Ken Zeff
Ken Zeff is a member of the Atlanta Public Schools school board in Georgia, representing District 3. He assumed office on January 1, 2024. His current term ends on December 31, 2027.
Zeff ran for election to the Atlanta Public Schools school board to represent District 3 in Georgia. He won in the general election on November 7, 2023.
Zeff completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Ken Zeff was born in Chicago, Illinois. He earned a graduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business in 1999 and a Ph.D. from Georgia State University in 2019. His career experience includes working as an executive director. Zeff has been affiliated with Junior Achievement and The Atlanta-Fulton Library Foundation.[1]
Elections
2023
See also: Atlanta Public Schools, Georgia, elections (2023)
General election
General election for Atlanta Public Schools school board District 3
Ken Zeff defeated incumbent Michelle Olympiadis in the general election for Atlanta Public Schools school board District 3 on November 7, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Ken Zeff (Nonpartisan)  | 63.0 | 4,920 |
 | Michelle Olympiadis (Nonpartisan) | 37.0 | 2,895 | |
| Total votes: 7,815 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Zeff in this election.
Campaign themes
2023
Video for Ballotpedia
| Video submitted to Ballotpedia Released September 19, 2023 |
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Ken Zeff completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Zeff's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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There are pockets of excellence in Atlanta Public Schools. My vision is to create a culture of achievement and high expectations in each corner of the district, starting with District 3.
- Get the Next Superintendent Hire Right - In the past four years, the APS Board of Education has let go of two superintendents that they hired ahead of schedule. It’s a revolving door that creates instability in our schools. And it’s costly for taxpayers. Right now, we are paying an interim superintendent while also paying out a settlement to their predecessor and search firm costs. Plus, the organization inevitably gets distracted from a laser focus on student achievement. We have to get the next hire right. As a former superintendent and a partner to district’s across the region, I have developed a deep understanding of what it takes to be successful as an organization leader.
- Fund Schools First - n the most recent budget, the Board of Education took millions in additional tax revenue and allocated it to the central office rather than sending it to teachers and schools. The bureaucracy at the central office gets more resources instead of sending this additional funding to the classroom. We have to focus our priorities on direct investment in classrooms, and by extension direct investment in our kids.
- Ensure that Every Child is a Reader - Literacy rates are at crisis levels in Atlanta Public Schools. Only 11% of kids of color are reading at grade in 3rd grade. This has disastrous long term effects on the kids we are letting down as their ability to succeed in life is greatly compromised. In APS, we pay more than $20,000 per student per year. If we focus our resources on supporting teachers with a comprehensive literacy strategy, we can make every child a reader. I have supported this work in other districts and I believe it can also happen in APS.
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
2023 Elections
External links
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Candidate Atlanta Public Schools school board District 3 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on October 4, 2023
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