Educational Philosophy

A Passion for Gifted Education

I was a product of Boise's GATE program a quarter-century ago, and I bring that passion to my efforts running for Trustee; my daughter is a second-grader in the Classical Education program, a full-time gifted program with a liberal-arts-based curriculum the District is currently piloting at Shadow Hills. I believe that broadening our offerings to afford advanced students appropriate challenges is a moral obligation... but it also serves a key societal need: Otherwise, where do you turn a quarter-century from now when you need a neurosurgeon?

A Nod to the Pragmatic

Since I returned to Boise, I've asked myself this question several times: "Why is it that less-affluent Districts like Meridian and Bonneville can offer a pre-nursing high school program whose graduates are already CNAs, but Boise can't seem to figure it out?

One thing that has eluded the Boise Schools for years (certainly even since before I was at Capital two decades ago) is adequate vocational programs. Certainly, not every student is going to go on to college, and nor is every student well-suited for college, yet the District tries to pidgeonhole the overwhelming majority of high schoolers into a college-prep curriculum. This likely reflects a long-standing societal bias; I've often lamented that, "If something goes awry with your brake rotor, it's generally easier to find a lawyer to sue the car company than it is to find a machinist to mill it back into shape."

The solution seems obvious: offer a variety of high-school "majors" like a number of other Districts around the country are already. Give people an opportunity to prepare for college, or to get a leg up on starting a career, or to focus on a key interest such as music or fine arts, or some or all of the above, as part of the curriculum, rather than forcing them into a starchy, one-size-fits-most model. We should be about helping students to make better choices for themselves, rather than making generic ones for them.

A Commitment to Personal Freedom

One important aspect of development we should be trying to foster is the sense of exploration, of determining one's tastes and finding oneself. Efforts to diminish personal identity, such as school uniforms, certainly run contrary to that objective. Just because something is comparatively inexpensive, rote in its simplicity, and non-competitive in its spirit doesn't mean we should do it; what message do we send our students by compelling them to dress every day like the waitstaff at a casual-dining restaurant named for a day of the week?

A Mind for Math, Science and Technology

My background fills a profound need in the Board's composition; I have over 12 years of experience in information technology, both in the private and academic sectors. My own education was rich with science and math, the latter of which included a graduate degree. Thus, I come prepared to confront head-on our curricular needs for additional science and math, and for preparing our students to face the technology-rich workforce and life environments they can expect in their futures.