y campaign for County Executive is about taking a great County and making it better. We are fortunate to be able to call Frederick County home. I could write for hours highlighting the many great attributes of Frederick County. However, today I wish to share my vision for my top campaign priority, which is Post-Pandemic Education Funding. We know that our students are struggling academically, emotionally, and socially because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our public K-12 and higher education school systems are fortunate to have received CARES Act funding during the pandemic. However, when the federal and state CARES funding is no longer available, we need county leaders to ensure public education is a budget priority. Returning to "Maintenance of Effort" level funding will impede our students' ability to recover academically and emotionally. "Maintenance of Effort" is the minimum funding level
a County can allocate to public education from the fiscal budget. When our students are not given an opportunity to succeed academically, our community fails!
Why is adequate educational funding so important? Because the foundation of a vibrant community is built on a high quality public education system. Whatever career or profession or job you hold, your success started with your education. In fact, one of the key factors people values when relocating their family or business to a new community is the quality of the public school system. The pandemic has pulled back the curtains on many disturbing findings about our public school system. One finding is that not all students have an opportunity to receive a high quality education due to several factors. The main factor will continue to exist as we are losing quality educators to our neighboring school districts where they are offered more competitive salaries. This has been the case in Frederick County for many years and is largely due to insufficient funding from the County and State budgets. At the same time, school leadership
believed the best budget request was one that had a high probability of approval, not one that fairly represented what the system truly needed to provide competitive salaries to the staff, purchase the required technology, or even provide adequate staffing for classrooms, support services and the central office for systemic oversight.
My top priority as County Executive will be to include priority funding for education to provide our students an opportunity to recover, reset and excel academically to regain their ability to compete and succeed in a global society. I wish to return FCPS to a top school system in the state and nation, by working with the Board of Education and Superintendent in a mutually respectful partnership. County approved funding above Maintenance of Effort will require a plan with "SMART" (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time Based) goals associated with the use of the funds above the MOE. In addition, I will lead the collaboration of a committee involving FCPS leadership, the employee unions, and the county government representatives tasked with developing a multi-year plan to increase FCPS salaries to a more competitive level. Additionally, I will spearhead a campaign to increase respect for our educators.
Quality education in a community extends beyond K-12. Frederick Community College (FCC) is a great higher education institution that has partnered well with FCPS over the years to offer our students a cost-effective higher education option. Dual enrollment in Frederick County is second to none. I will work with the leadership of FCC to expand opportunities for our students to experience college level classes and more trade certification options. I’m a firm believer that our future is only as bright as our children’s educational preparedness. Please visit my website at www.frinedsofdboffman.com for more information.
Our campaign’s main platform issues include post-pandemic education funding, support small business growth and sustainability, a "One Frederick United" initiative, and financial stewardship. Please visit our website at www.friendsofdboffman.com for more information.
