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Michael Brock
Michael Brock was a candidate for an at-large seat on the San Marcos Unified School District school board in California. Brock was defeated in the at-large general election on November 8, 2016.
Brock participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 school board candidate survey. Click here to read his responses.
Elections
2016
Three of the five seats on the San Marcos Unified School District Governing Board were up for at-large general election on November 8, 2016. In their bids for re-election, incumbents Janet McClean and Randy Walton ran against challengers Lucia Acosta, Michael Brock, Victor Graham, and Leticia Robles.[1] McClean and Walton won re-election, and Graham won the other seat on the ballot.[2]
Results
| San Marcos Unified School District, At-large General Election, 4-year terms, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Randy Walton Incumbent |
20.97% | 17,999 |
| Janet McClean Incumbent |
19.95% | 17,116 |
| Victor Graham |
15.67% | 13,445 |
| Lucia Acosta | 15.60% | 13,388 |
| Leticia Robles | 15.24% | 13,078 |
| Michael Brock | 12.57% | 10,789 |
| Total Votes | 85,815 | |
| Source: San Diego County Registrar of Voters, "Presidential General Election - Tuesday, November 8, 2016," accessed December 9, 2016 | ||
Funding
Brock filed an exemption form detailing he would not spend or receive more than $2,000 for this campaign. Because of this, he did not have to file additional campaign finance reports.[3][4]
Campaign themes
2016
Ballotpedia survey responses
Michael Brock 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 September 28, 2016:
| “ | I would like to see more money in the classrooms for supplies. I also would like to see more ROP classes come back again for the Building trades, auto shops etc.[5][6] | ” |
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 California. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| “ | A balanced budget is a must.[6] | ” |
| —Michael Brock (September 28, 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.) |
|---|
| No. We have a few good options already. |
| 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? |
| No. Not really. Every individual child excels in different areas. |
| What is your stance on the Common Core State Standards Initiative? |
| None at this time. |
| 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? |
| Set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district. Try a mentor ship program first. |
| Should teachers receive merit pay? |
| Yes. Many of our teachers go way beyond what is expected. These teachers should get rewarded |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| Yes. Some of our kids thrive better in a different type of environment |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| As a last resort. |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| The curriculum We need to make the curriculum fun and interesting. |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Michael Brock San Marcos Unified School District. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ San Diego County Registrar of Voters, "Candidate List: 2016 General Election," accessed August 22, 2016
- ↑ San Diego County, "Presidential General Election Tuesday, November 8, 2016," accessed November 9, 2016
- ↑ San Diego County Registrar of Voters, "CampaignDocs eRetrieval: Search by Candidate's Last Name," accessed October 5, 2016
- ↑ California Fair Political Practices Commission, "Filing Schedule for Candidates and Controlled Committees for Local Office Being Voted on November 8, 2016," accessed September 30, 2016
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2016, "Michael Brock's responses," September 28, 2016
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| 2016 San Marcos Unified School District Elections | |
| San Diego County, California | |
| Election date: | November 8, 2016 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, Janet McClean • Incumbent, Randy Walton • Lucia Acosta • Michael Brock • Victor Graham • Leticia Robles |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |
