Ahmed Kamel
Ahmed Kamel was a candidate for at-large representative on the Fargo Board of Education in North Dakota. The general election was held on June 14, 2016.[1] He lost the election.[2]
Kamel participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 school board candidate survey. Click here to see his responses.
Kamel previously ran for a seat on the board. He lost that election against 10 other candidates for five available seats in the general election on June 10, 2014.[3]
Biography
Kamel is a professor of computer science and management systems at Concordia College. He previously worked as an associate professor in the same field from 2008 to 2015. He serves on the board of directors for the Rape and Abuse Crisis Center and for the Center for interfaith Projects in Fargo. Kamel holds a B.S. in electrical engineering and an M.S. in computer engineering from Cairo University. He later earned a Ph.D. in computer science from Michigan State University, and in 2013, he earned an M.B.A. from North Dakota State University.[4][5]
Elections
2016
- See also: Fargo Public Schools elections (2016)
Four of the nine seats on the Fargo Public Schools Board of Education were up for at-large general election on June 14, 2016. In his bid for re-election, incumbent Jim Johnson faced eight challengers: Brandi Aune, David Gregor, Thomas Hill, Ahmed Kamel, John Rodenbiker, Doug Rymph, Kristi Ulrich, and Jacob Webster.[1] Election night results from June 14, 2016, showed Ulrich, Johnson, Aune, and Rodenbiker as the winners of the election. Due to the closeness of the race, however, there is the possibility for a demand recount, according to the North Dakota Secretary of State.[2]
In addition to Johnson's seat, the seats of incumbents Paul Meyers, Robin Nelson, and John Strand were on the ballot, but they did not file to run for re-election, meaning three seats were open for newcomers.[1]
Results
| Fargo Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 4-Year Term, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Kristi Ulrich |
18.91% | 7,687 |
| Jim Johnson Incumbent |
15.67% | 6,372 |
| John Rodenbiker |
12.85% | 5,225 |
| Brandi Aune |
12.68% | 5,156 |
| Thomas Hill | 12.37% | 5,030 |
| David Gregor | 10.73% | 4,361 |
| Ahmed Kamel | 6.58% | 2,675 |
| Doug Rymph | 4.99% | 2,029 |
| Jacob Webster | 4.96% | 2,016 |
| Write-in votes | 0.27% | 109 |
| Total Votes | 40,660 | |
| Source: North Dakota Secretary of State, "Official Results Primary Election - June 14, 2016: Fargo School District Election Results," accessed June 28, 2016 | ||
Funding
School board candidates were not required to file campaign finance reports under the North Dakota Century Code.[6]
Endorsements
Kamel was endorsed by the Fargo Climate Group.[7]
2014
- See also: Fargo Public Schools elections (2014)
Ahmed Kamel ran against incumbents Dinah Goldenberg and Linda Boyd as well as eight challengers in the general election on June 10, 2014. The list of challengers included Jennifer Benson, Teri-Lee C. James, David Paulson, Rebecca Knutson, Scott Dahms, Marty Livingood, Brian Martin and Tyler Jon Anderson. Board members Rusty Papacheck, Rick Steen and Kris Wallman did not file for re-election.[8]
Results
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Rebecca Knutson |
13.2% | 5,874 | |
| Nonpartisan | Linda Boyd Incumbent |
12.2% | 5,427 | |
| Nonpartisan | Jennifer Benson |
11.5% | 5,142 | |
| Nonpartisan | Dinah Goldenberg Incumbent |
9.9% | 4,426 | |
| Nonpartisan | David Paulson |
9.7% | 4,324 | |
| Nonpartisan | Brian Martin | 9.2% | 4,115 | |
| Nonpartisan | Scott Dahms | 8.5% | 3,769 | |
| Nonpartisan | Marty Livingood | 7.3% | 3,260 | |
| Nonpartisan | Tyler Jon Anderson | 7.1% | 3,143 | |
| Nonpartisan | Ahmed Kamel | 6% | 2,671 | |
| Nonpartisan | Teri-Lee C. James | 5.1% | 2,284 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.3% | 138 | |
| Total Votes | 44,573 | |||
| Source: North Dakota Secretary of State, "Fargo School District Election Results," June 25, 2014 | ||||
Funding
Kamel did not report any contributions or expenditures to the district office. Candidates are not required by state law to file campaign finance reports.[9]
Endorsements
Kamel did not receive any official endorsements for his campaign.
