Career: I retired from the Marine Corps after 21 years of service.  I enlisted immediately after high school in 2000 and earned my commission in 2008.  I spent my entire career in the infantry and deployed to various countries.  During my time in the Marines, I was personally awarded over 13 times for my leadership, team building, and valor.  I’m currently a Senior Program Manager with a technology company in the healthcare arena, managing programs spanning multiple years with budgets in the tens of millions.

Education Experience: I never officially taught in a classroom, but while in the Marine Corps, my position at the School of Infantry required me to be involved in numerous curriculum development and curriculum reviews for various courses.  In addition, I had to ensure I was up to date with the latest teaching methodologies and adult learning theories.  I also spent hundreds of hours spearheading programs to leverage technology in the classroom.    

Community Service: Currently serving on the following 501c3 boards:

- Northeastern Kansas Beekeepers Association – Military/Veteran Chairman (NEKBA.org)

- Franklin County Honors – President (franklincourntyhonors.org) This organization puts on the Veterans Day parade and displays in Ottawa.

- Douglas County Rural Preservation Association – Member-at-Large (DCRPA.org)

Past Community service:

-Volunteer youth baseball, wrestling, and/or softball coach – 10+ years at various locations, including Baldwin

-Speaker at KC Prep (2022)

-Secretary of Onslow County Beekeeper Association (2019-2020)

What is your motivation for running for office? There are several reasons for wanting to run. The main two are ensuring that the USD 348 School Board is committed to educational excellence and long-term financial responsibility.  I’m concerned about the lack of direction and vision within USD 348, which was highlighted during the last bond.  While the district has a “strategic 5-year plan,” it has no mechanism to hold the district accountable and is not well thought out.  This “strategic plan” was created in 2022 but doesn’t mention a stadium, CTE improvements, or the security concerns that were the focus of the bond in May 2023.  I’m not saying plans should not change, but failing to include any of those items in the strategic plan is a considerable concern.  Was the appropriate amount of rigor not applied to planning?  Furthermore, district documents mention a lack of space at the IC and PC, but nothing in the last bond addressed those concerns.   This lack of direction has led to mistrust by the public, which, in the long run, hurts the students.  This mistrust makes it difficult to pass bonds required to build, improve, or update facilities.  It also makes it challenging to fund the district, hurting teacher recruitment and retention and ultimately affecting academics. I think there needs to be a long-term district plan (10-15 years), which would help guide financial decisions and communicate intentions with the community, which will ultimately help build back trust within the community.  So, I can either complain or get my hands dirty by using the experience I gained in the military and help to correct those deficiencies. 

What is one major issue Baldwin City USD #348 is facing currently and how would you address it? There is a perceived lack of transparency and accountability by a majority of the community members I have spoken with regarding the school board.  People have various reasons for this, but regardless of the reason, it makes it difficult for whoever is on the board to do an effective job.  Passing bonds is never easy, but it becomes almost impossible if there is a lack of trust.   In order to build back this trust and accountability, the district needs to change how it communicates with the public. I am not saying the school board is doing anything legally wrong, but their communication strategy is not working.   Here are a few things I would do to address this issue:

1. Change the meeting format to have public comment after each topic, like the county meetings.

2. Give more information in the agenda published before the meeting, again similar to the  county

3. Making information more accessible to the public.  The district is not hiding information, but the format is not user-friendly, i.e., the budget breakdown or how they are tracking academic success. 

4. Quarterly or semi-annual town halls with the public.  The intention would be to allow another opportunity for the public to provide input to the board outside the normal confines of a regular school board meeting.  The times would vary to ensure more opportunities to participate by the public.      

5. Long-term (10-15 yrs.) district plan updated every two years with input from the new board members and through public study sessions.   I envision this plan and other key metrics would appear on a page on the district website in a dashboard format.  This would allow everyone to get a quick snapshot of the district and provide links to more detailed information.        

What is your vision for Baldwin City USD #348 5-10 years in the future? I would like to see USD 348 trending towards being one of the state's academically top-performing 4A school districts and one of the top schools in the area at all levels.  To accomplish this in a growing district, a well-defined plan must be laid out in the next 24-36 months that informs the public how and what needs to be accomplished to deal with this growth, which strikes a balance between a quality education and the financial burden on our community.  This plan will help regain the trust that many in the community feel is lacking between the school board based on previous bond decisions.   Without the school board earning back the community's trust, trying to pass any bond to address our growth or needs will be difficult, ultimately hurting the kids.

What personal characteristics and/or abilities do you have that qualify you for election to the School Board? As a Marine Corps veteran of 23 years and current leader in the corporate world, I have led organizations in the Marine Corps up to 800 individuals, both in and out of combat. My experience as the Operations Officer for the School of Infantry-East gave me a unique perspective on managing large educational departments that sets me apart from the other candidates. I assisted in the oversight of 800 individuals (both military and civilians) who taught over 20 different courses. We trained between 15,000 - 17,000 students annually. In this position, our leadership team was tasked with finding solutions for many of the same issues that members of the board of education face, including but not limited to transportation issues, providing meals, instructor shortages, lack of funding, facility maintenance, discipline issues, state and federal regulations, and curriculum development. In the corporate world, I'm a Senior Program Manager leading projects with budgets ranging from $10-50 million that impact hundreds of stakeholders. In this role, I complete the projects on time, on scope, and within budget. Most issues and challenges the school board faces don't have simple solutions. I have experience engaging stakeholders and finding workable solutions that strike a healthy balance for all parties.