2003 Candidate Questionnaire

 

SECTION I               

 

BASIC CANDIDATE INFORMATION

 

1.      Name as it will appear on the ballot

 

First Name

Middle Initial or Nick Name

Last Name

Betty

L.

Hoagland

 

2.   Office sought (include office, jurisdiction, position/district number):

 

Seattle School Board, Position Six

 

3.   Are you the incumbent?                                No

 

 

4.   How long have you resided in this district/city?

 

22 years

 

5.   How long have you resided in King County?

 

41 years

 

6.   Is the office sought partisan or nonpartisan?         Nonpartisan         

                                                                                                                       

7.   If partisan, please indicate party:       

 

CAMPAIGN CONTACTS

 

Campaign Name:

Committee to Elect Betty Hoagland

 

Address:

 

2617 Belvidere Ave. SW

 

City/State/Zip:

 

Seattle, WA.  98126

 

Campaign Phone:

 

206-932-9411

 

 

Campaign Fax:

 

206-937-6034

 

 

Campaign E-mail:

 

electbetty@comcast.net

 

 

Campaign Website:

 

www.electbetty.com

 

 

POLITICAL BACKGROUND

 

1.   Beginning with the most recent position, please list public offices which you have held.  Include positions on appointive Boards or Commissions.

 

Public Office

Elective or Appointive?

Dates Held

Leadership Role (if any)

Schools First

 

Elective

 

2002-present

 

Vice-President

 

Seattle Council PTSA

 

Elective

 

1999-2001

 

President

 

Alliance for Education

 

Appointive

 

1999-2001

 

     

 

 

2.   If you ran for public office but were not elected, please list those races below:

 

Office Title

Year of Run

None

 

     

 

     

 

     

 

     

 

     

 


 


SECTION III

 

In this section, we are seeking responses that reflect the four ratings criteria: involvement, effectiveness, character, and knowledge.  These are defined as follows:

 

  • Involvement: What has the candidate done previously in family, neighborhood, community, volunteer work, employment or public life to suggest readiness to accomplish challenging objectives? How do these activities demonstrate readiness for the challenges unique to the office sought?

 

  • Effectiveness: Has the candidate demonstrated promise of being productive in the office sought?  Has the candidate shown the ability to work with other people?

 

  • Character: Do the candidate's personal traits show the ability to take on the responsibilities of campaigning for and holding the public office she or he is seeking? Is the candidate a leader, participant or observer?  Is the candidate trustworthy, reliable and candid?

 

  • Knowledge: Has the candidate demonstrated the willingness and ability to learn and adapt?  Does the candidate understand the duties and challenges of the office sought?  Does the candidate have a firm grasp of the issues important to his or her constituency and their potential effects?

 

 

1.      In a page or less, why are you running for this office?  (Note: the interview committee will be given a copy of this statement before your interview; at the beginning of your interview you will have the opportunity to expand on this statement in any way you wish.)

 

I am running for the Seattle School Board because I honestly feel it is the most important office in our city. 

 

Why?  Because regardless of where you live, where your children go to school, or whether you even have children, the fate of our schools is tightly tied to the fate of our city.  As our public schools sink or rise, so will the city’s ability to attract and retain residents, businesses, talent, ideas and energy. 

 

Our school district faces many challenges; Academic achievement for all children, Fiscal integrity, and Building community trust, these are the issues most important to me. 

Instead of negative and divisive campaign rhetoric, we need strong, intelligent leadership to meet these challenges and restore confidence in the Seattle School District. 

 

I have spent thirteen years serving as a committed advocate for public education, not only as a parent, but working with the Seattle School District to effect change within the system.  My exhaustive record of volunteer service; not just for the children of this city, but this region and our state, speaks to the dedication I have for our children's health, welfare and education. 

 

Our District is not broken, but it needs strong leadership to steer it back on course.

 

I am that leader. Now more than ever, the Board will need to work cohesively as a team to solve the challenges facing the Seattle School District and restore the trust of parents and taxpayers in Seattle.  This is the time for candidate who understands the broad and deep issues that face this school district, our city, and business community.

 

I have the skills, experience, time and knowledge needed for a quick and efficient transition to being a School Board member.  I do not represent any special interest group, political party or political agenda.  I am the best candidate to represent West Seattle for the next four years on the Seattle School Board.

 


 

2.      Describe your most important personal characteristics or traits as they relate to the office you seek.

 

I am responsible for my actions and will admit when I am wrong.  I am not afraid to start over to see that a job is done right.  I am honest and trustworthy.  I know I am not an expert on all the issues and so I ask questions and look for advice from people who are. 

 

3.      Please describe in sufficient detail, one to three accomplishments or contributions of which you are most proud.  These examples should illustrate effective skills and capabilities you think apply to the office you are seeking.  These accomplishments may have occurred at any time in your personal, professional, or public life. 

