Education:

      Bachelor of Science, Towson State University, 1978

     Masters in Education, Towson State University, 1984

Work Experience:

10 years in construction

28 years in teaching

Previous Political Offices Held: 

      House of Delegates, 1999 to 2003

Brief Biography:

     Lived in Baltimore, MD from 1947 until 1965 when I moved to Harford    County.  In 1973 I married my wife, Linda, and in 1978 our daughter, Anna, was born.  From 1983 to 1992 I ran a summer work program for disadvantaged youth working on environmental/conservation projects.  In 1986 I co-founded Concerned Citizens for MD Environment (CCME).  In 1991 formed Neighbors Involved in the Community of Edgewood (NICE) to combat crime and improve quality of life in Edgewood.  Appointed to commission by last three Governors to find a way to safely destroy obsolete chemical weapons at APG.  Mission accomplished in 2006.

1.  Why are you running for this office? 

My father always said that we live in a “do-it-yourself democracy,” to get involved.  At age 14 I worked in President’s Kennedy’s campaign and have been working to get others elected since.  Working in other campaigns gave me the skills and confidence to run for office.  I ran because I cared about my community and I believe I can make a positive change.  

2.   If you are elected, what do you intend to do to improve the quality of education in Harford County?

Keep class sizes to 25 or less students.  I have stated publicly the need for another Harford Vo-Tech – especially in the Edgewood/Joppatowne area where there is ex-Federal Government land available which the County owns.  Maintain teacher’ salaries at competitive levels with the jurisdictions surrounding Harford.  More alternative education programs for the disruptive students and more assistance to the “troubled” students.  Adequate funding for new school construction and maintenance of existing schools.  Do away with portable classrooms.

3.  Harford County will have an influx of over 30,000 new jobs in the next six to eight years as a result of BRAC.  What do you intend to do to help Harford County prepare for this dramatic increase in population and need for services?

We are not sure exactly how many jobs BRAC will bring to our county.  One thing is for sure, we must train our young people with the necessary skills and education to fill as many of the jobs as possible created by BRAC.  Before rushing off to build new developments we must seriously look at older communities along the Route 40 corridor for redevelopment.  These older developments already have the existing infrastructure, i.e. roads, water, sewer, police and fire protection.  Redeveloping the older communities is less costly than building new communities.  This is not only economically a wise practice, it is also an environmentally wise practice.  Plus, there may be State funding and assistance under the Smart Growth Initiative.  Public transportation, such as MARC trains and our County bus system will have to be flexible enough to adjust to the influx of more people into our county and workforce.  The additional increase in population will put a burden on our existing infrastructure making it extremely important that local, State, and Federal governments work together to meet the added pressures due to BRAC.