As a parent of four MCPS students, I know our community values the importance of safe, supportive, and inclusive learning environments to help our students thrive. My commitment to public education informs my choices for my own children as well as my work. I want to bring my experience working with school safety and educational policy issues at the State level to the benefit of our local community. Every child deserves the opportunity to explore their interests to find pathways to successful careers, and find their voice in their community.

A thriving economy requires a diverse ecosystem, including diversity in the workforce, industry type and a blend of small, mid- and large-sized businesses. We cannot have a thriving community without living wages for our local workforce. Recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic will require sustained commitment and long-term investments in economic development. It will also require prudent fiscal management and accountability in order to ensure that our taxpayer dollars are invested wisely to achieve maximum benefit for our taxpayers.

All residents must feel safe and secure in the community. This requires a whole-community approach to public safety including cultural competency in providing services, community outreach and partnerships to build trust and ensure that the services provided by the County adequately meet community needs, and fidelity to the implementation of the State of Maryland’s Police Accountability Act of 2021. My experience as a certified law enforcement trainer, and collaborative work with police, fire/EMS, and emergency management on crisis response protocols, prevention and response to mass casualty events, and hate bias and hate crimes incidents provides me with unique perspective to inform our County’s path forward.

The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated existing disparities in access to healthcare, shortfalls in mental and behavioral health supports, and the unique needs of our County’s aging population. I am committed to improving the availability of crisis stabilization centers within Montgomery County as a diversion from emergency medical services, to expanding school-based health centers, to finding ways for our older residents to age in place, and to ensuring that adults living with developmental disabilities live in the least restrictive environment supported by their communities. Our health and well-being also depends upon access to quality community recreation programs, access to the arts, and cultural exchange.

While we work diligently to achieve the County’s ambitious and urgent climate goals, and achieve the State’s mandates from the Climate Solutions Now Act of 2022, we must also prioritize overdue maintenance and mitigation in critical areas to reduce the impact of those negative climate changes that have already occurred. Intense weather events are a common occurrence and deferred maintenance of the County’s critical infrastructure places residents at risk of adverse outcomes. These goals must be pursued in parallel with our urgent need for climate change mitigation strategies. With respect to mitigation, we need to support increased resources and programming for the Montgomery County Green Bank, and increase residential and commercial education on green options and solutions to accelerate change in a pragmatic and responsible manner.

Transportation priorities, infrastructure, and pedestrian and cyclist safety are priorities countywide, but historically little attention has been paid to these issues within District 7. Vision Zero’s policy goals need to reach the farthest corners of our County, not just our more densely populated areas. BRT projects need to be prioritized in highest density areas in conjunction with Metro, the Purple Line, and existing and future sites for commuter parking. And we need to do a better job of making it easier for potential public transit users to understand how to do so with interactive public transit mapping, reliable service schedules, and safe, accessible areas to wait for transit.

With residents spending far more of their income to meet housing needs (rent or mortgage), our affordable housing crisis ends up creating additional problems in the effort to make ends meet and remain sheltered. Communities thrive when there’s stability in housing and employment for their residents. This issue predated the COVID-19 pandemic, but the stresses of it along with the economic fallout of it exacerbated the ability of individuals to seek help to avoid eviction or foreclosure, and to remain in their homes. My priorities are supporting new construction around existing transit hubs within the County, and ensuring that programs designed to assist individuals reach those individuals and achieve the intended outcome.

Meeting the area’s current workforce demands and anticipated future demands based on expanded economic development within Montgomery County and regionally requires a broader look at where we stand with both college and career readiness, incentivizing apprenticeship and internship programs with local businesses and non-profit organizations, and greater partnership between MCPS and our institutions of higher education to prepare residents for the workforce opportunities available in our region. We also need to expand opportunities and communication to help guide individuals who may be looking for new certification or degree programs for personal growth or to meet the demands of a changing economy.

Montgomery County’s Agricultural Reserve, our farming traditions, and our contributions to the local food ecosystem are critical to ensuring sustainability, positive environmental stewardship, and food security. Our agricultural community is also critical to the County and region’s overall emergency response planning in feeding the community in times of disaster. I have enjoyed my work serving as Counsel to the State’s Food System Resiliency Council, and fully support our County’s newly authorized Office of Food Systems Resilience.

A thriving arts and cultural life is vital to community and individual growth. We are blessed to have Olney Theatre Center right here in District 7, along with countless other treasures from the Blackbox in Silver Spring to BlackRock in Germantown. The performing arts have played a substantial role in my own life, and I have served on the Boards of Directors of five different arts organizations. These performances, exhibits, maker spaces, training centers, conversation starters and community gathering locations inspire, entertain, and enrich Montgomery County, and attract others from nearby to share and celebrate all that we have to offer!

Our youth and adult recreational sports programs and facilities serve individuals of all ages and abilities. Our County Parks and State Parks provide wildlife habitat and space to hike, bike, paddle, and picnic. I am committed to ensuring our facilities are meeting the needs of our residents, providing programming that is inclusive and accessible, and collaborating with local stakeholders to inform ways to maximize use of existing programs and resources for community health and wellness. I am also committed to ensuring strong partnerships between the County and our non-profit community organizations like District 7’s own Olney Boys & Girls Club, to support the work they do to promote the greater good and opportunity for our residents.

We have a diverse, culturally rich community with urban, suburban, and rural components. The new structure of the Council allows for greater representation in our northern communities, like District 7. Despite the challenges we face, we still have much to celebrate. I look forward to enhancing our communities, growing our businesses, and helping Montgomery County to flourish as a civic-minded, civility oriented community.