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E'Lena Ashley

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E'Lena Ashley
Image of E'Lena Ashley
Tulsa Public Schools Board of Education District 4
Tenure

2022 - Present

Term ends

2026

Years in position

3

Predecessor
Elections and appointments
Last elected

April 5, 2022

Education

Bachelor's

National University, 2003

Graduate

Langston University, 2013

Military

Service / branch

U.S. Army

Years of service

1977 - 1981

Personal
Birthplace
Phoenix, Ariz.
Religion
Christian
Profession
Rehabilitation counseling consultant
Contact

E'Lena Ashley is a member of the Tulsa Public Schools Board of Education in Oklahoma, representing District 4. She assumed office on May 2, 2022. Her current term ends in 2026.

Ashley ran for election to the Tulsa Public Schools Board of Education to represent District 4 in Oklahoma. She won in the general election on April 5, 2022.

Ashley completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

E'Lena Ashley was born in Phoenix, Arizona. She served in the U.S. Army from 1977 to 1981. She earned a bachelor's degree from National University in 2003 and a graduate degree from Langston University in 2013. Her career experience includes working as a rehabilitation counseling consultant.[1]

Ashley has been affiliated with the following organizations:[1]

  • Republican Party of Tulsa County Executive Committee
  • City Elders, member
  • Tulsa County Sheriff's Oversight Board

Elections

2022

See also: Tulsa Public Schools, Oklahoma, elections (2022)

General election

General election for Tulsa Public Schools Board of Education District 4

E'Lena Ashley defeated incumbent Shawna Keller in the general election for Tulsa Public Schools Board of Education District 4 on April 5, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of E'Lena Ashley
E'Lena Ashley (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
56.4
 
556
Image of Shawna Keller
Shawna Keller (Nonpartisan)
 
43.6
 
430

Total votes: 986
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

The primary election was canceled. Incumbent Shawna Keller and E'Lena Ashley advanced from the primary for Tulsa Public Schools Board of Education District 4.

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection

E'Lena Ashley completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Ashley's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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E’Lena Ashley started her career in 1977 when she enlisted in the US Army Military Intelligence program. The California native was stationed in Germany affording her a chance to experience European culture. E’Lena returned to California and quickly realized that her passion was continuing her fight to help her fellow Americans.

The single mom of three children (one biological and the others being adopted fraternal twins) chose to continue her education and earned her Bachelor’s degree in Behavioral Science while working as a paraprofessional in the Los Angeles Unified School District. E’Lena was then offered an advocacy position in Washington DC for the Department of Veterans Affairs.

After several years of working in Washington, she moved her family to Tulsa to be with her aging parents. Now, being an Oklahoma resident, E’Lena took on a teaching position with Tulsa Job Corps to help young adults obtain their high school diploma. While there, the single mom earned her Master’s Degree in rehabilitation counseling.

To continue her passion, E’Lena later became a supervisor of ‘The WAVE’, a women’s outreach, mentoring and advocacy program helping Tulsa families. She would also spend her evenings as the coordinator for the Tulsa Dream Center’s youth after-school and counseling programs, where she got her family involved with feeding, mentoring and tutoring young students with academic fundamentals.
  • Our children should be taught academics and fundamental life skills. Quality curriculum and properly equipped teachers and classrooms are the keys to success.
  • TPS receive millions dollars of our taxpayer money. It is time to trace that money and ensure it is reaching the students and meeting their needs! Continuously failing schools and poor student performance are unacceptable.
  • Parents, guardians, and caretakers should have the ultimate authority regarding their student's education from the school they attend or the curriculum they are taught. Parents' voices should never be kept out of policy.
I am an excellent advocator, communicator, and listener. I can identify, recommend and encourage others. I am a great problem solver and can see multiple prospectives. I am great at open dialogue. As a former educator, I can appreciate students' unique and shifting needs. I am involved and engaged in the community and can appreciate organizational stakeholders who are invested in our children's success. I look for effectiveness in outcomes when it comes to policies.
The job of the school board is to manage the district in a way that fosters student and teacher success. It is also the school board's job to oversee and manage the district's finances & budget, hire and manage the superintendent, ensure a quality & positive educational environment, review and evaluate curriculum and policies.
I would like to leave a lasting and positive impact on students wanting to engage in the community and make sure they have a valued place in American society.
U.S. Army for 4 years and was honorably discharged.
The job of the school board is to manage the district in a way that fosters student and teacher success. It is also the school board's job to oversee and manage the district's finances & budget, hire and manage the superintendent, ensure a quality & positive educational environment, review and evaluate curriculum and policies.
Residents of TPS school board district 4 and parents of the students in Tulsa Public Schools.
Our school district is not a one-size fits all, therefore I would support the diverse needs by ensuring that the district's policies are reflective of their educational and teaching needs and make sure it includes its diverse cultural uniqueness.
I will build relationships by being open to hearing everyone's voice. It takes a village to raise a family, and TPS is a family, and our parents, tax-payers, private organizations and local businesses are our village. I will welcome any organization that is for the betterment of our children.
Lack of classroom resources and quality teaching equipment, lack of teachers and paraprofessionals in the classroom, and over-sized classes. For many of these issues, the underlying problem is a financial problem. To fix this, I will push for accountability and transparency which would require a forensic audit of the district's budget by the state auditor.
Some good qualities include certified knowledge of the subject and the ability to communicate it to students, This is measured by the performance of the students academically. So as a community, we will see measurable learning outcomes. I will support advanced teaching that has proven outcomes for student success.
I will support mental health needs with open communication to bolster trust.
Parents, guardians, and caretakers should have the ultimate authority regarding their children. As a board member, I will strongly encourage parents to show up and be involved in their child(ren)'s educational journey by being present in their child(ren)'s school and at school board meetings. This means allowing their voices and potential concerns to be heard.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

See also


External links

Footnotes

  1. 1.0 1.1 Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on February 23, 2022.