Keeping highly skilled teachers in the county, tackling budgetary issues and helping students pass mandated standardized tests concern some candidates in the upcoming Howard County School Board election.
Tony Yount, 62, who spent 25 years working in teaching and administrative positions for the school system, said he wants teachers to spend less time testing students and more time teaching them.
“We?re so obsessed by excessive testing in this county,” he said.
He also wants to establish a commission to keep teachers living in Howard County. Many can?t afford to do so because of housing costs.
In addition, Yount said, “we need to re-examine where the [budget] funding is going and eliminate the redundancy of programming coming out of central office.” For example, he said school principals should handle duties covered by the school system?s ombudsperson, who helps resolve conflicts.
Di Zou, a 17-year-old Glenelg High School senior, said he wants students better prepared for standardized tests.
“These are bad tests,” said the youngest board candidate and the only one currently in high school.
Zou also wants the board to establish a vocational program to prepare students for the working world.
Teacher benefits are another concern for Zou.
“Maryland has one of the worst teacher pensions in the nation,” he said.
Incumbent Joshua Kaufman, 35, said that in addition to making sure all students pass the High School Student Assessments, he wants the student achievement gap closed and a funding source dedicated to renovating older county schools.
He pointed to a cultural proficiency initiative and hiring Hispanic student liaisons as ways to help minority students.
Regarding the renovation of older schools, Kaufman said, “We need to work with the county and state to get money set aside for the upkeep of these schools.”
