I decided to run for School Board because my children’s school was on the closure list last year, and I witnessed firsthand the damage it caused in our community. Even though in the end the plan was delayed, it resulted in our principal leaving, our beloved secretary left, and my youngest daughter’s pre-k class is only half-full next year (because people do not want to send their kids to a school that might be closed). I believe that the District can do a better job with how we manage that process. That does not mean no school will ever be closed. However we can do a number of things to make sure we conduct District realignment in the right way.

I believe the CCS School Board should go to work every day believing that a primary component of their role is to recapture our lost students. I do not believe it’s possible that the children of Columbus are being educated better by mostly unaccountable and less qualified charter schools. The way that the State of Ohio has incentivized parents to pull children from public schools, and then punish public schools when those children leave, is shameful and disgusting.

We can bring these students back in a few different ways:

— We can create a more stable Board to earn the trust of families.

— Our job as board members is to be cheerleaders of the district. We need to be promoting the good things that are happening. We need to talk about the good things the district is doing. We need to get momentum back on our side.

— We need better communication and planning surrounding any realignment. Parents don’t want to send their kids to schools that they think may be closed. We need to stop pulling the rug out from under parents in the district.

— We must work with the community to create the closure plan (not the other way around), and know when it will happen, where the kids will go, where the teachers and classified employees will go before we sign off on anything.

— We should offer competitive alternatives that private schools can’t or won’t offer, such as building partnerships with both labor unions and with the major companies in our City, giving our older students an early understanding of real-world jobs.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

I would first like to understand on a wider scale the specifics behind why families within our district’s bounds choose to send their child elsewhere, and make sure that this information is neighborhood specific. CCS should cheerlead for their schools just as much as out-of-state charter school companies do to bring in our students. We must also prioritize equitable allocations of resources. Studies show that charter schools often cater to low-income, majority minority neighborhoods that face the biggest educational disparity. A central point of my campaign is to make CCS the best place to work and learn in our growing region. In order to do this, we must ensure staff are empowered and well resourced, and students are provided with opportunities to succeed in the classroom, and build community outside of the classroom. This means expanding parent-teacher organizations, extracurricular activities, mandating the arts, and expanding athletic opportunities so that students in any neighborhood have an equal chance at success in their extracurricular activities.