The Connection

Office sought: Broad Run District Representation for Loudoun County School Board

Party Affiliation: REPUBLICAN and ENDORSED BY REPUBLICAN PARTY FOR THIS OFFICE

Previous offices held: Was on Regional School Board in the past

Incumbents: There are no incumbents to this position

Occupation: Local Attorney - Divorces, Wills, Contract Litigation etc

Current employment: Self-Employed Attorney licensed New York, Virginia, Connecticut, New Jersey & DC

Previous employment:

Education: BS Industrial Engineering, MBA Finance, Juris Doctorate

Community ties:

ENDORSEMENTS:

Endorsed by Teachers, School Administrators, Business Owners and Parents in the Ashburn area and the Republican Party

1. What is your top public-service accomplishment?

As a former School Board Member I am proud of voting exclusively in the best interest of children not swayed by political pressure. Specifically I voted to preserve diverse language programs, sponsor competitive activity for any school activity and not just allow the football budget to bankrupt al other student activities, emphasize cooperative educational emphasis and hold teachers accountable for time and results achieved during the school day.

2. Incumbents: Describe the top accomplishment of your last term.

N/A

3. What are the top five problems facing your constituents and what approaches will you use to solve them? Describe one challenge (or more) in your district that is different than other parts of the county.

Hard working parents living in a great neighborhood area like Ashburn should not have to worry on a yearly basis that some County planner is going to force their child to have to leave the school they could walk to and get on a bus because Loudoun County retained the right to do so. Children in the school system in Ashburn should have School Board Members knocking down doors for them to expand their education to include local business operations like the Redskins, Adelphia, Verisign, Courts, Hospitals etc to being learning to reality for children in our school system. All suspensions should be reviewed on the basis of what else could be done to further challenge the child rather than punish the child. All discipline problems need to be addressed by Administrators not teachers in the classroom. Class sizes need to be reduced but shipping children from all parts of Loudoun to already overcrowded Broad Run Schools is a planning issue that questions why so many highly paid Administrators would ever have allowed this to become an issue.

4. What qualities, qualifications and characteristics will you bring to this office?

Highly analytical, business and legally sensitive and an active parent provide me the energy and capacity to participate at a very high level to quickly resolve school problems thereby properly representing Broad Run where it is expected that children are the emphasis of education not the victim of it.

5. How will voters best distinguish between you and your opponent(s)?

I have not pandered to various PAC related organizations to obtain their self-serving, calculated endorsements. Those who know me have seen me actively on their side fighting Dominion Power so power lines don't ruin Ashburn Village, on their side actively fighting the obvious traffic impact of having a baseball stadium in Ashburn, Actively on their side fighting Loudoun County efforts to split Ashburn into three school districts and I have met many neighbors because of my efforts to help at St. Theresa, LYSA SOCCER and many other Ashburn centric activities.

6. Is there "waste" in the school budget? If so, where and how much? If you can't pinpoint precisely, in what specific area would you be looking?

If there is I will find it.

7. What have been the advantages and disadvantages of SOLs?

SOLs have the benefit of requiring teachers to demonstrate results but the information contained in most of them is not global nor national in substance. Who cares what the names of all the rivers in Virginia are or that a region west of the Blue Ridge is known as valley region! I prefer much more attention to teaching children to think rather than rather than rote memory aids!

8. If you had an extra $1 million to spend on the school system any way you would like, how would you spend it?

Security cameras need to exist at every entrance to insure that should there be a problem  we don't have to guess who was in the school. Second, I believe that significant added income not taken from tax revenues can be generated by having profession attention paid to better utilizing facilities for community activities. Schools are great assets that can be used for much more than just teaching and cub scouts.

9. What are the hallmarks of a well-run school? Include measurable characteristics.

Involved parents volunteering to help. In this regard I plan on building a parent talent data base so the school knows whom to call for what when it is needed.

10. What are the hallmarks of an excellent teacher? Include measurable characteristics.

Excited about the children and the information being imparted to them!

11. If you were to create your own core curriculum, what subjects would you include? Place in priority order.

Reading, writing, arithmetic and generic problem solving.

12. How would you increase involvement of the general public in the public schools?

Child by child I would envision parental support being preferred and local business would jump at the opportunity to efficiently reach such parents which should be emphasized!

13. How would you increase parental involvement in the public schools?

Just ask after having done a great job with their child.

14. What additional public safety steps would you recommend in addressing gangs and violent activities on or near school property? Has the rate of violent acts increased, decreased or stayed the same in the last four years?

Police need to see their jobs as protecting the community not generating revenue for the local precinct! Stop parking in those special speed trap spots and go to the places where the population is such as schools. Police should be working 24 by 7 meaning the majority of support comes after dark when gangs tend to operate. Police executives need to stop trying to convince the public how safe they are making everything and report every incident that occurs, where and with information as to how regular folks can overcome it. Police privacy of information is one of the greatest contributors to expansion of crime while it could be one of the greatest assets if properly communicated to solving crimes which is especially available in a community as computer savvy as Ashburn Village.