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? Yes No
4. How long have you resided in this district/city?
5. How long have you resided in King County?
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20 years |
6. Is the office sought partisan or nonpartisan? Partisan Nonpartisan
CAMPAIGN CONTACTS
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Campaign Name: |
Committee to Elect Michael DeBell |
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Address: |
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City/State/Zip: |
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Campaign Phone: |
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Campaign Fax: |
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Campaign E-mail: |
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Campaign Website: |
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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 am seeking a seat on the Seattle school Board because I am a passionate advocate for public education, I am concerned about the District's present condition and I have the time, experience and skills to contribute to solutions and provide strong leadership of our public schools. Before expanding on these three points I will note that I have three children who attend Seattle Public Schools (SPS), the oldest of whom just graduated from Ballard High School. My wife is a school nurse who works in SPS. Like many parents I was drawn into involvement in my children's schools and found strong communities that grow up in support of public schools. These communities are often the foundation for life long involvement in our neighborhoods and our city and should be valued and recognized as part of the glue that makes Seattle a great place to live. If our public schools falter or are in constant crisis our city will be proundly diminished. Public education is the tool we have to reinvent our community through our children. If we succeed in educating all children to be college ready, we will greatly expand economic opportunity and diminsh poverty. If our schools are harmonious, multicultural communities we will become more integrated and tolerant. If we honor and fairly compensate our school employees and adequately fund education we will demonstrate our comitment to children and the central role education plays in our economic life. If SPS are well led and work closely with City and State leaders we can accomplish these goals. Budget deficits and wrangling over school closures erodes confidence in our schools and threatens the progress of the last ten years. I would like to emphasize our accomplishments even as we address difficult structural changes and budget realignment. More deliberative and unified leadership could help move SPS out of the crisis mode and back toward pride and ownership which so many parents feel about their neighborhood school. I have run a family business for 20 years, where i have learned many skills pertinent to being a School Board Director. I work with budgets, contracts, strategic planning and real estate everyday. I have sufficient time and energy to devote to an unpaid but very important job. I am committed to my community and would like to contribute to it. My top goals are academic achievement for all children and a program of academic excellence at every school. Balance our budget so that it is sustainable and classrooms are not impacted. Attempt to build a positive image of the School Board and SPS through consensus building and dialogue.
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2. Describe your most important personal characteristics or traits as they relate to the office you seek.
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I believe that I am hard working, thoughtful, problem solving and a consensus builder. I was raised with a strong work ethic that has served me well in my academic, business and personal life. I grew up on a ranch and have worked at many different jobs since I was twelve. I relish challenges and accomplishments, be they collective or individual. I have often been described as a thoughtful person who deliberates and analyzes problems carefully before speaking. I tend to view issues globally and historically, reflecting my lifelong interest in History and Ecology. The challenge of running a family business and my own experimental tree farm has led me to become a problem solver. i have grown more pragmatic and less ideological as I have accumulated experience and years. I seek solutions that are verifiable and within the means of available people and resources. Serving as a Parent Teacher Association (PTA) President has conditioned me to seek consensus and common ground among people of differing views seeking common or overlapping goals. Education often elicits passionate interests and most people, especially parents, have opinions. I try to maintain a calm and respectful tone and make sure that many points of view are heard. These qualities should prove useful if I am elected. I am also a lifelong learner. The solutions to the problems facing our public schools are complex, interrelated and continue to evolve. I am open to new ideas and research and will seek the latest information and ideas available. |
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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2003 to Present- I have served as President of Ballard High School PTSA. We provide resources for academic enrichment, parent volunteers and representatives on all school decision making bodies. I have served on the Building Leadership Team, Principal Hiring Committee and the Budget Committee. I have also been a member of the Ballard High School Foundation and BHS Biotech Academy Steering Committee. 2002 Legislative Chair for West Woodland Elementary. Educating members on school finance and political issues and advocating for school funding. 1999-2001 President Whitman Middle School PTSA. I served on the Transformation Plan Committee and attended numerous seminars on school reform and small learning community models. I also served on the BLT and Budget Committees, Teacher and Principal Hiring Committees and advocated for year long Science instruction which eventually was adopted. 1996-1998 President of west Woodland Elementary PTA. I have attended many School Board Meetings and attended the Governor's Education Summit in May. I have been a Youth Soccer Coach for 12 years and was named Coach of the Year in 2002. My family and I are active in many community, environmental and neighborhood groups. I have acquired many organizational and policymaking skills in my years of volunteer service as well as a high tolerance for long meetings.
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A School Board Director's most important duty is to insure the best quality education possible for all Seattle's children. A public education typically lasts 13 years so long term thinking, consistency and stability are very important A Director does not manage, that is the Senior Staff's job. Directors gather information on their own and receive input from the community, deliberate together and eventually make decisions and adopt policies that promote the School District's mission. They hire and fire Superintendents and oversee the finances of SPS. All of these roles interrelate. The budget must align with policy goals. A good working relationship between the Board and the Superintendent, Teacher's Union and PTAs will insure that Board policies and decisions have traction with those groups who will need to implement and support them. These are the critical duties. A Director should also know the schools in her or his District and advocate for them in the community. A Director can also be a source of information and a place to go for constituents who have issues to address. A Director should also be an advocate with the Legislature and the Governor to increase funding for education when the State Budget is in play. |
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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PhD Candidate Political Science Univ of Washington, Masters Degree Social Sciences Humboldt State University, Bachelors Degree Poli. Sci. and Economics Univ of California |
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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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