Three members of the Washington County Board of Education are facing three challengers for their seats in the nonpartisan race this November.
With only six candidates for three seats, the contest did not appear on the primary ballot in July.
Elections for the seven school board members are staggered every two years. Members serve four-year terms. The elections are nonpartisan, meaning no party affiliation is included on the ballot.
The board approves budgets, policies and personnel actions for the entire county school system, which has approximately 22,000 students and 3,500 employees.
The three incumbents – Darrell Evans, Michael Guessford and Linda Murray – faced three challengers in Etha Loewen, Frederick I. Chavis and Anthony Williams.
Guessford is seeking his third term.
Murray is seeking his second full term on the school board. The board appointed her in 2017 to fill a vacancy created when the Maryland State Board of Education removed Karen Harshman from the local board. After Harshman’s term ended, Murray was elected in 2018.
Evans was appointed to the school board in 2020 to fill a vacant seat created by the resignation of Jacqueline Fischer.
The Herald-Mail sent questions to six school board candidates. Replies are limited to 500 characters, which is more than two tweets. Included are basic biographical questions and opportunities to provide websites and social media accounts so voters can learn more about the questions we ask. Although the race was nonpartisan, candidates were asked about their party affiliation.
The general election in Nov. 8 and early voting from Oct. 27 to Nov. 3.
Darrell Evans
Age (on Election Day): 39
Occupation: Financial Advisor
Residence: Hagerstown
Party: Republican
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DarrellEvansWashCo
Michael Guessford
Age (on Election Day): 57
Occupation: Transportation specialist/dispatcher
Residence: Williamsport
Party: Republican
Ethan Loewen
Age (on Election Day): 47
Occupation: Financial Advisor
Residence: Hagerstown
Party: Republican
Facebook: http://facebook.com/EthanWCBOE
Linda Murray
Age: (on Election Day): 68
Occupation: Retired from WCPS
Residence: Hagerstown
Party: Republican
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FriendsOfLindaMurray
Frederick I. Chavis
Age (on Election Day): 32
Occupation: Business owner
Residence: Fairplay
Party: Democrat
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThePeopleForFred/
Anthony Williams
Age (on Election Day): 43
Occupation: Nonprofit CEO
Residence: Leitersburg area
Party: Green
Campaign website: http://www.anthonywilliamsforschoolboard.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/anthonywilliamsforschoolboard
Violence in schools
What more can Washington County Public Schools do to address violence in schools against students and staff?
Evans
We have made some great strides by hiring more consulting staff. More could be done, however, by adding more appropriate training to security personnel and reducing class sizes.
Guessford
First, I would like to see SRO’s (Police Officers) in all schools, and in some schools, 2 per school. We should allow the SRO full authority to remove students from school grounds. Students must attend anger management classes with parents before returning them to school. Second, more security cameras should be placed in classrooms. This will help prevent violence/bullying in the classroom. Third, volunteer parents or retired grandparents to help in the classrooms.
Loewen
We need to restore the teacher as the authority in the classroom. The use of social media during class, slows down learning and is used to coordinate school violence. Students involved in drugs are associated with the worst violence. Now that fentanyl made to look like candy is being shipped into our country, our youngest students are being targeted. The only way to save our children, is to recover our communities from the drug trade.
Murray
The attitudes we see in our schools are serious and need to be addressed. More mental health services are desperately needed in our schools as well as throughout Washington County. When I was on the Board, I advocated and voted for funding to have a counselor in every school, but we need to do more. I would like to see a community task force join WCPS, city and county governments, our local health department, Meritus, and other agencies to find solutions to this growing need.
Chavis
WCPS needs to do a better job of building relationships with the communities it serves. To better address the issues in our schools, we need to know the issues that plague a community. There must be a holistic approach to how we look after our children creating a welcoming environment for all. Our schools must respond to the mental and emotional needs of our children. Law and order methods do not solve the root problem. Violence prevention is about ensuring that every student succeeds. Education saves lives.
Williams
We need to increase security, increase the idea of community, and fund the police with resources.
Education funding
Do you think county and state funding should be increased for WCPS and why?
Evans
Funding should be reviewed regularly to ensure that every area of our education is adequately funded. It’s hard to say we need more money when we spend over a third of a billion dollars a year.
Guessford
Everyone knows that the cost of doing business increases every year. The school system is a business and should be treated like one. In business, you evaluate your needs to make the business profitable. In our situation, we need to make sure that we provide funding to educate our students. The school system must live within its means, otherwise it must be cut. If you add a new program, you must subtract both to equalize the cost of the new program. Find a balance!
Loewen
From 2009-2019, spending increased in line with inflation. Since the start of covid, spending has increased faster than inflation, even accounting for the historical inflation we have today. We need to know why covid spending levels are going up, to know if more funding is needed. My spending priorities are reducing class sizes and adding specialists such as teachers. However, can the funds be redirected? Or, should we look at tax increases?
Murray
We need more funding to address mental health issues and violence in our schools. WCPS values its staff and has not been able to keep salaries in line with inflation. This makes it difficult to retain and attract new employees. Our schools are aging and we are currently on a 100 year replacement cycle. The Blueprint for Maryland Schools legislation allocates money to specific areas that will improve our high-poverty schools, but not to the general fund.
Chavis
We need more funding for WCPS. To effectively and efficiently meet the needs of all our students and teachers, we need funding to bring in more trained professionals, programs, and resources. We need individuals in our schools that our children and teachers can trust. In short, we need to stop politicizing education and invest in it.
Williams
Overall, I think sitting down and having a solid look at the budget and needs needs to happen first. Then we should ask for more funding based on this data.
