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Armond Aghakhanian
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Armond Aghakhanian is an at-large member of the Burbank Unified School District Board of Education in California. He was first elected to the board in the general election on April 14, 2015, after he received enough votes to advance from the primary election on February 24, 2015.[1][2][3][4]
Aghakhanian ran for a seat on the school board in the primary election on February 26, 2013, but he failed to receive enough votes to advance to the general election.[5]
Aghakhanian participated in a candidate forum with the other five candidates who ran in the 2015 primary election. Topics at the forum included the role of a board member, budget cuts and implementing Common Core standards.
Biography
Aghakhanian has worked in the education and public service field for 15 years, working on nonprofit boards and commissions and teaching at the university level. He has taught business, management and government courses at Woodbury University, Marymount College, International American University and the Salvation Army College for Officer Training. Aghakhanian serves on the Burbank School Facilities Oversight Committee, the Burbank Parks, Recreation and Community Services Board and the Burbank Noon Kiwanis, and he previously served on Burbank’s Community Development Goals and Civic Pride Committee. Aghakhanian earned his bachelor's degree in political science from California State University at Northridge, his MBA from Woodbury University and his doctoral degree in education and psychology from Pepperdine University. He and his wife have one son.[6][7]
Elections
2015
Three of the five seats on the Burbank Unified School District Board of Education were up for general election on April 14, 2015. A primary election was held on February 24, 2015.
Incumbents Dave Kemp and Ted Bunch did not file to run for re-election, leaving incumbent Roberta Grande Reynolds to run against the following five challengers in the primary election: Armond Aghakhanian, Steve Ferguson, Vahe Hovanessian, Gregory Sousa and Jesse Tangkhpanya.
Grande, Aghakhanian, Ferguson and Sousa received the most votes in the primary election. Grande and Ferguson won election to the board outright as they received more than 50 percent of the ballots cast in the primary. Aghakhanian and Sousa had to advance to the general election on April 14, 2015.
Aghakhanian defeated Sousa in the general election to gain a seat on the board.
Results
General election
| Burbank Unified School District, At-Large General Election, 4-year term, 2015 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan |  Armond Aghakhanian |
53.6% | 5,321 | |
| Nonpartisan | Gregory Sousa | 46.4% | 4,602 | |
| Total Votes | 9,923 | |||
| Source: Burbank City Clerk's Office, "General election cavass of returns," accessed April 28, 2015 | ||||
Primary election
| Burbank Unified School District, At-Large Primary Election, 4-year term, 2015 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan | Roberta Grande Reynolds Incumbent |
24.3% | 5,362 | |
| Nonpartisan | Steve Ferguson |
23.1% | 5,107 | |
| Nonpartisan | Armond Aghakhanian |
16.8% | 3,710 | |
| Nonpartisan | Gregory Sousa |
13.8% | 3,049 | |
| Nonpartisan | Vahe Hovanessian | 13.5% | 2,971 | |
| Nonpartisan | Jesse Tangkhpanya | 8.5% | 1,886 | |
| Total Votes | 22,085 | |||
| Source: Burbank City Clerk's Office, "Final Results are Tabulated for Burbank’s 2015 Primary Nominating Election," accessed March 9, 2015 | ||||
Funding
Aghakhanian reported $25,425.00 in contributions and $21,200.33 in expenditures to the Burbank City Clerk’s Office, which left his campaign with $4,224.67 as of April 8, 2015.[8]
Endorsements
Aghakhanian received endorsements from the following public officials and organizations:[9][10][11][12][13][14][15]
- Los Angeles County Democratic Party
- Burbank Democratic Club
- Burbank Teachers Association
- Armenian National Committee of America
- Burbank Leader
- California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson
- California State Senator Carol Liu (D)
- California State Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D)
- Burbank City Council Member Jess Talamantes
- Burbank City Council Member Emily Gabel-Luddy
- Burbank Unified School District Board of Education Member Ted Bunch
- Burbank Unified School District Board of Education Member Dave Kemp
- Burbank Unified School District Board of Education Member Charlene Tabet
Aghakhanian also received endorsements from a number of former officials and community leaders. A full list of his supporters can be found here.[13]
2013
| Burbank Unified School District, At-Large Primary Election, 4-year term, 2013 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan | Larry Applebaum Incumbent |
27.8% | 4,473 | |
| Nonpartisan | Charlene Tabet |
18.8% | 3,026 | |
| Nonpartisan | Steve Ferguson |
18.7% | 3,013 | |
| Nonpartisan | David Dobson |
17.7% | 2,854 | |
| Nonpartisan | Armond Aghakhanian | 17.1% | 2,749 | |
| Total Votes | 16,115 | |||
| Source: The Burbank Leader, "Aghakhanian fails to move to Burbank school board general election," March 1, 2013 | ||||
Campaign themes
2015
Burbank Leader questionnaire
On December 22, 2014, the Burbank Leader published a candidate profile of Aghakhanian. That profile contained the following questionnaire. The Burbank Leader's questions are bolded to provide clarification. The full candidate profile can be found here.[16]
| “ | Have you run for office previously?
