David Benoit Mech
David Benoit Mech
was
a candidate for the District 3 seat on the Palm Beach County School Board in Florida. He
faced
Karen Brill and John Michael Hartman in the general election on August 26, 2014. Brill, the incumbent, won the election.
Biography
Mech earned a B.A. in finance from Michigan State University in 1998. He later received an M.S. in information management from Arizona State University. Mech has also taken doctoral courses in media economics, computer science, and human sexuality. He acted in more than 100 adult films from 1998 until leaving the industry in 2010. Mech currently owns Happy/Fun Math Tutor Company.[1]
Elections
2014
The August 26, 2014, general election in Palm Beach County featured four seats up for election. Only three of the races were decided in the general election. The general election determined if candidates for each seat could garner a majority of the vote total. Because no candidate received 50 percent plus one of the general election votes in District 4, the top two vote recipients advanced to the runoff election on November 4, 2014.
The District 4 race included newcomers Justin Katz, Larry F. Rosensweig, Thomas G. Sutterfield and Erica Whitfield. Whitfield advanced to the runoff election in first place. A recount was held to determine whether Sutterfield or Katz would advance to the runoff election in second place. Sutterfield's lead held and he advanced over Katz to the runoff election. Rosensweig, however, was defeated in the general election.
District 3, 6 and 7 races were determined in the general election. Karen Brill won re-election in District 3 against John Michael Hartman and David Benoit Mech. Incumbent Marcia Andrews defeated newcomers Carla Donaldson and Joe Moore in District 6. The District 7 race featured incumbent Debra L. Robinson who defeated challenger Piaget "Peppi" Hendrix.
Results
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan |  Karen Brill Incumbent |
80% | 15,802 | |
| Nonpartisan | John Michael Hartman | 15.5% | 3,062 | |
| Nonpartisan | David Benoit Mech | 4.5% | 891 | |
| Total Votes | 19,755 | |||
| Source: Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections, "2014 Primary Election Official Results," accessed September 9, 2014 | ||||
Funding
Mech reported $4,086.28 in contributions and $1,518.42 in expenditures to the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections, as of July 21, 2014.[2]
Endorsements
Mech received no official endorsements in the election, as of July 21, 2014.
Campaign themes
2014
Mech's campaign website listed the following themes for the 2014 race:
| “ |
Merit Pay for Teachers I do not support merit pay for teachers for two reasons: First, teachers do not get to choose the students in their class. If teacher A happens to draw a group of students who are over-achievers, while teacher B draws an under-achieving group, it is unlikely that teacher B’s students will excel relative to Teacher A’s, even if teacher B is a better teacher. Second, academic research suggests that money does not incentivize performance, unless the job requires no cognitive ability. Research shows that paying people more money actually decreases productivity, even with jobs that require only a minimal amount of cognitive ability. The science-supported factors that affect motivation are autonomy, mastery and purpose. Thus, I would give teachers more autonomy in their classrooms to teach the material they want in the best way they deem appropriate; I would not fire of discipline teachers due to complaints from a few parents who happen to disagree with a particular teacher’s method; I would support extra teacher training and credentialing; and, I would support proven methods to help teachers feel a stronger sense of purpose in their jobs. Common Core Standards I support the Common Core Standards. I believe it is important to have a national baseline for educational effectiveness. Implementing national standards, developed using an international model, helps researchers develop effective educational intervention programs. States are welcome to compliment the common core standards by exceeding the baseline requirements. Charter Schools While I believe in a market economy, I do not believe in a market society. Thus, I generally oppose charter schools. First, I believe that public money should remain in our public institutions. Parents who want their kids in different schools always have the option to pay for private schools, which is why I believe charter schools, too, should be privatized. Second, the financial oversight of public funds going to privately run charter schools is often lacking. Until we can improve financial accountability and transparency, I will continue to oppose charter schools. Third, overall performance from charter school students is at or below that of traditional schools. Fourth, I think diverting resources away from the public schools harms the overall system. If there are issues with a particular school that warrants parents sending their children elsewhere, those issues should be addressed. Lastly, I strongly believe in the political statement, “no taxation without representation.” The fact that charter schools use public money while operating independently of school board policy and teacher unions runs counter to that philosophy. However, successful charter schools often have a longer school year and longer school days (typically offsetting the subsequent cost increases by having larger class sizes). I believe these strategies would also benefit the traditional public schools. Additionally, if there is a particular principal at a charter school who is doing exceptionally well, I would recommend hiring him or her into a traditional school to make a similar impact. If there is a particular district policy that is preventing a traditional school from being successful, then that policy should be addressed so that all the traditional schools benefit. Thus, I support looking at successful charter schools around the nation and asking what we can do at the traditional school level to mirror that success, without