Upper Moreland School District Hosts ‘Meet the Candidates’ Night

The Home and School Associations (HSA) of Upper Moreland School District organized a “Meet the Candidates” event, held at the Upper Moreland Intermediate School on the evening of April 29.

The event was held in order for the public to be introduced to and hear the positions of the five candidates running for four open seats on the Upper Moreland School Board of Directors.

The candidates are (in alphabetical order):

• Carl Camacho

• Brian Davis

• Al DerMovesian

• Shone Fix

• Dr. David Hakes

Three of the five candidates were present at the event: Camacho, Davis and Hakes, while Fix was reported to be away on a business trip and DerMovesian was reported that his vehicle had broken down that night.

The event was moderated by Stacy Liesner, president of the Upper Moreland High School HSA, and joined by the respective HSA presidents of the school district. Liesner presented 11 questions to the present candidates, who were given 90 seconds to answer. Later the floor was opened to community questions. Liesner also read aloud submitted answers by Fix.

As with previous “Meet the Candidates” events, each present candidate answered in Round Robin fashion:

The following summaries of candidates’ answers appear in the order they were asked the question.

First Question: Background

• Carl Camacho

Camacho lived in the community for the first 30 years of his life, attending the former North Willow Grove Elementary School. He is an employee of Freedom Credit Union. Camacho said he moved back to Upper Moreland 17 years ago with his wife. “I’m trying to get involved as much as possible,” Camacho said, referring to his daughter, who attends school in the district. Camacho also volunteers with the high school’s marching band.

• Brian Davis

Davis moved to Upper Moreland with his wife in 1999. He said his family are very active at Hope Community Church. He is also involved with his two sons’ Boy Scout troop.  Davis is a current member of the school board, and has served on the board for the last four years. He later added that he has four children currently attending schools in the district. “I’ve really enjoyed serving the community in this regard,” Davis said.

• David Hakes

Hakes moved to Upper Morealnd with his family in 1993. He has four children, three are currently attending school in the district. Hakes is in his second term on the school board, and has served as the board’s president. In addition, he has coached Little League baseball and soccer in the community. “I think we’ve made some real progress as a district over the eight years I’ve been on the board and I want to continue to see us improve and move forward,” Hakes said.

• Shone Fix

As read by Liesner, Fix moved from Minnesota to Philadelphia in 1998, and then moved to Upper Moreland with his wife in 2009. He is an application sales manager for Hybrid Software. Fix has three daughters attending schools in the district, and wrote that he enjoyed the musical programs of the district. He has also volunteered  at the Booster Club Pancake Breakfasts.

Second Question: Past and Current Involvement with School District and School Board

• Brian Davis

The year prior to being elected in 2009, Davis said he attended the committee and regular school board meetings. The last two years, Davis has served as the treasurer for the board. As a certified public accountant, Davis related his financial background to his work with the board’s Budget and Finance Committee.

• David Hakes

Prior to his first term on the board, Hakes said that he started attending board meetings for a particular issue concerning his child's interests. Since then, Hakes said he recognizes the challenge of balancing the impact of representing the interests of the taxpayers and the education of the students. In addition to president, Hakes has served on the board’s Policy and Budget and Finance committees, as well as the board treasurer.

• Carl Camacho

Camacho said that he has attended school board meetings for various reasons. He said the reigning influence for his candidacy has been his children and his desire to become more involved as a parent for children to be prepared for the future. Citing his professional banking experience, he said that as a board member he would be enabled to express the need to guide youth toward certain life skills while also recognizing the need of the community.

Third Question: What’s Working Well in the District in the Last Decade?

• David Hakes

Hakes said the best improvement he’s seen over the last 10 years has been the attitude the district has taken on how best to prepare students on the next big step in their lives. He noted that in the last few years, the district has seen the most percentage of students go on to college in the district’s history. Hakes also cited the district’s strong connection to the Eastern Center for arts and Technology.

• Carl Camacho

Camacho said that the level of parental involvement has increased in the district, particularly at district functions or school community events. He credits the district providing such offerings and the work of the board and district home and school associations.

• Brian Davis

Said that he agrees with Hakes’ answer, and added that he has seen a growing trend of families moving into the township because of the quality of Upper Moreland schools, as opposed to what he has seen upon first moving to the community. Davis also notes the improvement to the physical facilities of the district, noting the district’s newer Elementary Center, renovations to the high school and pending infrastructure improvements to the middle school.

Fourth Question: Relationship between Board and the Community

• Carl Camacho

Camacho said that the relationship should be close and involve all members of the school community to have efficiency in the district. He said that students should be taught by example, including the involvement of parents with their children’s school activities. He also said that the board should be transparent in its work.

• Brian Davis

Davis said that the school board should have a close relationship with the community and administration. He said that the board always seeks more interaction and input from the community, whether or not a community member has a child in the district.

• David Hakes

Hakes said he encourages more community feedback and input at the school board committee meetings, as such meetings provide the community with the opportunity to interact with the board. He noted the successful input from the community during the school board’s discussion of the then proposed district Activity Fee. 

Fifth Question: Impartiality

• Brian Davis

Davis said that he concentrates on the financial issues of the board, but added that school board members each bring their own talents and experiences to the board. And, while sometimes disagreements occur, he recognizes that majority rules. He added that school board members should make decisions based on what the people elected them to do.

• David Hakes

Hakes said that the structure of the board prevents any one member from pushing through a personal agenda, adding that other members’ perspectives on an issue must also be convinced. He said board members must look at issues holistically for the entire district community.

• Carl Camacho

Camacho said that the focus should be on what’s important for the community and not about personal agendas or issues. He said listening to the input of the community makes it so personal agendas don’t play into decision-making at all.

