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James Piatt
James Piatt is a former District 1 representative on the Calvert County Board of Education in Maryland. He was first appointed to the board in December 2014. Piatt was defeated in the primary election on April 26, 2016.[1]
Biography
Piatt earned his bachelor's degree in nuclear engineering technology from Thomas Edison State College. He also holds master's degrees in business administration and performance improvement from Grantham University. Piatt served in the U.S. Navy for 10 years following high school. He works as a senior reactor operator at Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant. Piatt and his wife, Laurel, have two children.[2]
Elections
2016
Three of the five seats on the Calvert County Board of Education were up for general election on November 8, 2016. A primary election was held on April 26, 2016, with the top two vote recipients in each district advancing to the general election. Challengers Stephen Jones Jr. and Dawn Balinski advanced to the District 1 general election by defeating incumbent James Piatt. Balinski defeated Jones in the election. The District 2 race featured incumbent Tracy McGuire and challenger Nancy Vaeth Highsmith after Casey Smith was defeated in the primary. McGuire won re-election against Highsmith. In District 3, incumbent Kelly McConkey defeated challenger Erin Knowles. McConkey and Knowles defeated Monica Lee Silbas in the primary.[1]
Results
| Calvert County Public Schools, District 1 Primary Election, 4-Year Term, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Dawn Balinski |
51.15% | 8,296 |
| Stephen Jones Jr. |
25.01% | 4,056 |
| James Piatt Incumbent | 23.84% | 3,867 |
| Total Votes | 16,219 | |
| Source: Maryland State Board of Elections, "Unofficial 2016 Presidential Primary Election results for Calvert County," accessed April 26, 2016 | ||
Campaign themes
2016
Ballotpedia survey responses
James Piatt participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 survey of school board candidates. In response to the question "What do you hope to achieve if elected to the school board?" the candidate stated on February 5, 2016:
| “ | Continue to close the gap in pay for our teachers, while continuing to elevate the quality level of education that my county is known for[3][4] | ” |
Ranking the issues
The candidate was asked to rank the following issues based on how they should be prioritized by the school board, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. Each ranking could only be used once.
| Education policy |
|---|
 |
Click here to learn more about education policy in Maryland. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| “ | based on the current needs in my county, I think my rankings speak for themselves.[4] | ” |
| —James Piatt (February 5, 2016) | ||
Positions on the issues
The candidate was asked to answer nine questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. The questions are highlighted in blue and followed by the candidate's responses. Some questions provided multiple choices, which are noted after those questions. The candidate was also provided space to elaborate on their answers to the multiple choice questions.
| Should new charter schools be approved in your district? (Not all school boards are empowered to approve charter schools. In those cases, the candidate was directed to answer the question as if the school board were able to do so.) |
|---|
| Yes. N/A for our county. |
| Which statement best describes the ideal relationship between the state government and the school board? The state should always defer to school board decisions, defer to school board decisions in most cases, be involved in the district routinely or only intervene in severe cases of misconduct or mismanagement. |
| The state should defer to school board decisions in most cases. |
| Are standardized tests an accurate metric of student achievement? |
| Yes. They have the highest potential for displaying a students' aptitude. Although not 100% accurate, they are the best method we have available today. |
| What is your stance on the Common Core State Standards Initiative? |
| I stand firm that the premise of CommonCore is fantastic, but the implementation fo te program is where many of the faults lie. |
| How should the district handle underperforming teachers? Terminate their contract before any damage is done to students, offer additional training options, put them on a probationary period while they seek to improve or set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district? |
| Offer additional training options. Put them on a probationary period while they seek to improve. Set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district. Like our students, some teachers miss the mark as well. We should spend every available option trying to improve their performance before giving up on them. |
| Should teachers receive merit pay? |
| Yes. Much like my full time job, I believe those who go above and beyond should be recognized accordingly. |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| No. Private schools are just that, private. Run them as such. |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| Only as a last alternative |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| Teachers None of the other factors matter without excellent leadership. |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'James Piatt' 'Calvert County Public Schools'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Maryland State Board of Elections, "Calvert County 2016 Presidential Primary Election Local Candidates List," February 10, 2016
- ↑ Calvert County Public Schools, "James Piatt," accessed April 15, 2016
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2016, "James Piatt's responses," February 5, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| 2016 Calvert County Public Schools Elections | |
| Calvert County, Maryland | |
| Election date: | November 8, 2016 |
| Candidates: | District 1: Dawn Balinski • Stephen Jones Jr. • James Piatt District 2: Incumbent, Tracy McGuire • Nancy Vaeth Highsmith • Casey Smith |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
