters who are ten years old and one son who is seven years old.  They all attend Nathan Clifford School.