CHESTERTOWN — Earlier this month The Evening Enterprise reached out to the four candidates in the race for two seats on the Kent County Board of Education, asking them to answer the same questions and to include a short biography.
Responses were limited to 500 words.
Printed here are the candidates’ responses in their entirety and unedited.
The candidates are listed alphabetically.
PIERS HERIZ-SMITH
My name is Piers Heriz-Smith and I am asking for your vote for the Board of Education. I am a retired veteran and naturalized citizen. I am married to my high-school sweetheart, Rebecca. We have two children: Arthur, 13 and Cannon, 16.
I immigrated from England to the U.S. as a child in 1975 and spent my childhood in Appalachia. I worked on a horse farm and studied meteorology/climatology before serving 23 years, Air Force Medical Service.
I deployed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, providing care to Cuban and Haitian migrants and refugees. Seeing people who risked their lives fleeing communism and political violence, for a chance to experience the American Dream, motivated me to become a U.S. citizen at 27.
I spent several years in the 90’s supporting the Aeromedical mission in the Balkans. That mission provided a stark view of how a country can be torn apart by extremism that targets specific demographics as scapegoats.
My last assignment was Program Manager, Medical Logistics, National Guard Bureau. I was responsible for ensuring units within the Command were equipped to accomplish their assigned missions and overseeing the educational requirements of two career fields. The position involved analysis, deliberate planning, and the validation of requirements.
Why are you running for school board?
I am running for BOE for several reasons:
1. KCPS has suffered the progressive effects of neglect by successive administrations that concentrated their efforts in growing a community of retirees and owners of second homes at the expense of young families and the infrastructure that would support them.
2. Every child deserves an education that provides a level playing field for life. Education breaks the bonds of generational poverty and reflects the ideal of a nation of equals. Just as importantly, a representative democracy depends upon an educated constituency capable of critical thought.
3. Local school boards have become the latest battleground in a bitter culture war. Kent County and our children deserve better. BOE decisions should be based on objective analysis, deliberate planning, and an impartial validation of requirements. This is where my expertise lies.
What are the three biggest challenges you see facing KCPS?
The challenges facing KCPS:
1. Public perception.
2. Declining enrollment. We are stuck in a positive feedback loop. Poor perception of KCPS leads to reduced enrollment, which results in reduced funding. Reduced funding leads to constrained resources.
3. Resources. You cannot criticize an organization for failing to meet objectives if they don’t have the necessary resources. A good first step would be a county-wide audit by a disinterested party to identify efficiencies.
What do you hope to achieve in your tenure on the Board of Education?
Broad goals:
1. Meeting legal requirements is a bare minimum. Validating requirements and developing a strong relationship with Annapolis to address shortfalls.
2. Providing a superior education. Our children deserve that, including extracurricular activities and services above the legal minimum.
3. Transparency in how appropriated funds are executed.
LAURA MCKENZIE
I’ve been a proud KCPS parent for over 18 years. I’ve been a special education professional and licensed mental health therapist. As a parent, I advocated on behalf of my children to receive additional supports from KCPS and the community to help them through those difficult periods. I am grateful for the support I received at their schools, at my local church, and from their mental health providers. I also served as a liaison between nonpublic schools in Maryland and MSDE to represent the needs of transitioning youth in nonpublic schools. I regularly attended statewide trainings for transition professionals and collaborated with a variety of state agencies, nonprofits and employment providers to connect students and their families to the supports needed to help students achieve their educational and employment goals.
Why are you running for school board?
I’m running for the board because I see how our students are struggling educationally and emotionally. I believe it’s vital to have a board member who is experienced in education and mental health and who understands the complex needs of our current student population. Now more than ever, we need a board member that welcomes accountability and prioritizes accessibility and responsiveness towards our students, parents, staff and community. I’m accustomed to state-level collaboration, communicating with experts in their field and advocating for best practices. I’m all about bringing the best ideas to the table and providing more opportunities for those doing the work to have greater input on how the work gets done.
What are the three biggest challenges you see facing KCPS?
We need to continue making progress with ensuring school safety, improving Math and ELA proficiency for all students, and using technology in a way that is helpful and not harmful to our students.
What do you hope to achieve in your tenure on the Board of Education?
I believe as a district we need to regularly engage with statewide initiatives like Maryland READS and local partners such as Open Doors Partners in Education so that our students have more access to additional supports outside of the classroom. I’ve participated with local and statewide work groups and consortiums that bring professionals together and partnerships like these are invaluable when it comes to addressing and meeting students’ needs. As a board member, I would focus on promoting policies that reflect best practices for all students with the goal of seeing our MCAP scores improve.
I hope to support a school system culture that is more responsive to the needs of students, families, and staff. It’s not enough for leadership to listen to the concerns of those most impacted by policies but we need to show due diligence in applying the feedback we receive to build back trust that KCPS is serving our students well.
