When Faith Loudon, Republican candidate for Maryland’s 4th Congressional District seat, she weighed in on some important issues for the 2012 election.
In a three-part series, Patch will bring you Loudon’s views on education, same-sex marriage and the Dream Act.
First up, Loudon discusses the education system as a whole, and how it affects students in Anne Arundel County Schools:
As a mother of three and a grandmother of seven, Loudon has spent a lot of time in local schools and has a first-hand account of how the education system affects the children it teaches. She says there is plenty of room for improvements.
“A while ago, the federal government stepped in to make our education better, the education department in [Washington, DC] was formed and we have thrown all of the money that they collect from people in Pasadena into the federal government and we are now 25 or 27 in the world for education ... This is a danger.”
While she thinks that No Child Left Behind had the right intentions in the beginning, she said it is now hurting today’s education systems. Teachers who want good ratings are "teaching to the test," which is hurting the overall education of their students.
Loudon said there needs to be changes with the department of education and the Anne Arundel County school board, which is something she is hoping to impact if elected.
“We need to get rid of the Department of Education,” she said. “We need to have some sort of control so everyone in the United States gets math and reading, but it needs to be in local control. In Anne Arundel County, we need . Everyone around us has an elected school board except us. And we need to have some control over what they are doing to our schools.”
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Gary Thompson, Pasadena.
This is why we have a school board that may be diverse in appearance but in their actions they are all on the same page. The school board members don't really represent the politically diverse Anne Arundel County population.
The issue is all about providing the best education for our local students. Why not let the citizens of Anne Arundel give it a try? Could we do any less than the existing structure?
fails and taxpayer money is wasted. It needs to be dissolved. As far as the Anne Arundel County Board of Education goes, they surely are not interested in any input from parents unless it goes along with their views. One board member in particular comes to my mind, he is a relentless cheerleader for all the failing schools in AA County. Why do you think the "magnet " programs are in the less desirable schools? It attracts the higher level students and their test scores boost the magnet school. It is shell game. I am seeking someone who is honest and has a moral compass. I have met Faith Louden and I believe she is the person to best represent me and my family.
We need a petition drive to get this on the ballot for an elected school board in Anne Arundel County. Last time this was tried we didn't have the online petitions available to us.
I grew up in Ohio. There we not only elected our school boards, but, if the schools (or any other local government entity such as the police and fire departments)wanted increased funding, it was a ballot issue. They had to as the voters to approve the increase in taxes that would be required on property taxes to fund the issue.