{"id":12643,"date":"2026-09-25T19:07:52","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T19:07:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/stephen-zamierowski\/"},"modified":"2026-09-25T19:07:52","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T19:07:52","slug":"stephen-zamierowski","status":"publish","type":"candidate","link":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/candidates\/stephen-zamierowski\/","title":{"rendered":"Stephen Zamierowski"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">Previous Offices Held<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">First time running for office<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">Top Three Priorities<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">1. Supporting students, staff and parents in navigating the new bell-to-bell personal electronic device ban and evolving technology usage  \n2. Operating within the approved budget and preparing for fiscal 2028 \n3. Preparing for construction and the transition to a new school building environment<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">Why are you running?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I believe the strength of our democracy and economy depends on strong publicly funded schools that enable each student to reach their full potential, regardless of how they process information, their academic needs and their socio-emotional profile.  I also have an even more personal stake, as my two grandchildren attend Scarborough schools.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">What is the biggest challenge facing your area\u2019s schools? The biggest opportunity?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Like many school systems, I think our biggest challenge is Funding. Every year, it gets tougher to provide a high-quality education to all our students because of high inflation, stagnant income growth for our resident taxpayers and the State\u2019s funding formula. We provide exceptional education because of the high quality and dedication of our teachers and staff, and the enthusiastic engagement of our parents.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">A top issue for many parents is the age of Maine\u2019s school infrastructure. How would you address this issue locally from your position on the school board?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Fortunately, last fall the residents of Scarborough approved a large bond to remedy our most pressing infrastructure needs, which focuses on major repair and expansion of our K-6 schools.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-e44e021b wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-h-4-font-size\">Do you think the state government is too involved in local schooling? Not involved enough? The right amount of involved? Explain your answer.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-left is-style-short-red\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I will be meeting with our stakeholders over the coming weeks to get their perspective on many issues, including the State\u2019s involvement.  Overall, I think Augusta should focus on setting academic standards, teacher training and funding every public school at the mandated 55%.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":7171,"template":"","meta":{"voter_guide_candidate_first_name":"Stephen","voter_guide_candidate_middle_name":"Zam","voter_guide_candidate_last_name":"Zamierowski","voter_guide_candidate_suffix":"Mr.","voter_guide_candidate_race_id":12639,"voter_guide_candidate_age":66,"voter_guide_candidate_hometown":"","voter_guide_candidate_occupation":"Outdoor Educator","voter_guide_candidate_bio":"Current Relevant Experience: - Substitute teacher at Ketcha\u2019s Farm and Forest Preschool - Wilderness Skills Specialist at Ketcha\u2019s vacation camps - Outdoor Education Guide for Rippleffect Portland","voter_guide_candidate_education":"BA in Business Administration and Communications from UNH","voter_guide_candidate_years_in_municipality":"","voter_guide_candidate_headshot_url":"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/open?id=1rTU4xewfQEm6tX-k5k58N45KJSQsolBx","voter_guide_candidate_date_filed":"","footnotes":""},"vg_party":[1073],"vg_residence_municipality":[],"class_list":["post-12643","candidate","type-candidate","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","vg_party-democratic"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/12643","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/candidate"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/12643\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12644,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/candidates\/12643\/revisions\/12644"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12643"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"vg_party","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_party?post=12643"},{"taxonomy":"vg_residence_municipality","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stage.pressherald.com\/voter-guide\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vg_residence_municipality?post=12643"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}