What is the most pressing local issue facing your community and how would you solve it (within the capacity of the office for which you are running)?

A big issue is the need for a New Middle School which I am in full support of and which will also be on the ballot on Election Day. The old Middle School (Woodrow Wilson) isn’t in the best of shape. We’ve had multiple evacuations in recent years due to issues the facility has internally. This is not only a hindernace to our education and learning process but also stands as a safety hazard. A new building is essential.

With the state's ongoing budget crisis looming over the election, what are your plans for your community's budget? Is there anything you can do make your town less dependent on revenue from the state?

I believe firmly in being fiscally responsible and managing the funds you have primarily, assessing what’s most important over what’s not and making provisions from there to accommodate for the lack of potential funds from the state or city.

The legislature has been debating various ideas to allow towns to raise revenue locally through something other than property taxes. If you could ease your residents' property tax burden by adding another method of taxation, is there anything you might consider for your town?

N/A

Should your school district get the same amount of education funding from the state if your district's enrollment is dropping?

I believe that the more children we have, the more resources and funding we should try to seek in order to provide the best education for those we have under our care, within our system. If enrollment is dropping then we more than likely would re-assess our spending but enrollment dropping points to a larger issue and we would potentially need to make improvements in our system to draw more students and families in.

What's one thing most people don't know about you?

I’m a liscensed youth Minister, I’m a mentor and am very community involved. I serve on the Human Relations Committee and Affirmative Action Monitoring Committee in Middletown. I love giving back to people and being there to help them with their needs. Also I’m musically inclined, I’ve played Saxaphone, Cello, Drums and the Guitar in my life and I enjoy playing basketball and Tennis. I’m a proud pet owner, love trying new foods, visiting new places and meeting new People.

Are you in favor of regionalizing more services in conjunction with other nearby communities? If so, which ones?

In terms of education resources, I believe it could be possible to work with other communities nearby within the state to generate more resources that we wouldn’t be dependent upon but still would find useful for our schools. I believe reaching out and being diplomatic isn’t a bad idea, especially if it will potentially ease burdens in some areas. Having a mutual source of shared resources for our community and the others who could potentially be involved could be very beneficially.

Why are you running for this office?

To effect change in the community and in the Public School System by offering my knowledge and experience of having gone through the school system myself. I’ve spent a total 12 years in the Middletown Public School System and have a unique perspective on issues that are still currently facing our schools that I went through. I’d like to be a part of the process of working toward fixing these issues such as the Achievement Gap, Making sure Teacher’s have enough resources to effectively teach classrooms, and to be more accessible to the parents and families in town as a Board Member.