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Mary Kowalski
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Mary Kowalski was a candidate for at-large representative on the Carroll County Board of Education in Maryland. Kowalski ran for the seat in the primary election on April 26, 2016. She lost in the general election on November 8, 2016.[1]
Kowalski was a 2014 candidate for an at-large seat on the Carroll County Board of Education. She lost election against seven other candidates in a primary election on June 24, 2014.
Biography
Kowalski earned a master's degree in elementary education from McDaniel College. She works as a paraprofessional with the district. Kowalski is a founding member of Carroll Citizens United and the Carroll Joint Neighborhood Association.[2]
Elections
2016
Two of the five seats on the Carroll 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 four vote recipients advancing to the general election. Incumbent Jim Doolan filed for re-election, while Jennifer Seidel did not file for the 2016 election. Doolan faced challengers Marsha Herbert, Julie Kingsley, Mary Kowalski, and Donna Sivigny in the primary.[1]
In March 2016, Doolan announced his withdrawal from the election. His withdrawal took place after the deadline to remove names from the ballot, which meant that Carroll County voters still saw Doolan's name on the primary ballot. Herbert, Kingsley, Kowalski, and Sivigny defeated Doolan in the primary. Herbert and Sivigny defeated Kingsley and Kowalski in the general election.[3]
Results
| Carroll County Public Schools, At-large General Election, 4-Year Terms, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| 31.09% | 41,372 | |
| 27.93% | 37,176 | |
| Julie Kingsley | 25.00% | 33,276 |
| Mary Kowalski | 15.52% | 20,654 |
| Write-in votes | 0.46% | 614 |
| Total Votes | 133,092 | |
| Source: Maryland State Board of Elections, "2016 Presidential General Election Results," accessed December 14, 2016 | ||
| Carroll County Public Schools, At-large Primary Election, 4-Year Terms, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| 22.86% | 14,452 | |
| 21.79% | 13,779 | |
| 19.92% | 12,596 | |
| 17.79% | 11,245 | |
| Jim Doolan Incumbent | 17.63% | 11,149 |
| Total Votes | 63,221 | |
| Source: Maryland State Board of Elections, "Unofficial 2016 Presidential Primary Election results for Carroll County," accessed April 26, 2016 | ||
Funding
Candidates for public office in Maryland had until March 22, 2016, to submit their first contributions and expenditure report of the primary campaign. The final campaign finance deadline of the 2016 campaign was November 22, 2016.[4] State law allows candidates to file Affidavits of Limited Contributions and Expenditures (ALCE) if their campaigns did not accept $1,000 in contributions or spend $1,000 in a particular reporting period.[5]
October 28 filing
Candidates received a total of $10,191.82 and spent a total of $3,473.51 as of October 30, 2016, according to the Maryland Campaign Reporting Information System.[6]
| Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marsha Herbert | $1,699.82 | $2,042.29 | $487.80 |
| Julie Kingsley | $1,015.00 | $263.52 | $977.80 |
| Mary Kowalski | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Donna Sivigny | $7,477.00 | $1,167.70 | $6,547.53 |
March 22 filing
Candidates received a total of $7,884.20 and spent a total of $4,606.75 as of April 19, 2016, according to the Maryland Campaign Reporting Information System.[7]
| Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jim Doolan (incumbent) | ALCE | ALCE | ALCE |
| Marsha Herbert | $4,070.00 | $1,938.89 | $2,131.11 |
| Julie Kingsley | $1,210.00 | $650.30 | $559.70 |
| Mary Kowalski | ALCE | ALCE | ALCE |
| Donna Sivigny | $2,604.20 | $2,017.56 | $586.64 |
2014
The June 24, 2014, primary ballot included incumbent Virginia R. Harrison along with challengers Gary W. Desper, George E. Harmening, Mary Kowalski, Bob Lord, Charles "Bud" Nason, Jim Roenick and Devon Rothschild. Board members Gary Bauer and Barbara Shreeve did not file for re-election. Harmening, Lord, Nason, Roenick, Rothschild and Harrison faced off in the general election on November 4, 2014. Harmening, Nason and Roenick ran as a slate opposed to Common Core.
Harrison, Rothschild and Lord won the general election.
Results
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | 19.2% | 13,203 | ||
| Nonpartisan | 16.8% | 11,561 | ||
| Nonpartisan | 14.1% | 9,676 | ||
| Nonpartisan | 11.4% | 7,821 | ||
| Nonpartisan | 11.4% | 7,813 | ||
| Nonpartisan | 11.1% | 7,609 | ||
| Nonpartisan | Mary Kowalski | 10% | 6,866 | |
| Nonpartisan | Gary W. Desper | 6% | 4,108 | |
| Total Votes | 68,657 | |||
| Source: Maryland State Board of Elections, "Official 2014 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for Carroll County," July 16, 2014 | ||||
Funding
Kowalski reported no contributions or expenditures to the Maryland State Board of Elections as of August 19, 2014.[8]
Endorsements
Kowalski did not receive any official endorsements in this election.
