What are your top three priorities if elected to your local school board? Please provide a ranked list with a brief explanation for each priority.

My top three priorities are School Safety, Academic Achievement and Quality Instruction. School safety is paramount because students can't learn if they don't feel safe. Having strong behavioral expectations in the schools and in the classrooms enhances the feeling of safety for all students and staff. Supporting the administrators who are implementing the code of conduct is a priority to maintain a respectful and productive environment. In addition, I support having trained constables and resource officers as a presence around the campus. Their quality training provides an extra layer of support for the teachers who are managing classroom behavior. Next is academic achievement. It's no secret that we need to improve the percentage of students who are scoring proficient on state measures. During COVID, we lost some ground with a combination of methods to deliver instruction. This was not ideal, but we struggled through and the teachers rose to the challenge of developing, planning and implementing online protocols for hybrid and online instruction. Many students had challenges accessing the lessons and major modifications were made to bring everyone as much learning as possible. Parents made major concessions and arranged to monitor their students as best they could during this time period. With perseverance, I believe we will return to our former status of proficiency. In US News (2024) article, "Best Delaware High Schools", Caesar Rodney is ranked #7 in the state. All the schools ranked higher are private schools (Charter School of Wilmington, Newark Charter School, Cab Calloway School of the Arts, Conrad Schools of Science, Sussex Academy and MOT Charter School). Brandywine and Appoquinimink were 8th and 9th. My third priority is Quality Instruction. We have successfully adopted district wide HQIMs (High Quality Instructional Materials). These are programs and materials that have a proven track record of success when implemented with fidelity. When strong teachers have good professional development, supportive administration, and a schedule that allows them to plan and execute their lessons properly, students will demonstrate amazing progress. I will continue to support our district office and building administrators as they implement quality programming. As a school board, we hold the superintendent accountable for the performance of the students. We support him/her as they strive to retain quality staff through hiring practices and competitive compensation plans. The board works collaboratively to improve opportunities for students. Most issues fall into the four A's: Academics, Arts, Athletics and Atmosphere. There are many more priorities that a cohesive board works consistently to strengthen, but I will stop at those three for now.

If elected, how will you engage families and the community in district decision-making and student success?

To engage families and the community in district decision making and student success I will continue to support our current practice of inviting parents on to interview committees at the building and district level. Having the parent perspective is a valuable asset when screening candidates for certain positions. Another strategy for community engagement is making sure that community members and parents are invited to participate in planning sessions when important and controversial changes are in the air. For example, we are currently having meetings about our grading practices across all grade bands. Community and parent input is critical when moving forward around policy that is so important for students' opportunities. Another strategy I support are frequent surveys from the students as well as the community. Surveys are relatively easy to complete these days and if we can get a good percent of our parents to respond to a survey, we are much better equipped and confident moving forward with changing policies. Parent participation in conferences and IEP (Individual Education Plan) meetings is probably the single most important factor for student success. When students know their parents have a working relationship with their teacher, the difference it can make is remarkable. The home link can give the teacher the influence they need to make a difference in the child's day. When parents cannot attend in person due to busy schedules, we can encourage a ZOOM meeting to ensure the contact is made. Student success is the center of a working triangle: parent, student and teacher.

What are the most pressing challenges currently facing your school district, and how would you approach addressing them?

1) Discipline - Students must understand that the purpose of school is teaching and learning. Their behavior must be in alignment with these goals and if it is not, there will be a consequence. As a board member I would address the challenge of behavior by supporting the administrators that are following the code of conduct. These individuals need to polish their interpersonal skill set so they can communicate effectively with the parents who are key to addressing behavioral challenges. Parents can be confrontational and defensive, or they can be cooperative and helpful. If the administrator can build a relationship with that parent before the behavior occurs, then they are more likely to work with him/her to correct the behavior. Professional development in building relationships is key. 2) Quality Instruction / Academic Achievement - These two go hand in hand. Quality instruction is not only about HQIMs (High Quality Instructional Materials), it's also about a schedule that is conducive to implementation with fidelity. Most HQIMs come with research about how and why they have been effective. If the implementation manual comes with a recommendation of 90 minutes per day and we only allow 60 minutes per day in the schedule then we have a disconnect. Principals and building leaders must familiarize themselves with the protocols that are non-negotiable in order to effect the outcomes they desire. Once the needs are prioritized, their schedule will fall into place. District Leadership must ensure that they are not throwing up roadblocks in the schedules that interfere with these priorities. 3)Teacher retention - Once we have conducted a market analysis for the teacher pay across our area, we need to communicate our findings to the community with full transparency. To keep our status as a premier district we must be competitive with teacher pay at all stages in a career. To stay competitive, we will have to pass a referendum for operating expenses. We may find that we are competitive for the area for starting salaries, but as the teacher moves up in experience and education that competitive edge drops off. Neighboring districts might surpass our compensation numbers at ten years experience with a Master's degree. We want to encourage our teachers, especially our experienced teachers, to stay in the district.

“My entire life has been dedicated to education. My mother was a special education teacher in Pennsylvania before it was federal law to educate students with disabilities. PL94-142 was passed in 1975 which made it mandatory to educate all students with disabilities. It came with funding and has evolved into what we now know as IDEA. I knew I wanted to be a special education teacher and I came to Delaware and did that for 32 years. While teaching, I completed my Master's degree in Social and Emotional Maladjustment ('80) and my Doctorate in Educational Leadership ('04). From 2006-2018, I served as the Director for Special Education in a Delaware School District. After retirement in 2018, I was elected to the Caesar Rodney Board of Education. My three adult children all attended 13 years (K-12) and graduated from this district. I have lived in this district for 41 years and now have grandchildren in the district. I have been a dependable member of the board since 2019 and make every effort to be present and visible for all board meetings and several school activities.It would be an honor to serve for another four years.”