Thursday, September 27, 2012

Candidate Annita Seckinger responds to Parents' Coalition Questions


Annita Seckinger is running for the Board of Education seat in District 4.

1. Do you support an online checkbook for MCPS such as is used in a number of
other public school systems including Miami-Dade County Public Schools?

Yes, I do. An online check register allows taxpayers to see how the Districts spend
their money for products and services. It will also encourage the open bidding
process, and thereby assure money is being spent wisely.

2. MCPS has minority contracting goals—we want more business to flow to people of
color. Currently, do you believe the practice of awarding non-bid contracts supports
these goals? What would you do to make MCPS always use a fair and open bidding
process?

I am completely in support of an open bidding process. One way to do this might be
to use a similar method as the checkbook or check register. The BOE needs to be
accountable for its spending since it is spending tax payers’ money hopefully in the
best interest of the tax payers’ children. After a bid is accepted, it should be posted
on line along the other bids that were considered but rejected.

3. Do you support a U turn away from a one-size-fits-all education and restoring
and improving wider choice of education opportunities for our children, including
restoring learning centers for special education students, restoring honors classes,
and restoring non-IT vocational education?

I more than support it. I intend to actively promote a wider choice of education
opportunities, including vocational education. I was one of those children who would
have benefited greatly from such programs. As someone who grew up with (at the
time undiagnosed) severe dyslexia, my school years were difficult to say the least.
Not all children are cut out to be academics, nor do they need to be. We need to
encourage and help our children develop their particular talents and potentials. It
is time we understood that what we keep referring to as learning disabilities are
actually different ways of seeing the world and different learning styles. We need to
respect, celebrate, and help promote them.

4. Do you support requiring new initiatives and new curriculum be required to
undergo a legitimate pilot study that meets the minimum standards from the U.S.
Department of Education for reasonable evidence before deploying to the whole
county? Do you support assessing all new initiatives against the minimum U.S.
Department of Education standard of "what works"?

I am definitely in favor of legitimate pilot studies, but need to learn more about the
US Department of Education standards, before committing to using this as a bench
mark.

5. If elected to the Board of Education, will you support or oppose MCPS' practice of
permitting principals to assess students fees to attend public school classes?

I oppose student fees to participate in public school classes. Public school is
supported by taxpayer dollars and any additional fees for classes are, both illegal,
completely unethical. The practice needs to stop. It is not benefiting our children at
all. We are here to do all possible to help out children, not hinder them.

6. Do you support a U turn from current policy of paying attorneys for advice on
how to skirt the Maryland Open Meetings Act to a policy of full compliance with
the Act and spirit of the law of open meetings, and even going beyond the legal
requirements of the Act?

Spending money on attorneys to defend an illegal action is an unscrupulous act,
and should not be support by anyone. These funds would be of better use to the
community if used in the schools, as would the complying with the Act in the first
place.

7. Do you support returning the preparation of the MCPS budget to the public Board
of Education table?

I believe it should be transparent and public no matter where it is or who is involved.
Frankly, with the current Board’s lack of transparency I wonder if it would make a
difference. We need to solve the transparency issue of the Board as a first priority
before we assign them more things to hide.

8. Do you believe that the MCPS Educational Foundation should be transparent in its
sources of funds and its expenditures?

Believe? Absolutely. I am a firm supporter in transparency on any and all levels.

6 comments:

  1. Thank you for posting these responses. It it refreshing to see responsiveness from aspiring Board members. It would also be lovely to see responses from current Board members should they respond to those same questions. :-)

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  2. Most helpful responses to interesting questions.

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  3. I think questions of any candidate should include their views of the MCEA and the existing union contract. The benefits union members receive are far more generous than that of the average Montgomery County citizen (and if you don't believe me, check out the union contract and benefits information publicly available on the MCEA and MCPS websites).

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    Replies
    1. Great question! Problem is, none of the Jon Gerson/Apple Ballot picked candidates will answer those questions, so you will never get an answer from them.

      We can't even get answers to the basic questions that we have asked. No response from Christopher Barclay, Phil Kauffman, Fred Evans or Rebecca Smodrowski. We've asked 4 times over many months. No hope for any of these candidates to be responsive if re-elected/elected.

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  4. You can get these questions answered at the Civic Fed's Board of Education Candidates' Forum, Wed., Oct 17th, 7-9 PM to be held at the Rockville Memorial Library, 21 Maryland Ave., Rockville (nearby parking, and within walking distance of the Rockville metro stop). Please attend. This forum, as with our forum before the primary election, is open, with questions emailed to me or the Civic Fed (www.montgomerycivic.org) ahead of time, or taken from the floor.
    Paula Bienenfeld
    Education Committee Chair and First Vice President, Montgomery County Civic Federation

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  5. We find the Apple Ballot to be an AWESOME resource...about whom to vote AGAINST.

    ReplyDelete

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