1. Name as it will appear on the ballot
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First Name |
Middle Initial or Nick Name |
Last Name |
2. Office sought (include office, jurisdiction, position/district number):
3. Are you the incumbent? No
4. How long have you resided in this district/city?
5. How long have you resided in King County?
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25 years |
6. Is the office sought partisan or nonpartisan? Nonpartisan
CAMPAIGN CONTACTS
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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) |
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2. If you ran for public office but were not elected, please list those races below:
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Year of Run |
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In this section, we are seeking responses that reflect the four ratings criteria: involvement, effectiveness, character, and knowledge. These are defined as follows:
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.)
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I believe that we can bring out the best in Seattle Public Schools through effective management of existing resources. We need to manage our money responsibly, improve our financial stability and value our teachers, principals and staff. The School District has had a history of deteriorating communication. The result has been poor financial management and decreasing morale. I am a nationally recognized expert in improving government efficiency through improved communication. This is my career. I have helped to write national and international standards. I have 15 years experience as a steward of public funds.
The financial recovery of the schools will hinge on improving the working relationships within the school system. We are witnessing the downstream effects of business decisions made over the last 15 years. These decisions were made one at a time and probably seemed in the best interest of the District when they were made. They include the placement and function of personnel, the level of support they receive through training and their placement in the organization. In other words, the financial recovery is dependent on making every dollar count.
Before we can make every dollar count, we must account for every dollar. This will be made easier with the purchase of compatible software packages. The software alone will not supply the solution. The trend in government has been to standardize and harmonize reporting. Every person that needs information recieves the correct information, at regular intervals in a format that they can instantly use. The District needs to make maximum use of this dollar saving trend. In order to do so, stakeholders must work out what information needs to be shared, how often and in what format.
This is my area of expertise. I served on a White House eGovernment modeling team, where our efforts were adopted as an American National Standard (ANSI) and also an International Standard (ISO). I currently serve on the Technical Subcommittee to the statewide e911 Advisory. My current position in Mason County is to implement a program to improve government efficiency.
I believe that all students deserve an education that will challenge them. When we account for every dollar, we can make every dollar count. We can bring out the best in Seattle Public Schools. |
2. Describe your most important personal characteristics or traits as they relate to the office you seek.
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I am a "must know" person. My degree is in geology with graduate work in biogeochemistry, and I am accustomed to dealing with incomplete datasets. However, it is much more satisfying to delve deeply into a topic, to familiarize myself until I feel conversant. As a School Director, I will be prepared to: 1.) admit that I do not know, 2.) commit to learn, 3.) remain neutral and open minded until I have reviewed a well documented body of information.
I am a "must do" person. Wallingford United Methodist Church had a repository of canned goods, just in case someone stopped by the office seeking assistance. It was one of my duties to ensure that there was always a little something on the shelf. I could not but help draw on my own experiences with having to ask for help. Six years earlier, in the late fall of 1984, with nothing in the cubbard, I visited my local food bank. I received a hat, a dozen blighted apples and a box of soggy candy canes. The first thing I did was to draw greater attention to the food bank. Donations began to roll in at a much greater pace. I made contacts with the Tilth and people began to donate weekly allotments of beautiful produce. I organized a contigent of children to decorate bins with contact paper -- they used a heart in hand them. Using the bins, I ordered the food bank to look and feel a lot more like a little grocery store. People coming to receive assistance received a shopping bag and were left alone to "shop" for food, selecting from personal preferences, without supervision. This preserved dignity. We were also the only food bank in Seattle, that I know of, where a visitor did not have to prove they had an address to receive assistance. As a School Director, I expect to find unlimited opportunities to pour my heart into students, staff and schools.
I am a "must try harder" person. I formally left high school in my sophmore year. Someone cared enough to invite me into the Adult High School Completion Program at Tacoma Community College in what would have been my senior year. Learning at a challenging level changed my life. Education rewarded me with both a sense of accomplishment and also new and more rewarding opportunities for employment. Most importantly, somebody believed enough in me to invest in me. I have felt ever since that there was always another opportunity to grow. As a School Director, I will be continuously looking for ways to improve my performance and to show the greatest possible respect for colleagues, the public, the students and personnel.
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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.
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.
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25 years of community service -- Highlights
Founding Board President, Green Lake School Age Child Center. 1987-1989
Girl Scouts, eight years of leadership. Raised a troop from kindergarten through middle school. Member of the Scoutship Committee, financial aid for summer camp. Workshop leader. Nut sales co-ordinator. 1987 - 1996
Artist in Residence, Olympic View Elementary School. Poet and tutor. 1993 - 1994
Artist in Residence, Echo Glen, Poet and tutor to adolescent girls who had all committed close contact murder. 1991 - 1992
Finding Urban Nature (FUN), Seattle Audubon Society, Dearborn Park Elementary. Taught small group science classes. 1999 - 2000
Salmon Docent, Carkeek Park, met school buses and led field trips for students of all ages. 1998
Ecology Club, with Estella Leopold, Seattle Academy. Set and taught curriculum for high school students. Led community service projects 1995 -1996
Food Bank Coordinator, Wallingford United Methodist Church. 1989 - 1990
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"The School Board employs a superintendent, adopts missions and goals in harmony with its vision through a strategic planning process, develops and approves policies, formulates budgets and sets high instructional standards for students and staff." Washington State School Director's Assoicaiton, Serving on Your Local School Board: A Guide to Effective Leadership".
The cotter pin is the vision. A unified and strongly held vision is the central tenet for all missions, policies and budget decisions. My vision is to manage our money responsibly, improve our financial stability and value our teachers, principals and staff.
The budget is the fuel for the machine. An inspiring vision does not buy books, get homeless students to school, provide teacher training. The budget is proof-positive that the Board sees, feels and lives its vision.
The American public school system is meant to provide for all students to learn and to achieve. The School Board has failed as a body if this mandate is not met. Setting high instructional standards is the first step. Providing the resources like exceptional staff, safe schools, functional up to date classroom equipment and thorough, concise, thought provoking text is the corollary. It must be the normal result of setting the standards.
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EDUCATION BACKGROUND SUMMARY
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.
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Bachelors of Geological Sciences, University of Washington Associates of Arts, North Seattle Community College Assoicates of Technical Arts, Legal Assisting, Edmonds Community College |
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.
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25 years of community service -- Highlights
Founding Board President, Green Lake School Age Child Center
Girl Scouts, eight years of leadership
Artist in Residence, Olympic View Elementary School.
Artist in Residence, Echo Glen, juvenile detention center.
Finding Urban Nature (FUN), Seattle Audubon Society, Dearborn Park Elementary
Salmon Docent, Carkeek Park
Ecology Club, with Estella Leopold, Seattle Academy
Food Bank Coordinator, Wallingford United Methodist Church |
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.
Candidate Evaluation Coordinator: Rebecca Cooper
Seattle, WA 98104-1614 Fax: 425-671-0506 Website: www.munileague.org