Everything you need to know about ranked-choice voting in one spot. Click to learn more!

Karen J. Harshman

From Ballotpedia
Jump to: navigation, search

Local Politics Image.jpg

Ballotpedia provides comprehensive election coverage of the 100 largest cities in America by population as well as mayoral, city council, and district attorney election coverage in state capitals outside of the 100 largest cities. This board member is outside of that coverage scope and does not receive scheduled updates.


BP-Initials-UPDATED.png
Ballotpedia does not currently cover this office or maintain this page. Please contact us with any updates.
Karen J. Harshman
Image of Karen J. Harshman
Prior offices
Washington County Public Schools, At-large

Personal
Profession
Educator
Contact

Karen J. Harshman is an at-large member of the Washington County Board of Education in Maryland. She was first elected to the board in 2010. Harshman advanced from a primary election on June 24, 2014, to face five other candidates for three available seats in the general election on November 4, 2014. Harshman won re-election to another term in the general election.

Biography

Email editor@ballotpedia.org to notify us of updates to this biography.

Harshman worked for 30 years as an English teacher in the district prior to her retirement. She and her husband, Mike, have two children who graduated from district schools.[1]

Elections

2014

See also: Washington County Public Schools elections (2014)

The June 24, 2014, primary ballot included incumbents Jacqueline Fischer and Karen J. Harshman as well as challengers Mike Guessford, Henry House, Mindy Marsden, Ryan Richard Miner, Peter E. Perini Sr. and Stan Stouffer. All of the primary candidates except House and Marsden faced off in the general election on November 4, 2014.

Results

General
Washington County Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 4-year term, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngMike Guessford 19.6% 17,242
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngKaren J. Harshman Incumbent 18.2% 15,995
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngJacqueline Fischer Incumbent 18.1% 15,919
     Nonpartisan Peter E. Perini Sr. 17.5% 15,398
     Nonpartisan Stan Stouffer 15.9% 13,966
     Nonpartisan Ryan Richard Miner 10.4% 9,150
     Nonpartisan Write-in votes 0.3% 268
Total Votes 87,938
Source: Maryland State Board of Elections, "Official 2014 Gubernatorial General Election results for Washington County," December 2, 2014
Primary
Washington County Public Schools, At-Large Primary Election, 4-year term, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngMike Guessford 16.7% 6,296
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngKaren J. Harshman Incumbent 15.5% 5,840
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngStan Stouffer 13.8% 5,208
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngJacqueline Fischer Incumbent 13.2% 4,963
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngRyan Richard Miner 11.4% 4,287
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngPeter E. Perini Sr. 11.2% 4,212
     Nonpartisan Mindy Marsden 11.1% 4,184
     Nonpartisan Henry House 7% 2,651
Total Votes 37,641
Source: Maryland State Board of Elections, "Official 2014 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for Washington County," July 16, 2014

Funding

Harshman reported $697 in contributions and $75.77 in expenditures to the Maryland State Board of Elections, leaving her campaign with $621.23 on hand as of June 4, 2014.[2]

Endorsements

Harshman was endorsed by the Washington County Teachers Association ahead of the primary.[3]

2010

Washington County Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 4-year term, 2010
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngKaren J. Harshman 20.4% 17,062
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngPaul Bailey 19.8% 16,532
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngJacqueline Fischer 18.7% 15,604
     Nonpartisan Dottie Gruhler 15.1% 12,630
     Nonpartisan Wayne M. Kretzer, Jr. 13.6% 11,364
     Nonpartisan Russell Williams 11.6% 9,727
     Nonpartisan James W. Staley 0.5% 419
     Nonpartisan Write-in votes 0.2% 193
Total Votes 83,531
Source: Maryland State Board of Elections, "Official 2010 Gubernatorial General Election results for Washington County," accessed June 6, 2014

Campaign themes

2014

Harshman explained her themes for the 2014 race in an interview with The Herald-Mail:

1. In your opinion, what is the role of a school board member?

The role of the School Board member is to hire a superintendent who will serve the county with the leadership needed to provide the best education possible for our children. A Board member should solicit input from the community and share that input with the other Board members. He/she is responsible for evaluating the superintendent and his decisions and holding the superintendent responsible for his employees and his choices.

2. With the cost of brick-and-mortar schools so high, what should be done to accommodate student growth overall and in specific areas?

Enrollment is difficult to project. Building schools with the same basic plan would save on design costs. Adding wings for increased population would be less expensive than starting a new school from scratch. Portable classrooms detached from the schools with no restrooms are not the best solution for overcrowding. Currently, new programs such as Middle College housed at HCC and magnet programs in less-populated schools allow students to move into these less-crowded areas.

3. What more should Washington County Public Schools do to prevent bullying, including cyberbullying?

Bullying has no place in this world and needs to be reported and dealt with quickly and appropriately. Requiring counseling sessions for anger-management or sensitivity training for those involved in bullying may provide a better understanding of why the child or adult feels the need to bully others. Often, the bully has low self-esteem and low self-worth. All corrective measures should focus on the bully’s removal from contact instead of excluding the victim.

4. What can the school system do to improve literacy among elementary school students?

Literacy is our greatest concern. Children who reach third grade and cannot read are playing catch-up while classmates move on. Placing struggling children in smaller classes would allow more individual attention. These students do not always attend summer literacy programs. Using the school year to reach those who need assistance by providing smaller classes may address their needs and cost less than running a summer program. Assigned summer reading should be mandatory for all students.

5. Do you have any concerns about the Common Core State Standards, now referred to as Maryland's College and Career-Ready Standards? Why or why not, and what could the local board do about any concerns that you might have?

I was teaching at North High when WCBOE agreed to adopt the Common Core Standards. Teachers were very apprehensive. As soon as the standards appeared, I reviewed the English section fearing that non-fiction would depose the poetry and fiction I had taught. The basic standards reflected what we had been teaching. I think the main objections are the extensive record keeping, the short time provided to prepare for the changes and lack of teachers’ input.[4]

The Herald-Mail, (2014)

[5]

Recent news

This section links to a Google news search for the term "Karen + Harshman + Washington + County + Public + Schools"

See also

External links

Footnotes