Sixth Question: Vision of Education for the Community

• David Hakes

Hakes said that the challenge facing both the community and the country is to encourage students to become life-long learners. He said no matter the job or profession, elements of the work, such as changing technology, will require more and continuing education, and hopes to instill that desire while students attend Upper Moreland schools.

• Carl Camacho

Camacho said that learning how to adapt and learn new things is how to succeed in life. He said he would also like to see programs to address different ways of learning, such as for students who are better visual learners, so they are prepared to encounter teachers of different teaching styles at higher levels of education.

• Brian Davis

Davis said that the public school system provides every youth, no matter the background, the opportunity to receive an education. In the district, he said he would like to expand those opportunities, such as the board and district’s recent partnership with Montgomery County Community College to allow students to experience college-level courses while still at the high school.

Seventh Question: Fiscal Responsibility and Educational Programming

• Carl Camacho

Camacho said that the balance is important, and referred to the work he does finding compromises between the needs of customers and his bank. He said for this reason school board transparency is also important. For the district, Camacho said that board decisions can’t be fiscally responsible and neglect programming and vice-versa.

• Brian Davis

Davis noted that such a balance is hard, given the troubled economy. He cited the pending pension increases as a concern to create a fiscally responsible budget and noted that such a limit on financial resources will also limit further educational opportunities.

• David Hakes

Hakes said that ongoing focus of the board is the balance between the taxpayers and education service. He said that he was proud of his time on the board for being able to provide more or keep the same number of educational programs with less dollars. He further noted that as a board member he has helped negotiate contracts with the district unions, through which union members recognize the financial restraints and also helped preserve educational programming.

Eighth Question: Most Pressing Concern

• Brian Davis

Davis said that he has also focused on the district’s infrastructure, noting the needed improvements to the middle school. He added that the board is also focused on succession planning, trying to choose the best future leaders of the district.

• David Hakes

Hakes said that he is most concerned with the impending increase of payroll through the pension increases mandated by the state. He said that he was concerned on how to preserve the educational programming while addressing that issue.

• Carl Camacho

Camacho said that he wanted to know how the school district could help attract more families, saying that more families in the district will make it more desirable for other families to settle in the community, increasing the wealth and resources of the district.

Ninth Question: Strongly Agree or Disagree with a School Board Decision?

• David Hakes

Hakes said that one of the strengths of the UM school board are the discussions that occur during the committee meetings, where disagreements are essentially ironed out.

• Carl Camacho

Camacho said that he was initially taken aback by the district’s Activity Fee, but then said he understood that the alternative would be to lose a program.

• Brian Davis

Davis also said that the committee meetings is where the discussions of trade-offs take place. He added that he felt strongly about the maintenance of school structures, describing them as major investments of the community.

Tenth Question: Improving Academic Rigor and Keeping up with Neighboring Districts

• Carl Camacho

Camacho said that it comes down to preparing the children with guidance, which includes parental involvement. He said that a structured program could be created to address that issue.

• Brian Davis

Davis noted that the trend for UMHS students heading to college increasing, but acknowledged Liesner’s observation that it is fewer compared to surrounding school districts. He said that the board and district is working hard to further increase the percentage of college-bound students.

• David Hakes

Hakes noted again that the most number of students have gone to college in the last few years in the district’s history. He also noted that some parents may be unsure if they could afford to send their child to college. Hakes said that the board and district are working to let parents know there are options or information available how to send their child to college.

Final Question: Why Run for School Board?

• Shone Fix

Liesner read Fix’s response to why he wanted to be a school board member. Fix wrote that his attendance to board and committee meetings have given him more insight to what the district is facing. He said that he has ideas for potentially self-funded, technology-based courses for students. He also notes that as a member of a predominately single-income family, he said he has a keen understanding of the economic difficulties facing everyone today. He said he would look forward to working with all the school community to balance the best education possible while being fiscally responsible.

• Brian Davis

Davis said that being a school board member is a position in which he could use his skills and background, such as with future district budgets in light of state pension increases. He said he likes having the feeling of contributing to an important enterprise, not only to the school community, but the nation, as being on the board means helping to ensure the education of the youth. 

• David Hakes

Hakes said he likes being on the school board as there is nothing more important to him than the education of the youth. He said that he wants to continue  to build on the progress created in the district, while he has served on the board.

• Carl Camacho

Camacho said that it’s important to actively participate in the school community, whether an individual has children in the district or not, and added that contributing on the school board is the most important participation opportunity, as it will help prepare students for the future by building a better school district.

Initial Thoughts

Approximately 40 people attended the Meet the Candidates event, which lasted a little over an hour.

After the event, Liesner remarked that this year’s Meet the Candidates night was less contentious than the 2011 school board elections, when eight candidates ran for five seats. She added that she would liked to have seen candidates with more diverse interests in the school district, such as more of an age range than those currently serving on the board, as well as candidates without children currently attending school in the district.

Upper Moreland superintendent Dr. Robert Milrod also provided his thoughts on the 2013 Meet the Candidates event through the superintendent’s report at the April 30 regular school board meeting.

He said that there were common themes from the candidate’s responses to the HSA and public questions. He noted the candidates spoke about improvements to academic programs and district infrastructure despite the poor economy. He recognized the candidates’ and community’s desire to see an increase in college matriculation among students, and also encouraged the community to become more involved.

“Overall I came away from the Meet the Candidates Night having been pleased to meet the candidates,” Milrod said. “At the meet the candidates night, the community members and attendants appeared to me to be pleased at where we are headed, but recognized the joint challenges we all continue to share."

The Primary Elections will take place on May 21.