Erin Small (Hempfield School District, At-large, Pennsylvania, candidate 2023)
Erin Small (Democratic Party) ran for election to Hempfield School District, At-large in Pennsylvania.[1]
Elections
2023
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Erin Small completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Small's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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I am an educator, parent and community volunteer. I spent eight years teaching high school language arts in the Cincinnati area. I also gained experience teaching at the university level while pursuing a master’s degree in creative writing.
In 2017, I relocated to Hempfield in Lancaster County due to its exemplary reputation for academics and community. I have two children who are current students in the district, as well as a 2023 graduate. I have been an active volunteer in Hempfield schools and a substitute teacher. Additionally, I volunteer with community groups including Hempfield Power Packs, CASA of Lancaster and the Friends of the Public Library. You can often find me in the stands supporting Mountville baseball or Hempfield lacrosse. I have attended school board meetings regularly for the last three years Erin has attended school board meetings regularly for the last three years and am ready to shift my passion for public education to the role of school director. I believe the goal of public education is to educate all children, not to protect the interests of a select few. I am running to support educators, students and families, and to voice the needs of the under-represented.
- Supporting students and all their needs: academic, developmental, and safety.
- Supporting educators by valuing and trusting our trained professionals.
- Supporting the Hempfield community by ensuring public school excellence.
Ensuring that high quality, equitable public education is available for all.
Hempfield Education Association
I come from a line of strong women. My grandmother and mother raised me to be intelligent, opinionated, and kind. I watched both of them lead quietly in supporting roles, serving others without asking for recognition. They were not afraid to be the smartest person in the room, but always encouraged the best in others and loved them well. My mom was engaged in advocacy for public education from the time I entered school, first on my behalf and then for others. If, through my actions, I can impart some of my passion for public education and what it can do to benefit individuals and society, I will be carrying out the most ardent wishes of these two amazing women.
The primary job of a school board director is to ensure that the public schools in their district are adequately funded and managed to provide high quality public education to benefit all of its residents. School board directors are tasked with passing a balanced budget, setting policy to guide administration, and hiring and overseeing the superintendent as the head administrator.
I will do my best to represent the needs of all students, teachers, and families in my district, no matter their political background. A school director has the obligation to listen to all points of view and then use their best judgement to make decisions that benefit all.
The best way to understand and thus plan for resources that will meet the needs of our increasingly diverse district is to listen to those that are engaged in the work of serving our students. I intend to be a careful listener in meetings and to visit the buildings in our district on a regular basis. Understand the true needs will enable me to make effective decisions that will best support a wide range of of our population.
As a member of the board, I will make the workings of the board more transparent and available to the community at large. That means offering more detailed minutes and agendas, and having increased availability of recordings of meetings. I will also work to create more opportunities for discussion among stakeholders, specifically staff, students, and interested families and residents.
I appreciate some of the programs and initiatives that have been started to increase communication between administration and parents in the district, such as the Superintendent's Advisory Committee which I served on for four years. Offering opportunities for parents to hold positions on committees such as policy committees is a good way to build connections and gain insight. I have been an active volunteer in the district and community since I moved here, and plan to continue in those roles in order to stay connected to the families in the district.
As a teacher, some of the qualities I have learned how to hone are effective listening, encouragement and recognition of multiple perspectives and points of view, and nurturing the strengths of those I work with. School board director is a volunteer job that requires a great deal of patience and stamina, especially in today's political climate. As a parent and active community volunteer, those are skills I put to use on a daily basis.
I struggle to choose a favorite book because I love so many different ones for different reasons. But my favorite book to teach and share with others is To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. In that book, we see the power of courage demonstrated in a multitude of characters and situations. Through the eyes of a child, readers are given the opportunity to see how individuals can make a difference with their actions, and to consider the perspectives of other people.
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.
External links
[1] ↑ Submitted to Ballotpedia's candidate survey in 2023.