Yes. Burbank School Board 2013. Lost by by a little more than one hundred votes. Why are you running? I am running for the School Board to guarantee that all of Burbank’s children have access to the best public education leading to career success. Together, we can prepare our children for entry-level careers, college, university, and workforce training programs, while ensuring the highest level of academic achievement from our schools, small class sizes for individualized learning, and the most professional teachers and staff on all campuses. What is the most important issue facing the school district? Decrease in the percentage of Burbank High School's graduates enrolling in colleges and universities with sufficient workforce and entry-level career preparation and training. Name a recent issue or policy the current board has decided that you agree with. Why? The current pathways for public school students via the Verdugo Creative Technology Consortium is a great example of a collaborative effort designed to develop pathway programs that prepare students for what the current workforce needs. Name a recent issue or policy the current board has decided that you disagree with. Why? I am extremely proud of the proactive role taken by the Burbank school board, Burbank school teachers and administrators, and Burbank residents, in preserving our phenomenal school system. Unfortunately, two of our board members who are former teachers are about to leave the board. As a teacher with real classroom experience and someone who has worked both in the private and public sector, I know what it takes to prepare and educate our students for today’s technological and educational changes. What is the best thing about how the school district is run? The sense of community. It is a place where all members share a feeling of belonging, a feeling that members matter to one another and to the group as a whole. This includes teachers, staff, students, parents and members of the community. A place where education matters and teachers are a source of inspiration, such as Rebecca Mieliwocki, “2012 National Teacher of the Year.” That is why it is so hard to for the entire community when teachers and staff leave due to budget cuts or retirement. What is the worst thing about how the current city government is run? We must do a better job in informing parents, local businesses, organizations, school administrators and teachers on an ongoing basis about what is currently happening in the district. That is why one of the first things I asked for as a member of the BUSD Facilities Oversight Committee was to alternate our regular monthly meeting between 7:30 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. every other month so all members of our community will have the opportunity to attend the meetings. What programs or areas do you believe deserve priority or additional spending? Why? As a community we must work together to guarantee that all of our students have access to the best public education leading to career success. This means that we must increase programs designed to prepare our children from an early age for post-secondary education with sufficient workforce and entry-level career preparation and training. A seamless education program designed to create a college and university-bound culture with an expectation of success in achieving academic and career goals. What qualities should BUSD's next superintendent have? The Next BUSD Superintendent must be:
• Honest Open Response: Like any other parent in Burbank, I want my three-year-old son to have the best opportunities available to him in the Burbank school system. There's a reason why my wife, Dr. Gayane Gasamanyan, and I decided to make Burbank our home: to raise our family to give back to the community because we believe in the city and its public school system. However, the public school system can only thrive if people like you and me roll up our sleeves and become actively involved. I have over fifteen years of experience in the field of education and public service, serving on several local nonprofit boards, commissions, and teaching. Currently, I serve as a member of Burbank School Facilities Oversight Committee and Burbank Parks, Recreation and Community Services Board. Together we must establish a seamless education program that will guarantee a pathway to college and university for all of our students. In order to achieve this, we must: • Get students and parents involved early; • Increase the number of counselors at our high schools and top two grades (currently we only have 5 for 2500 students); • Increase partnerships with governmental and nongovernmental agencies, local businesses, nonprofits, community groups and parents to promote college and university attendance; • Identify projects, business partnerships, funding and fit; • Create ongoing internships and network opportunities, to find professionals willing to mentor and employ our students; • Create and promote year-round workshops to increase training opportunities; • Proper implementation of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) programs by adding Arts to learning, technology and manufacturing. Furthermore we must address concerns about our budget shortfalls- Managing Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), Cost of implementation and maintenance of the Common Core State Standards and aging infrastructure. As cities all over California face steep cuts from Sacramento and a sluggish economy, our schools are facing many financial challenges. The