having to resort to funding charter schools of our own. School Choice/Voucher Programs I oppose choice/voucher programs for much of the same reasons listed above in the ‘charter schools’ section. These programs take money that would follow a student into a public school and divert it into a private school. The research suggests that most voucher programs lead to comparable or worse test scores for almost all demographics. The other problem with vouchers is that not all students have to ability to get into the schools they want, so only a few select students are able to use the vouchers effectively, which isn’t fair to all students in the system. Additionally, larger public schools have greater economies of scale. By diverting students and funds from public schools into the private schools, those efficiencies are greatly reduced. Lastly, the Establishment Clause of the United States Constitution mandates separation of church and state. By allowing parents to use public money to essentially fund religious schools would be unconstitutional, in my view. Magnet Schools I generally oppose magnet schools. While culinary arts, music and other specialized curriculum programs sound like a nice idea, I don’t believe these programs add marketable skills that are needed for students to be competitive in the marketplace of the future. I believe our K-12 education programs should focus solidly on math, science, reading and writing, which give students a solid educational foundation from where they can be successful. At the high school level, students should have the option to take electives in business, engineering, law, personal finance, computer science and other marketable subjects. I believe courses like culinary arts, Portuguese and other less-marketable skills should be taken privately or as electives at the college level, not publicly funded at the K-12 level. Our elementary and secondary education systems need to prepare students with universal skills to be successful in the future. Year-Round School I support a year-round school term. I don’t believe it makes sense for kids to have many months off each summer, during which time many students are unproductive and forget much of what they learned in the previous session. I would support offering year-round school year with a 2-week break every 3 months. I would also support a longer school day. The reason for my position is that our K-12 academic achievement pales in comparison to our European and Asian neighbors across the ponds. We must make significant changes to how we educate our children if we are to compete effectively in the global economy. Early Childhood Education I absolutely support early childhood education. I believe students should begin school as early as age 3 or 4, and I would support an initiative to have publicly funded preschools available to all residents of Palm Beach County. School Violence At a recent candidate forum in Riviera Beach, a member of the audience asked the panel if we would support metal detectors in the schools, citing his experience that many students currently bring guns and knives to the local school. I support metal detectors in the schools. After all, metal detectors exist at the school district administrative offices (on Forest Hills Blvd.), so if it's good enough for the administrators then it's certainly good enough for our kids. Additionally, I support the ability of teachers to carry a weapon on campus, assuming the teacher is licensed (CCW), well-trained, and commits to mandatory monthly practice at a local range. It often takes police several minutes to respond to an incident, so a well-trained teacher with a weapon could neutralize a threat much more efficiently, saving many lives. On a national level, we are seeing a significant rise in school related violence involving the use of guns, knives, and related weapons. It's just a matter of time before something similar happens here in Palm Beach County. Thus, I think we have a responsibility to take necessary and decisive action before it's too late. Additionally, I think teachers who are permitted to carry weapons on campus would need to register their status with the District and local principal’s office. School Board Term Limits I opposed term limits because I believe voters should never be limited in their choice of candidates for office. Assume you oppose raising taxes to fund new schools and that your current school board member is in agreement with that position. When the next election arrives, two new candidates enter the race, both of who support raising taxes to fund schools, but the incumbent is prohibited from running for re-election due to a term limit. In this case, the voter loses the ability to vote for the candidate who best represents his or her view, the incumbent candidate loses because he or she wants to run again but is prohibited from doing so, and the democratic process loses because the election has one less candidate to share a voice. The beauty of the democratic system is that good officials can continue to be elected over and over again, and the bad ones can be voted out when necessary. Thus, I believe imposing term limits is unfair to the candidates and unhealthy for the democratic process. |
” |
| —David Benoit Mech's campaign website, (2014) | ||
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "David + Benoit + Mech + Palm + Beach + County + Schools"
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Mech for Public Schools, "About Me," accessed July 21, 2014
- ↑ Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections, "Candidate Finance Reports," accessed July 21, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Mech for Palm Beach County Schools, "Common Issues," accessed July 21, 2014
| 2014 School District of Palm Beach County Elections | |
| Palm Beach County, Florida | |
| Election date: | August 26, 2014 |
| Candidates: | District 3: • Karen Brill • John Michael Hartman • David Benoit Mech District 4: • Justin Katz • Larry F. Rosensweig • Thomas G. Sutterfield • Erica Whitfield |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