 

The first accomplishment I am proud of is twice being elected as President of the Seattle Council of PTSAs.  Council membership is comprised of each PTA in the Seattle School District and its members.  This body is as diverse and culturally rich as our school district.  PTAs with memberships of over 700 to ones struggling to have the minimum of 25.  PTAs with annual budgets of close to a quarter of a million dollars to those of barely three thousand dollars.  All of them committed to the children of their community. 

 

As Council President, my role was to represent and speak on behalf of this diverse group.  That meant I had to have close contact with my constituency and understand their community and issues .  I also had a board to work with.  A board not choosen by me but also elected.  I had to learn who these people were and how to work effectively with them and most important, how to get all of us to have a shared vision not just working on behalf of their own special interests.

 

The second contribution I am proud of is being named Co-Chair of the Alliance for Education's Public Engagement Task Force, James Kelly, President and CEO of the Urban League is the other chair.  Robin Pasquarella and the staff of the Alliance, being aware of my knowledge of parents and grass-root opinion, asked me two years ago to co-chair this task force charged with; building the public will to support transformation in our schools, build relationships with key community leaders and to reach out and engage the diverse sectors of our community.  This task force  has representitives from the disablities community, NAACP, United Indians of All Tribes, private schools, The Minority Executive Directors Coalition, Seattle School District, our bi-lingual community, the teachers union, United Way, PTSA, UW, Department of Neighborhoods and Washington State Board of Education.  We are all dedicated to put the "Public" back in public education through engaging the public in a broad and deep manner.


 

4.      Please list or describe your current and past activities in the community in which you have acquired skills that relate to the office you seek.  Include your role in the activity and the year(s) in which you were involved.  Involvement consists of many areas such as family, neighborhood, community, employment, or public life.

 

ALLIANCE FOR EDUCATION - The Alliance for Education is a non-profit community organization working in partnership with the Seattle Public Schools to develop resources and leadership to transform schools so that all children achieve at higher levels.

 

Board Member (1999-01)

 

Committees:

         Co-Chair Public Engagement Task Force, my co-chair is James Kelly, President & CEO,              Seattle Urban League(2001-present)

         Public Education Network Grant Advisory Group (2001-present)

         School Transformation Advisory Group (2002- present)

         School Transformation Steering Committee (2000-02)

         Education Funding Reform Task Force (1999-00)

         Reading Compact (1999-00

         Arts Compact (1999-01

         Early Childhood Education Readiness (1999-00

         A+ Awards Selection (1998-2001)

 

SEATTLE SCHOOL DISTRICT

 

SEATTLE SCHOOL DISTRICT COMMITTEES

         Budget Stakeholders Committee; made recommendations to the Superintendent for    reductions in SSD 2003/04 budget (2002-03)

         Initiative 728 Oversight Committee; makes recommendations and oversees spending of I-728 dollars (2001-present) 

         National Science Foundation Committee; designed and implemented science curriculum K-8 (1999-2000)

         Technology Levy Advisory Committee; implemented district technology plan (1998-99),

         Budget Stakeholder Committee; made recommendations to the Superintendent for reductions in SSD budget

            (1998-99)

         Advertising Policy Committee; recommended commercialism policy to Seattle School Board (1997-98)

 

Legislative Leadership Team; Collaborative effort between the school district, Seattle Education Association and Seattle Council PTSA to draft and implement effective legislative plan (2000-01)

 

Attendance (over 85%)

Seattle School Board Meetings, Work Sessions, and Hearings (1998- present)

Attended all of the Seattle School Board Retreats (1998-present)

 

LEVY AND INITIATIVE CAMPAIGNS

 

Schools First! - Schools First! is the citizen levy organization designed to foster support for the Seattle Public Schools through the passage of school levies

 

Board Membership (1999 to present)

Vice President (2002- present)

Election Leadership Team (2000-01)

Levy Co-Sponsor (2001)

Campaign Worker (1998-99, 2000-01)

 

Initiative 728 Campaign -- Statewide campaign to reduce class size, provide extended learning opportunities for students and professional development opportunities for teachers

Initiative/Campaign Leadership Team (2000-2001)

 

Family and Education Levy -- City of Seattle

Multi-year city levy designed to partner with the Seattle School District to deliver resources not covered by State education funding for school age children

Levy/Campaign Leadership Team (1997-98)

 

 

PTA EXPERIENCE

 

Seattle Council PTSA

            Governing body for 81 local PTA units comprised of 11,000+ PTA members

President (1999-2000, 2000-2001) President-Elect (1998-99), Middle School Co-VP (1997-98), Elementary Area VP (1995-97)

Council Committees; Nominating, Audit, Budget, Reflections, Golden Acorn, Parent University, Ski-attle Oversight - (SCPTSA Ski School)

South Shore Middle School (now Aki Kurose), Ways and Means/ Auction Co-Chair (1996-97) Lafayette Elementary PTA: President (1993-1994, 1994-1995), Ways and Means (1991-93), Auction Co-Chair (1998, 1999) 

 