LCFF is a new system for redistributing funding, not a source of new funding. The current California Standards Tests have been replaced by computerized exams that can adapt immediately to a student's performance. One of the biggest concerns with the change is the cost of technological integration into the learning of reading, writing and training teachers regularly. Burbank schools’ facilities quality and safety are in dire need of improvement. Classrooms need to be upgraded with new technology and computers. Aging portable classrooms, electrical systems, plumbing and sewer lines, site irrigation, gas lines, roofs and play areas need to be replaced. Here are some solutions: • Implementation of Master Plans laying out actions and services designed to increase academic achievement in areas which need more focus from the district. • A smart and conservative approach to implementing Common Core by focusing on teacher training and investing in our current infrastructure. • Following the passage of Measure S Bond, the school district has been able to invest some of the funds in new technology and infrastructure using the bond money but we must do more, especially when it comes to investing in sustainable and green technology; • We must use this funding wisely by converting our aging schools’ infrastructure into new and more sustainable infrastructure. This will keep the cost of maintenance down, while complying with all new standards. For example, we can convert all of our current auditoriums in to multi-use facilities with new HVAC systems and technology, (such as overhead projectors, computers, and internet access) providing additional functional space, which can be used for different purposes thus keeping our class sizes small. As a school board member, I will continue working with the committee and members of our community to make sure that we continue spending our limited funds wisely and I will work to implement safe schools for all of our children, technological advancement at all our schools, and a transparency in our budgetary process.[17] |
” |
Candidate website
Aghakhanian highlighted the following issues on his campaign website:
| “ | I am running for the School Board to guarantee that all of Burbank’s children have access to the best public education leading to a successful career. Together, we can prepare our children for entry-level careers, college, university, and workforce training programs while ensuring the highest level of academic achievement from our schools, small class sizes for individualized learning, and the most professional teachers and staff on all campuses. Furthermore, as a member of the School Board, I will work to implement safe schools for all of our children, technological advancement at all our schools, integrity of the budget process and unite our community through diversity.
I respectfully ask for your vote & support.[17] |
” |
| —Armond Aghakhanian's campaign website (2015)[6] | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Armond Aghakhanian Burbank Unified School District. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Burbank Unified School District, California
- Burbank Unified School District elections (2015)
- First openly gay official elected to Burbank school board, two candidates advance to April election
- April school board elections in California and South Dakota see increase in voter turnout (April 15, 2015)
External links
- Burbank Unified School District
- Office website
- Campaign website
- 2015 Smart Voter profile
- 2013 Smart Voter profile
Footnotes
- ↑ Burbank City Clerk's Office, "Candidates Information," accessed January 13, 2015
- ↑ Burbank City Clerk's Office, "2015 Election Results," accessed February 24, 2015
- ↑ Burbank Leader, "Reynolds, Ferguson elected to school board," February 25, 2015
- ↑ Burbank City Clerk's Office, "2015 Election Results," accessed April 14, 2015
- ↑ The Burbank Leader, "Aghakhanian fails to move to Burbank school board general election," March 1, 2013
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Armond for School Board, "About," accessed January 14, 2015
- ↑ Smart Voter, "Full Biography for Armond Aghakhanian," accessed January 14, 2015
- ↑ Burbank City Clerk's Office, "ARMOND AGHAKHANIAN," accessed February 23, 2015
- ↑ Los Angeles County Democratic Party, "Endorsements," accessed February 10, 2015
- ↑ Burbank Democratic Club Facebook, "Timeline post from February 2, 2015," accessed February 11, 2015
- ↑ My Burbank, "Burbank Teachers Association Endorses Three Candidates," January 6, 2015
- ↑ Smart Voter, "Armond Aghakhanian: Candidate for Board Member; Burbank Unified School District," accessed February 11, 2015
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Dr. Armond Aghakhanian: Teacher for Burbank School Board, "Endorsements," accessed February 11, 2015
- ↑ Burbank Leader, "Candidates win fans in high places,"January 27, 2015
- ↑ Burbank Leader, "Endorsement: Burbank school board candidate Armond Aghakhanian," March 14, 2015
- ↑ Burbank Leader, "BUSD Candidate: Armond Aghakhanian," December 22, 2014
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| 2015 Burbank Unified School District Elections | |
| Los Angeles County, California | |
| Election date: | Primary election - February 24, 2015 General election - April 14, 2015 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, Roberta Grande Reynolds • Armond Aghakhanian • Steve Ferguson • Vahe Hovanessian • Gregory Sousa • Jesse Tangkhpanya |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
