About the Candidate
I grew up in Yarmouth, and my husband and I raised our daughters in Massachusetts, retiring to Cumberland in 2018. My career was in customer service and sales administration, managing million-dollar budgets.
Education
University of Maryland, College Park, bachelor’s degree in marketing.
Previous campaigns and elected office(s) held
None
Top three priorities
Strive to maintain the excellent level of education currently provided. Engage an efficiency expert to identify areas of opportunity to reduce operational spending, inclusive of but not limited to a review of staff-to-student ratios and average class sizes. Wncourage transparency with a 10-year detailed capital spending plan.
Why are you running?
I sense a lot of frustration from community members regarding our property tax increases, which are significantly outpacing cost-of-living increases. The yearly property tax increases are challenging for young families, but more so for those on fixed incomes. I would like to be a voice for those community members and encourage a careful review of all spending in order to find a balance supporting our schools with consideration for the tax burden on homeowners.
What is the biggest challenge facing your area’s schools? The biggest opportunity?
MSAD 51 provides an excellent education to our students. This will continue to be a top priority. At the same time, we need to be mindful of the tax burden to our community and thus be open-minded to opportunities to reduce costs. From attending finance and school board meetings this year, I know that our next fiscal year is going to be even more challenging than the one we are currently facing because our debt service increases and becomes an even larger portion of the budget.
If you could change one thing about how your local schools function, what would it be and why?
Cumberland needs more fiscal transparency from MSAD 51. Year-to-date actual spending should be tracked and compared to plan every month. Additionally, when a planned budget is created for the next fiscal year, it should be based upon prior year actual figures, not based upon prior year budgeted figures. Finally, there should be a 10-year plan for all capital maintenance/spending to ensure that we are properly maintaining the buildings for which MSAD 51 is responsible.
Do you think the state government is too involved in local schooling? Not involved enough? The right amount of involved? Explain your answer.
My view of the state’s role is that we want the state to provide general oversight to ensure that all school districts provide the essentials for education and appropriate support to the districts for students who require special assistance. Everyone deserves an opportunity for an education. Ideally the state should not become too involved in the details, provide guidance and oversight. It should provide guidance and oversight while allowing the communities to manage those details.