Barbara Palko

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Barbara Palko

Prior offices

Charles County Public Schools, At-large

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Personal

Profession

Educator

Contact

Personal website

Barbara Palko is an at-large member on the Charles County Board of Education in Maryland. She advanced from a primary election on June 24, 2014, to face 13 other candidates for seven available seats in the general election on November 4, 2014. Barbara Palko won the general election on November 4, 2014.

Biography

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Palko worked as a teacher and technology education coordinator for the district for 35 years before her retirement in 2012. She and her husband have two children who graduated from district schools.

Elections

2014

See also: Charles County Public Schools elections (2014)

Barbara Palko ran in the June 24, 2014, primary against 19 other candidates. Board members Roberta S. Wise, Maura H. Cook, Patricia Bowie, Pamela Pedersen and Donald Wade did not file for re-election.

Results

General

Charles County Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 4-year term, 2014

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Nonpartisan	Jennifer S. Abell Incumbent	11.8%	25,609
	Nonpartisan	Victoria Talley Kelly	10%	21,572
	Nonpartisan	Michael Lukas Incumbent	9.1%	19,781
	Nonpartisan	Virginia McGraw	8.9%	19,363
	Nonpartisan	Barbara Palko	7.5%	16,256
	Nonpartisan	Mark Crawford	7.4%	16,106
	Nonpartisan	Margaret T. Marshall	7%	15,247
	Nonpartisan	Robert Michael Pitts	6.4%	13,857
	Nonpartisan	Michael A. Wilson	6.2%	13,477
	Nonpartisan	Lorina Harris	6.1%	13,113
	Nonpartisan	Jason Henry Sr.	5.1%	11,010
	Nonpartisan	Karla M. Kornegay	4.9%	10,692
	Nonpartisan	Melissa Pascarella	4.8%	10,437
	Nonpartisan	Stephen Ziegler	4.6%	9,970
Total Votes				216,490
Source: Charles County Board of Elections, "2014 Gubernatorial General Election Summary Report," accessed December 20, 2014

Primary

Charles County Public Schools, At-Large Primary Election, 4-year term, 2014

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Nonpartisan	Jennifer S. Abell Incumbent	10.1%	10,806
	Nonpartisan	Michael Lukas Incumbent	8.5%	9,124
	Nonpartisan	Virginia McGraw	8.1%	8,701
	Nonpartisan	Victoria Talley Kelly	8.1%	8,659
	Nonpartisan	Margaret T. Marshall	6.2%	6,579
	Nonpartisan	Barbara Palko	6%	6,434
	Nonpartisan	Robert Michael Pitts	5.4%	5,818
	Nonpartisan	Mark Crawford	5.2%	5,582
	Nonpartisan	Melissa Pascarella	4.2%	4,436
	Nonpartisan	Jason Henry Sr.	4%	4,290
	Nonpartisan	Michael A. Wilson	4%	4,262
	Nonpartisan	Lorina Harris	3.9%	4,153
	Nonpartisan	Stephen Ziegler	3.8%	4,062
	Nonpartisan	Karla M. Kornegay	3.7%	3,909
	Nonpartisan	Richard Wallace	3.6%	3,807
	Nonpartisan	Derrick Terry	3.6%	3,798
	Nonpartisan	Jocelyn Mann Denyer	3.3%	3,527
	Nonpartisan	Betsy Marie Eubanks	3.2%	3,440
	Nonpartisan	Marcus Tillman	3.1%	3,273
	Nonpartisan	Carl Blumenstein	2%	2,169
Total Votes				106,829
Source: Maryland State Board of Elections, "Official 2014 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for Charles County," July 16, 2014

Funding

Palko reported no contributions or expenditures to the Maryland State Board of Elections as of August 19, 2014.

Endorsements

Palko received the endorsement of the Education Association of Charles County for the June 24, 2014, primary election. She was also endorsed by Parents Choice for Maryland.