Campaign themes
2016
Ballotpedia survey responses
Ahmed Kamel participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 survey of school board candidates. In response to the question "What do you hope to achieve if elected to the school board?" the candidate stated on June 1, 2016:
| “ | - To enhance the academics at all levels, especially our Math and Science offerings in order to prepare our children for the challenges of the increasing global competition we currently live in. - To expand our instructional offerings to meet the needs of all students including the gifted students, the special needs students, and the new immigrants. - To provide multicultural learning opportunities for the benefit of both the native-born students and the new immigrants.[10][11] | ” |
Ranking the issues
The candidate was asked to rank the following issues based on how they should be prioritized by the school board, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. Each ranking could only be used once.
| Education policy |
|---|
 |
Click here to learn more about education policy in North Dakota. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| “ | Improving relations with teachers and Expanding arts education are very important issues, the only reason I did not rank them higher is because Fargo already does an excellent job on both accounts.[11] | ” |
| —Ahmed Kamel (June 1, 2016) | ||
Positions on the issues
The candidate was asked to answer nine questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. The questions are highlighted in blue and followed by the candidate's responses. Some questions provided multiple choices, which are noted after those questions. The candidate was also provided space to elaborate on their answers to the multiple choice questions.
| Should new charter schools be approved in your district? (Not all school boards are empowered to approve charter schools. In those cases, the candidate was directed to answer the question as if the school board were able to do so.) |
|---|
| No. Fargo schools are already known for their excellence, there is no need to dilute their efforts and funding. |
| Which statement best describes the ideal relationship between the state government and the school board? The state should always defer to school board decisions, defer to school board decisions in most cases, be involved in the district routinely or only intervene in severe cases of misconduct or mismanagement. |
| The state should defer to school board decisions in most cases. While I support the school boards authority over local matters, it is sometimes necessary to have certain uniform policies across the state. |
| Are standardized tests an accurate metric of student achievement? |
| Yes. In most cases, standardized tests give a good picture of student achievement. However, they should not be the end all of all assessment. |
| What is your stance on the Common Core State Standards Initiative? |
| I strongly support it for the following reasons: - It provides a standard of what every student should learn in today's ever complex society. - It allows continuity in the educational process for children who are forced to move in the middle of their school years which is increasingly more common in today's mobile society. |
| How should the district handle underperforming teachers? Terminate their contract before any damage is done to students, offer additional training options, put them on a probationary period while they seek to improve or set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district? |
| Offer additional training options. Set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district. Research shows that remedial interventions often bring better results than punitive measures. |
| Should teachers receive merit pay? |
| No. Merit pay as typically used is very subjective because it is hard to develop objective measures. Some districts are experimenting with incentive pay which encourages creativity on the part of the teachers. I would like us to explore this option. |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| No. This is not necessarily a universal position I would take if I was running elsewhere but since the state of North Dakota is already running what is recognized as excellent schools, the need does not exist. |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| Expulsion should be a last resort that should almost never be used. A myriad of intervention opportunities should be attempted first. |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| Parent involvement All of these are important factors, but research shows that without involvement from parents to remind their children of the imprtance of education, progress becomes harder. |
Candidate website
Kamel highlighted the following goals on his campaign website:
| “ | My goals for the school board:
|
” |
| —Ahmed Kamel (2016)[12] | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Ahmed Kamel' 'Fargo Public Schools'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Fargo Public Schools, North Dakota
- Fargo Public Schools elections (2016)
- Fargo Public Schools elections (2014)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Fargo Public Schools, "Board Election 2016," accessed April 12, 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 North Dakota Secretary of State, "Unofficial Results Primary Election - June 14, 2016: Fargo School District Election Results," accessed June 14, 2016
- ↑ North Dakota Secretary of State, "Fargo School District Election Results," June 25, 2014
- ↑ Concordia College, "Ahmed Kamel," accessed April 15, 2014
- ↑ Ballotpedia's Biographical Information Submission Form, "Ahmed Kamel's responses," April 21, 2016
- ↑ North Dakota Secretary of State, "Running for School District Office," accessed April 26, 2016
- ↑ Fargo 2050, "June 2016 City Candidate Endorsements/Comments," accessed June 10, 2016
- ↑ Fargo Public Schools, "Board Election 2014," accessed April 11, 2014
- ↑ North Dakota Secretary of State, "Running for School District Office," March 2014
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2016, "Ahmed Kamel's responses," June 1, 2016
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Ahmed Kamel for Fargo School Board 2016, "My goals for the school board," accessed May 9, 2016
| 2016 Fargo Public Schools Elections | |
| Cass County, North Dakota | |
| Election date: | June 14, 2016 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, Jim Johnson • Brandi Aune • David Gregor • Thomas Hill • Ahmed Kamel • John Rodenbiker • Doug Rymph • Kristi Ulrich • Jacob Webster |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |
| 2014 Fargo Public Schools Elections | |
| Fargo, North Dakota | |
| Election date: | June 10, 2014 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Teri-Lee C. James • Jennifer Benson • David Paulson • Scott Dahms • Rebecca Knutson • Dinah Goldenberg • Linda Boyd • Ahmed Kamel • Marty Livingood • Brian Martin • Tyler Jon Anderson |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