Campaign themes
| Mary Kowalski video for Community Media Center |
2016
Kowalski's campaign website listed the following themes for 2016:
| “ |
Oppose Common Core I am against Common Core because it ties the hands of our teachers, inhibits innovation in the classroom, and reduces local control of education. We must keep achievement in the forefront and keep local control of education. Control Spending The Board of Education wants to SPEND a whopping $96 Million to build a new Career and Tech Center. The current Career and Tech Center is no longer big enough to handle the demand for its programs. But do we really need a new Career and Tech Center? Keep reading... Stop School Closures For months we have listened to the propaganda that closing schools would "save" $5 Million. Rather than save money, it would only give the Board of Ed an excuse to build a new $96 million dollar Career and Tech Center. We should nix the plan to close schools and, instead, use the ample surplus space in our schools to meet the demand for Career and Technology programs, and save the $96 Million! Strengthen Character Education Many students are struggling to deal with bullying and negative peer pressure. During the occasional classroom discussion on these topics, students come to life. I believe that we need to do much more to educate teens about the very real dangers of drugs, alcohol, and promiscuity. [9] |
” |
| —Mary Kowalski (2016), [10] | ||
2014
Kowalski explained her themes for the 2014 race in a series of interviews with the Carroll County Times:
| “ |
Capital projects Repairs and maintenance needs should be a priority because if schools are not kept in good repair all along, they will only cost more to repair down the road. The next priority is new schools when they are needed. The way to secure funding is through solid planning, collaboration and communication. Common Core The school system itself seems to be confused and overwhelmed about the recent curriculum changes, as our Board of Education has stated on many occasions. Many teachers have said this has been the most difficult year they have experienced. I believe that the Board of Education should first be sure they themselves understand the many components of President Obama’s Common Core program before they attempt to explain it to parents. District fund balance I think there is ample money in the budget to cover school system needs, if only the Board of Education would spend responsibly. There is far too much waste on unnecessary six-figure central office positions and corporate-welfare spending that only benefits the corporations getting lucrative deals, but does not benefit kids. Teacher salaries The Board of Education must cut the waste at their administrative offices where far too many individuals make exorbitant salaries in positions that are not needed. In addition, these individuals do not work directly with students and are grossly out of touch with what is happening in our classrooms. Cutting this waste would go a long way to helping teachers get the raises they have waited so long to receive. |
” |
| —Carroll County Times, (2014) | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Mary Kowalski' 'Carroll County Public Schools'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Carroll County Public Schools, Maryland
- Carroll County Public Schools elections (2014)
- Carroll County Public Schools elections (2016)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Maryland State Board of Elections, "Carroll County 2016 Presidential Primary Election Local Candidates List," February 10, 2016
- ↑ Mary Kowalski for Board of Education, "About Mary," accessed April 12, 2016
- ↑ Carroll County Times, "School board president Doolan will not seek re-election," March 30, 2016
- ↑ Maryland State Board of Elections, "Reporting Schedule," accessed February 10, 2016
- ↑ Maryland State Board of Elections, "EAffidavit Filing," accessed February 10, 2016
- ↑ Maryland Campaign Reporting Information System, "View Filed Reports Information," accessed October 30, 2016
- ↑ Maryland Campaign Reporting Information System, "View Filed Reports Information," accessed April 19, 2016
- ↑ Maryland Campaign Reporting Information System, "View Filed Reports," accessed October 20, 2014
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Mary Kowalski for Board of Education, "On the Issues," accessed April 12, 2016
- ↑ Carroll County Times, "Board of Education candidates weigh in on Carroll County Public School fund balance," May 16, 2014 (dead link)
- ↑ Carroll County Times, "Board of Education candidates weigh in on Carroll County Public School fund balance," May 16, 2014 (dead link)
- ↑ Carroll County Times, "Carroll County Board of Education candidates discuss how to inform parents about Common Core," May 13, 2014 (dead link)
- ↑ Carroll County Times, "Candidates for Board of Education discuss teacher salaries," May 15, 2014 (dead link)
| 2016 Carroll County Public Schools Elections | |
| Carroll County, Maryland | |
| Election date: | November 8, 2016 |
| Candidates: | At-large: Incumbent, Jim Doolan • Marsha Herbert • Julie Kingsley • Mary Kowalski • Donna Sivigny |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
| 2014 Carroll County Public Schools Elections | |
| Carroll County, Maryland | |
| Election date: | November 4, 2014 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Gary W. Desper • George E. Harmening • Virginia R. Harrison • Mary Kowalski • Bob Lord • Charles "Bud" Nason • Jim Roenick • Devon Rothschild |
| Important information: | Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |