4. What makes you the best candidate for this office:

      My entire professional career of 35 years has centered around advocating for the educational needs of students. As a special education teacher, union activist and leader, I have gained the knowledge and skills needed to work with other State Board members to craft policies and procedures that best meet the educational needs of all students no matter where they live in Ohio. As the Ohio Education Association Retired Chair, I have the opportunity to meet with both active and retired educators at various functions across the state which keeps me informed of the pressing issues in education today.

 5. What are your credentials and qualifications for the office you are seeking: 

      I earned my Bachelor of Science in Education degree from the Ohio State University and my Masters in Secondary Education from the University of Dayton. I taught in a private school for my first four years, then worked as a Learning Disabilities Tutor for four years, then taught at Urbana High School for 26 years as an Intervention Specialist. I have held leadership roles by serving as President or Vice President Urbana Association of Classroom Teachers Union for 20 years at Urbana, served on the OEA Board of Directors and the NEA Board of Directors as an active educator. I now serve as Chair of OEA-Retired and continue to serve on the NEA Disability Rights Cadre.

 6. what are the three most important goals you plan to focus on as you campaign and when you are elected:

      My goals are to provide the best possible educators in every classroom in Ohio, to advocate for adequate state funding of public education, and to recruit and retain more educators. Making sure the certification process promotes continuous professional growth can help ensure more highly qualified educators in the classroom. Always advocating for full and fair funding for public education should be a requirement for any state official. The critical need to recruit and retain quality educators for Ohio’s school will require cooperation between legislators, colleges, communities and school districts.