Campaign themes

2014

Palko's campaign website listed her themes for the 2014 race:

“	Common Core Common Core is a widely discussed and often controversial subject. 45 of the 50 states are participating in Common Core. Many parents fear that it holds the potential for overly aggressive involvement of national bodies in local affairs. Common Core's aggressive implementation time lines have also created problems in some school districts. Additionally, the implementation methodology and some test questions have caused consternation among teachers and parents alike. I believe it is important to separate "fact from fiction" when discussing Common Core. Common Core is a set of standards that is intended to improve America's academic standing in the world by ensuring that all students are taught in such a way, and the curricula are constructed and implemented in such a way, that the outcomes are consistent nationwide. Standards are essential in any discipline - education is no exception. You would not be reading from my website today if not for internet standards that were developed and adhered to. The implementation part of Common Core seems to be the "sticky part" in most states and school districts. Maryland teachers and administrators are hard at work today developing curricula to meet Common Core State Standards. In Maryland, the development and implementation of Common Core-based curricula are being accomplished under the Maryland College and Career-Ready Standards program. Please click here to be taken to the MCCRS web page. Again, the curricula design and implementation plans are being constructed by Marylanders - not Washington. Much of the controversy has evolved around implementation methods and test questions generated at the school district level. I am confident that my fellow educators and administrators in Maryland and Charles County will couple common sense with Common Core as they work to improve education in Maryland. Teacher Compensation Quality teachers should receive quality compensation - period. Teacher compensation is most often a reflection of educational priorities within a jurisdiction and/or budgetary pressures. Of the three Southern Maryland counties (Charles, Calvert, and St. Marys), Charles County offers the lowest compensation for teachers. We need to achieve parity within the region. Overcrowded Schools It's a fact, growth is happening in Charles County. Here, just as with most counties in the nation, rapid growth delivers its own set of challenges - roads, sewer/water, law enforcement, and budget pressures to name a few. The stress that growth brings upon the county's school system can be particularly challenging considering the long lead times required for the planning, funding, and building of infrastructure. This is often exacerbated by competition among county departments for funding and political support. I believe that two important points must be considered when working through growth-induced issues. First, the Board of Education must work synergistically with the County Commissioners to adequately document the school system's requirements for both near-term and the out-years. Inaccurate and/or incomplete requirements statements are a recipe for failure and must be avoided. Second, the roles and responsibilities of both bodies - Board of Education and County Commissioners - must be understood and adhered to with the flexibility for either to assume a leading role or supporting role as a situation might dictate, particularly in the securing of state and federal funds. Despite the challenges brought on by growth, we must not lose our enthusiasm for keeping quality education a top priority. Collectively, we must continue to motivate students, parents, and teachers to participate and excel; educate with zero tolerance for mediocrity; graduate a high percentage of students entering the 9th grade within 4 years; and, advocate for the best interests of both students and teachers. To address overcrowding, our school facilities must keep pace with County growth. The school system can meet that need either by renovating existing schools to increase capacity or by building new schools. Either way, the Board of Education needs to continue its strong working relationship with the County Commissioners. The School Board has knowledge of facility requirements, while the Commissioners are in charge of approving major construction projects across the County. So, when working together, requirements can be identified, validated, and included in the County’s funding plans. Redistricting The bigger problem here is the need to redistrict at all. The best solution for our students is to eliminate the need for redistricting. The Board of Education and County Commissioners could work toward that goal by carefully analyzing the number of seats available in schools potentially impacted by major construction projects. There is an Adequate Public Facilities (APF) committee currently working to balance county development with school capacity. The Commissioners can consider this information before approving construction that would require re-zoning.	”
—Barbara Palko's campaign website, (2014)

Recent news

This section links to a Google news search for the term "Barbara + Palko + Charles + County + Public + Schools"

Barbara Palko News Feed

See also

• Charles County Public Schools, Maryland
• Charles County Public Schools elections (2014)

External links

Suggest a link

• Charles County Public Schools
• Office website
• Campaign website
• Campaign Facebook page