Previous Offices Held
9 years on Old Orchard Beach School Board, including 7 as chair
Top Three Priorities
1. Fiscal responsibility: Protect the debt-free, reserve-funded position I helped build. 2. Planning for the new school without burdening taxpayers. 3. Staff retention through fair, sustainable contracts. I bring nine years of board experience, seven as chair, to these priorities.
Why are you running?
I served nine years on this board, seven as chair, and left the district debt-free with over half a million in reserves after inheriting a nearly $2 million deficit. OOB has a new school to plan for, and I have a tangible plan to fund it without costing taxpayers a penny. I'm ready to do that work again.
What is the biggest challenge facing your area’s schools? The biggest opportunity?
Challenge: OOB is a small, single-town district with a seasonal economy, which makes long-term budget planning harder than in bigger districts. Opportunity: That same small size lets the board move fast and stay close to families — something I leaned on for nine years to fix a $2 million deficit and build lasting reserves.
A top issue for many parents is the age of Maine’s school infrastructure. How would you address this issue locally from your position on the school board?
The new school OOB needs to plan for is the clearest local answer to this. I've already built a funding plan for it that doesn't require new taxpayer dollars — the same disciplined approach that erased a $2 million deficit and funded new buses through savings, not tax hikes, during my prior term.
Do you think the state government is too involved in local schooling? Not involved enough? The right amount of involved? Explain your answer.
Maine sets standards and funding formulas, but OOB gets only about 19% of its budget from the state — the rest falls on local taxpayers. That reality argues for local control: decisions on budgets, staffing and buildings belong with an elected board that answers to the town footing most of the bill, not a distant formula. The state's role should stay limited to baseline standards.