Washington State PTA

Region Six Service Delivery Team (1998-2003), representing Seattle, Northshore, Shoreline and Vashon Island PTAs

Region Conference Class Presenter (2003, 2002, 2001, 2000)

WSPTA Committees: State Leadership Team (2002-2003) Bylaws (2000- 02), Reflections Art Competition   (2000- 02), Membership (1999-00), Convention Door Prize (1998-99)

Service Delivery Conference, August: (2000,1999,1998,1996,1995)

Legislative Assembly, (2001, 2000)

PTA and the Law: (2001, 2000,1999,1998,1997,1993)

Council Task Force (1999,1998)

Convention: Class Presenter (2003), Class Facilitator (2003, 2002, 2001, 2000),  Information Booth             Volunteer (2003, 200l, 1999, 1998)

Representative KIRO "Tools for Schools" Selection Committee (1999)

     

 

 

 

  1. Please describe the duties of the office you seek.  Which are the most important duties and why?

 

Simply put, school boards govern and administrators implement.  Members of school board fulfil their role in four ways:

Vision -- The board, with extensive particpation by the community, should develop a vision of what the public schools need to  be, formulate goals to meet the needs, define outcomes of the goals and set the course of the district.

Structure -- The board employes a Superintendent, adopts missions and goals in alignment with the vision though a strategic planning process, develops and approves policies, formulates budgets and sets high academic standards for students and staff.  The board should also nurture a climate conducive to change and one of critical friends; where good news and bad news is reported in a timely manner, accepted and acted upon appropriately.  A collaborative, honest, respectful, and proactive relationship.

Accountability --  Establish academic and fiscal review of procedures, departments, and programs for value, accountability, and best practices.  The primary focus in the schools should be student achievement and the board needs to make sure all revenue received will be used effectively to assure academic achievement for all students.

Advocacy -- The board serves as our communities key advocate on behalf of students and their schools. Their presence must be visible in our community, our region and on the state level to effect changes needed to support the education of our children.

 

These four duties are intertwined with each other.  Without a vision, we can't have structure, without structure, there is no accounablity and without accountability we cannot advocate.  I cannot just say one is more important than the other.


EDUCATION BACKGROUND SUMMARY

FOR PUBLICATION IN CANDIDATE EVALUATION REPORT

 

The Municipal League’s Candidate Evaluation Report is distributed to voters in print and/or on our website.  It includes a summary of the candidate’s education.  Please summarize your education in 120 characters (letters, punctuation, and space all combined).  The League will delete material that exceeds the space limit by beginning with the last entry.  Suggested order is (degree)  (subject)  (school)  (year, if desired). 

 

Note: If this question is left blank the League will not include education information in your candidate profile.

 

     

 

CIVIC INVOLVEMENT SUMMARY

FOR PUBLICATION IN CANDIDATE EVALUATION REPORT

 

The Municipal League’s Candidate Evaluation Report also includes a summary of each candidate’s civic involvement.  Please summarize your civic involvement in the space below.  We will make every attempt to include the information in the Candidate Evaluation Report as submitted.  Due to space restrictions in the Report, your response is limited to 500 characters (letters, punctuation, and spaces all combined).  It is important that you list your involvement beginning with the most important and ending with the least important.  If you exceed the length of response permitted, or if the League should find it necessary to shorten responses for publication purposes,  deletions will be made beginning with the last item listed. 

 

Note: This information will appear verbatim on the League’s Candidate Evaluation Report.  If this question is left blank, the Municipal League will not include information on your civic involvement in the Report.

 

  Check here if you would like the Municipal League to copy the first 500 characters from Question 4 to paste into this section.

 

Seattle Council PTSA-Governing body for 81 local PTA units comprised of 11,000+ PTA members:  President

Levy and Initiative-Three levies, two for the district and one city education levy.  Statewide,I-728 (class-size reduction) Initiative leadership team.

Seattle School District-Committees on policy adoption, curriculum, budget reductions, levy fiscal oversight.

Alliance for Education-Board member, Co-Chair Public Engagement Task Force, Committees on School Transformation, education funding reform

 

Finished!

If at all possible, send your response to the Municipal League electronically as an attachment, or insert it into an e-mail message (rebecca@munileague.org).  Mail and fax numbers are listed below.  If the League has not contacted you to schedule an interview, please call the League office at your earliest convenience.

 

Don’t forget to send the following to the Municipal League:  a resume, a photo, campaign literature, and, if you are an incumbent, constituent newsletters and other materials.  Please use the check-off list on the cover sheet of this packet to indicate which items you have sent.

 

THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION AND GOOD LUCK IN YOUR CAMPAIGN!

 

THE MUNICIPAL LEAGUE OF KING COUNTY

 

Candidate Evaluation Coordinator:  Rebecca Cooper

 

810 Third Avenue, Suite 224                  Phone: 206-622-8333                Email: rebecca@munileague.org

Seattle, WA 98104-1614                        Fax: 425-671-0506                        Website: www.munileague.org