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Larry Fotovich
Larry Fotovich was a candidate for Position 3 representative on the Blue Valley Unified School District Board of Education in Kansas. He was defeated in the general election on April 7, 2015. Fotovich also lost his simultaneous campaign for a four-year term on the Johnson County Community College Board of Trustees. He participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 survey of school board candidates.
Fotovich was an at-large member of the Gardner City Council. He was elected to the council in 2011, and resigned on September 26, 2014, after moving outside of the community.[1]
Prior to his city council bid, Fotovich ran unsuccessfully for Mayor of Gardner in 2009, where he lost by just four votes to David C. Drovetta.[2]
Biography
Fotovich has owned Subrbian, Inc., a real estate brokerage, since 2006. Prior to owning that business, he was a sales manager for Garmin International, member of the PenAir Federal Credit Union Board of Directors and a stockbroker with Stifel Financial Corporation. Fotovich served in the United States Navy from 1989 to 1997, where he held the rank of lieutenant and worked as a naval aviator.[3]
Fotovich completed his undergraduate prerequisites at Johnson County Community College and earned his B.S. in journalism and advertising from the University of Kansas in 1985.[3]
Elections
2015
Four seats were up for election on April 7, 2015: Positions 1, 2, 3, and 7. Position 1 incumbent Pam Robinson faced and defeated challenger Alana Roethle. Meanwhile, Larry Fotovich lost to Position 3 incumbent Cindy Bowling.[4]
Position 2 incumbent Tony Thill was the only incumbent up for re-election who did not file for the race. Patrick J. Hurley was the sole candidate to file for the open seat and won the election. Also winning unopposed was at-large Position 7 incumbent Thomas Mitchell.[4]
Results
| Blue Valley Unified School District 229, Position 3 General Election, 4-year term, 2015 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan |  Cindy Bowling Incumbent |
88.2% | 5,789 | |
| Nonpartisan | Larry Fotovich | 11.7% | 768 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.1% | 5 | |
| Total Votes | 6,562 | |||
| Source: Johnson County Election Office, "Election Summary Report 2015 Spring General," April 13, 2015 | ||||
Funding
Fotovich reported no contributions or expenditures to the Johnson County Election Office in this election. He filed an "Affidavit of Exemption" on February 6, 2015, which attested that he would not spend more than $500.00 or receive more than $500.00, including his own contributions, over the course of the election.[5]
Endorsements
Fotovich did not receive any official endorsements in this election.
Campaign themes
2015
Ballotpedia survey responses
Fotovich participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 survey of school board candidates. The following sections display his responses to the survey questions. When asked what his top priority would be if elected, the candidate made the following statement:
| “ | My top priority would be prevent further looting of the district's funds by the governor and legislature and to find a creative way to enlist the help of students, parents and staff to persuade our state elected officials to restore proper levels of funding.[6] | ” |
| —Larry Fotovich (2015)[7] | ||
Ranking the issues
The candidate was asked to rank the following issues by importance in the school district, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. This table displays this candidate's rankings from most to least important:
| Education policy |
|---|
 |
Click here to learn more about education policy in Kansas. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Improving college readiness | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Expanding career-technical education | |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
Positions on the issues
The candidate was asked to answer 10 questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. The questions are in the left column and the candidate's responses are in the right column of the following table:
| Question | Response |
|---|---|
| "They should be implemented." | |
| "No." | |
| "No." | |
| "They accurately measure what is taught but aren't necessarily reflective of what the student can achieve." | |
| ""Parents are ultimately responsible for their children's achievement and success. If a parent doesn't value education or is unable to monitor the progress of their children due to family issues or poverty, it will be difficult for the child to be a high achiever. These are problems a school district probably can't fix. Better economic and social policy-making by states and the federal government could prevent these problems from occurring in future generations. Municipal governments can improve the odds of low socioeconomic status students through proper planning and community development as well as by improving the economic opportunities of its residents." | |
| "Students with behavior problems should be sent to alternative schools to remove them from their current environments rather than being expelled." | |
| "The school board should direct the superintendent to do a top-down review of that school starting with the principal. If the school is failing (which I assume means the students are not progressing at the same rate as those at other schools) then the responsibility ultimately lies with the principal. Were the teachers not properly vetted before a recommendation was made to hire them? Are there teachers who aren't happy in their grade level and would prefer to move to another one where they are more comfortable? Are a few bad employees affecting the morale of those who are trying to do a good job? Are there enough financial resources at the school to accomplish the objectives? These are just some of the questions that the chief executive officer of that school should be able to answer." | |
| "No." | |
| "A probationary period coupled with mentoring and additional training would seem to be the best combination to yield success." | |
| "I believe all board meetings should be videotaped and posted to the district's website to improve transparency and accountability." |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Larry Fotovich Blue Valley Unified School District. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Blue Valley Unified School District 229, Kansas
- Blue Valley Unified School District 229 elections (2015)
- Hot tub Gatorade, turnout in Peoria and the Wisconsin state budget... (April 8, 2015)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ The Gardner News, "Fotovich resigns from Gardner council," September 26, 2014
- ↑ Jefferson County Election Office, "Archives," accessed February 12, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 LinkedIn, "Larry Fotovich," accessed February 12, 2015
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Johnson County Election Office, "Candidates - Spring 2015 Unofficial Listing," accessed January 28, 2015
- ↑ Johnson County Elections Office, "Campaign & Committee Reports," accessed May 28, 2015
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2015, "Larry Fotovich's responses," February 18, 2015
| 2015 Blue Valley Unified School District 229 Elections | |
| Johnson County, Kansas | |
| Election date: | April 7, 2015 |
| Candidates: | Position 1: • Incumbent, Pam Robinson • Alana Roethle
Position 2: • Patrick J. Hurley
|
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
