1. List who has been compensated to provide services to your campaign. List your campaign managers. Note current cash on hand in your campaign account, and your donations received and spent. You only need to note figures that are not included yet on campaign finance filings.
ScottE Blog (Scott Ewart) – advertisement
Dennis Kenez, Campaign Manager
Contributions received to date (as of 3/15/20): ~$20,400
Total funds spent: ~$12,400
Cash on hand: ~$8,000
2. List organizations/groups/committees (both education-related and not) of which you are an official member.
USAA
National Defense Industrial Association
IEEE
RHHS PTA
RHHS Boosters
CMS PTA
Columbia Association
3. In what areas of public education do you refuse to compromise, due to strong beliefs? How would you make changes in these areas? Give examples of how you collaborated and compromised with colleagues who disagreed with you.
I would refuse to compromise on fairness and equitable treatment for all children. I would focus on making changes to special education, working to ensure special educators have the proper training and feel confident they have the necessary resources to address challenges they face in the classroom. I would also insist that every student’s well being and potential be respected and would not sacrifice the well being of any student. I do not believe that the ends justify the means; I would not take steps that were deleterious to some students in order to benefit others. My professional career as an executive in a large organization requires me to collaborate extensively to bring together individuals with differing perspectives and goals in order to arrive at constructive solutions. An example is working across the most senior leaders in universities, government and industry to develop innovative solutions to the nation’s most pressing challenges. Beginning with an understanding of each person’s goals and perspectives is required in order to reach consensus. I have decades of experience successfully collaborating across organizations with competing interests to reach common goals.
4. Give examples in your personal or professional life that demonstrate your willingness to hold people accountable and include transparency for the community.
In my professional life, I lead an organization with hundreds of staff who must work together effectively to achieve common goals. My organization cannot be successful without every individual being empowered to execute their responsibilities while being held accountable for achieving them. Before a leader can hold others accountable, it is critical to hold oneself accountable to the people in your organization. That means leading with courage, communicating with empathy, and clearing roadblocks to enable staff to achieve their full potential. It also means providing clear guidance regarding expectations and metrics of success for established goals, measuring progress toward those goals, and taking appropriate actions if those goals are not met. An organization learns from the actions of its leaders. If leaders do not communicate clearly and openly, it is very difficult for an organization to operate effectively. I believe accountability is critical to organizational effectiveness and success, and although at times difficult decisions are required, these decisions are necessary for effective leadership.
5. For incumbents, what do you feel is your legacy you have left so far on the HCPSS? For other candidates, what do you want your legacy to be and why are you the best choice to create it?
I would want my legacy to include developing a sound budget for HCPSS where every child’s educational needs are met and every student is provided the resources to excel in accordance with his/her ability. It is critical that HCPSS retain its stature as a leading school system in the country, and to do this, I would ensure we maintain our ability to support all educational programs. I am the best choice to create this legacy because making this kind of change to a school system that has been problematic for years requires strong leadership. It also requires someone with the capability and experience to work across different organizations, often with competing interests, to achieve a broader set of goals. As a lifelong County resident with children in HCPSS, I am acutely aware of the myriad issues facing HCPSS and the BOE. Before we can hope for better outcomes, we must take a look within. Stronger leadership would allow the BOE to effectively engage various stakeholders and constituents across Howard County to communicate what needs will go unmet if additional resources are not provided by the County. Only then can we hope to develop a transparent budget that everyone can support.