I intend to continue the needed advocacy work with our state legislature to slow down the implementation of Blueprint mandates or eliminate those that lack realistic funding. The Blueprint significantly restricts how most funds are spent and boards have a much lower amount of discretionary funds thus forcing them to make cuts.
JOHN QUEEN
My name is John Queen, a Kent County resident of 14 years, married to my wife of 7 years Shamika Queen, and a proud father of two daughters currently enrolled in the Kent County Public Schools Aria and Peyton. With a decade of experience as a family advocate, youth leader and community organizer at Bayside H.O.Y.A.S., Inc. in Kent County, and Behavioral Student Advocate in Queen Anne’s and Anne Arundel County Public Schools, I have a proven track record of implementing effective solutions to address the socioeconomic issues that impact our public-school including poverty, inclusion, and education.
Why are you running for school board?
I’m running for school board because I offer a fresh perspective and a deep commitment to community engagement. Combined with my longtime work supporting Kent County’s youth and families, I believe these qualities uniquely qualify me to serve as the next board of education member. My motivation to run for the KCPS Board of Education stems from a desire to see our schools provide students and their families with a positive foundation for their future. As a father of two Kent County public school students, I understand the importance of strong leadership and a dynamic vision for our schools.
What are the three biggest challenges you see facing KCPS?
The first challenge is State representation. Our leadership in Annapolis has consistently forgotten about our rural communities. If elected, I would use my voice to facilitate responsiveness with our representation, proactively fighting for the future of KCPS.
Another is the fulfillment of the KCPS vision statement which states that “KCPS students will graduate equipped to achieve their highest potential.” If we are serious, it’s critical that we prioritize college and career readiness for students. If elected, I would harness our resources to expand career readiness programs with specific attention to stem and honor students. We must meet the needs of all students while incentivizing students to promote a culture of academic excellence for the next generation of Kent County’s leaders.
Finally, I believe we are held back by a fear of change and complacency in KCPS. In my work as a community organizer, I’ve seen the power of positive change for children in Kent County, in the educational programs I’ve spearheaded, the initiatives I’ve led, and the partnerships I’ve forged. I come from a culture that believes in transformative change.
What do you hope to achieve in your tenure on the Board of Education?
If elected I will advocate for college preparation programs to prepare students for secondary education while assisting with critical thinking, time management and research.
I will push for financial literacy programs to help students understand financial management, investment and credit, and debt and savings to help combat the deep poverty within our community and public school system.
An expansion of our County’s strong existing trade programs — incorporating new agricultural programs that connect local farmers with KCPS students to create service-learning hours, educate about food insecurities and food systems, and promote ag-based careers.
I will advocate for leadership development programs to foster the next generation of leaders within our public school system by teaching confidence, conflict resolution and vision.
FRANCOISE SULLIVAN
As a current member of the KCPS Board of Education I have navigated the challenges of a global pandemic, change in leadership at almost all schools, the Blueprint and the search for a new superintendent. I have spoken out against book bans, protected the rights of our students, and advocated for a new middle school. I have given my time at the local and state levels to provide testimony in support of the needs of our schools and community.
My husband, Mark, and I moved to Worton in 2003. We have two children who have attended Kent County Public Schools since 1st grade. When I am not shuttling my kids around, I run a website design business. I work primarily with local non-profits, artists, and small businesses.
I am proud to be a founding member of the school advocacy group Support Our Schools.
I like to volunteer and be involved in our community and have helped organize the Chestertown Tea Party Festival, the HP Festival and I am on the Marketing Committee for the Garfield Center for the Arts.
Why are you running for school board?
I believe in public education. I believe that our teachers, administrators, and librarians have the best interests of our children at heart. I believe that all students should feel safe and supported when they enter our schools and feel prepared and confident when they leave.
If you have ever watched a BOE meeting you know that I ask a lot of questions. We are a small school district with a tight budget. I want to make sure that we are fiscally responsible while still providing the tools for student success. I want our teachers to have the resources and training they need. I want the programs at the heart of our schools — arts, music, sports — to be supported. I am dedicated to making sure we have the resources we need for all students to achieve success.
What are the three biggest challenges you see facing KCPS?
Being a small, high poverty, rural school district in a county considered to be wealthy by the state is a challenge. Because Kent County is considered wealthy by the calculator used to determine school funding, we end up shouldering the largest portion of funding for our schools locally.
Having more before school and after school programs would benefit our kids and our working families but increasing the budget to cover additional transportation costs has become increasingly difficult.
Families and schools are partners. The way to improve partnerships is by building trusting relationships. Finding the time to attend PTA meetings or Title I nights is difficult. I would like us to do more to reach out to our communities.
What do you hope to achieve in your tenure on the Board of Education?
I would like to see progress on the construction of a new middle school. I would also like to see us make strides in closing the achievement gap for student groups — especially our African-American and Hispanic students. I would also like the community to come together on school safety and work on educating students and families rather than hardening our schools.
Trish McGee, owner and publisher of The Evening Enterprise, is an elected member of the Kent County Board of Education. She did not contribute to this reporting.
