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Mike Altamura
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Mike Altamura is an at-large Republican member of the Stamford Board of Education in Connecticut. He won his first term on the board in the general election on November 3, 2015.
Altamura had previously ran for the board in the general election on November 4, 2014, but was unsuccessful in that bid.
Biography
Born in southern Italy, Altamura immigrated to the United States in 1977. He graduated from Stamford High School in 1981 and earned a bachelor's in marketing from the University of Connecticut in 1985. An insurance agent for the Prudential Insurance Company for nearly 30 years, Altamura is also the co-founder of RJM brothers, a general contracting construction company.[1]
Elections
2015
- See also: Stamford Public Schools elections (2015)
Five seats on the Stamford Public Schools Board of Education were up for election on November 3, 2015. The following three at-large incumbents' seats were up for regular general election in 2015: Lorraine Olson (R), Jerry Pia (R) and Polly Rauh (D). Additionally, two unexpired terms were also up for special election following resignations from the board. Rauh was the only incumbent to seek re-election; her defeat saw all five seats go to newcomers. The election did not change the board's Democratic majority; post-election, the board had six Democrats and three Republicans. This is the highest single-party majority allowed by law.
Republicans Mike Altamura and Andy George won two of the three full-term seats up for election while fellow party member Gerald Bosak won one of the unexpired terms. The Stamford Republican Town Committee initially endorsed Gerald Bosak and Prasad Tungaturthy for the one-year terms and Mike Altamura, Andy George and former board member Nicola Tarzia for the three-year terms. Tungaturthy, however, withdrew from the race on August 31, 2015. John Ciuffo was selected as the new Republican in Tugnaturthy's place.[2] Republicans Altamura, George and Tarzia ran as a slate called 2015BOE Team.
Democrats David Mannis and Jennienne Burke won a three-year and one-year term, respectively. The Stamford Democratic City Committee did not endorse any of its incumbents for re-election.[3] Instead, the party endorsed Angelica Gorrio, David Mannis and Ligia Marroquin for the three-year terms and Jennienne Burke and Monica DiCostanzo for the one-year terms.[4] Democrats Gorrio, Mannis and Marroquin also formed a slate for the election.
Incumbent Rauh still sought to retain her seat on the board despite lacking her party's nomination. The Democratic board member chose to run as an unaffiliated candidate instead of forcing a primary election within her party. Rauh's party registration as a Democrat, however, meant the state law requiring a minimum of one-third of the board's seats to be held by minority parties following each election still applied to her in this election.[5] John Zito also ran as an independent petitioning candidate in the regular-term race. Rauh placed seventh and Zito eighth out of the nine candidates running in the election for three-year terms.
Rolf Maurer was the sole Green Party candidate for the election. He sought a three-year term, but he placed last in the nine-candidate race.[6]
Results
| Stamford Public Schools, At-Large (3-year terms), General Election, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Mike Altamura |
17.4% | 5,445 | |
| Republican | Andy George |
15.9% | 4,997 | |
| Democratic | David Mannis |
14.9% | 4,656 | |
| Democratic | Angelica Gorrio | 14.1% | 4,431 | |
| Republican | Nicola Tarzia | 14.1% | 4,428 | |
| Democratic | Ligia Marroquin | 14.1% | 4,405 | |
| Petitioning | Polly Rauh Incumbent | 5.2% | 1,624 | |
| Petitioning | John Zito | 2.8% | 882 | |
| Green | Rolf Maurer | 1.5% | 472 | |
| Total Votes | 31,340 | |||
| Source: Connecticut Secretary of State, "Prescribed Form for Return of Votes Cast At A Municipal Election," accessed November 5, 2015 | ||||
Endorsements
Altamura received no official endorsements in this election.
2014
- See also: Stamford Public Schools elections (2014)
The election in Stamford featured three at-large seats up for general election on November 4, 2014. There was no primary election. On the Democratic side, incumbents Julia Wade and Jackie Heftman ran for re-election and Betsy Allyn ran as a challenger. Mike Altamura and Andy George ran on the Republican ticket. Democratic incumbent Gary Klein chose not to run for re-election.
The full Democratic slate won election.
Results
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Julia Wade Incumbent |
22.3% | 16,366 | |
| Democratic | Jackie Heftman Incumbent |
20.3% | 14,873 | |
| Democratic | Betsy Allyn |
20.1% | 14,754 | |
| Republican | Mike Altamura | 17.6% | 12,885 | |
| Republican | Andy George | 16.4% | 12,029 | |
| Green | Cora M. Santeguila | 3.3% | 2,384 | |
| Total Votes | 73,291 | |||
| Source: Connecticut Secretary of State, "Stamford Election Results - November 4, 2014," November 8, 2014 | ||||
Funding
State law did not require campaign finance reporting if contributions or expenditures did not exceed $1,000 during an election cycle.[7]
Endorsements
Altamura did not receive any official endorsements in 2014.
Campaign themes
2015
Stamford Advocate Q&A
Altamura provided the following answers to questions from the Stamford Advocate:
Why are running for the Board of Education? What qualifies you for the job?
| “ | I’m running for the BOE to bring fresh ideas and change the culture that the BOE has been entrenched in for the past 10 Yrs. I’m going to bring much needed common sense and parent representation to the board. Presently there are only two BOE members with school aged children in SPS. As a parent of four who have graduated from SHS and have attended top tiers schools. Two of them have already matriculated this past May and are pursuing post graduate studies. I’m hopeful that my last son will achieve the same success. My construction experience will fill a void on the board and have a big impact working with school maintenance and school facilities, which has been a huge issue in the past.[8] | ” |
| —Mike Altamura, Stamford Advocate candidate Q&A (2015)[9] | ||
What are the district’s strengths and weaknesses?
| “ | The district has a lot to offer with considering the increase in student population. We have a diverse student body, a variety of academic and non- academic programs, and special education services. Overwhelmingly excellent teachers. Unfortunately we have glaring weakness in the district such as lack of BOE leadership. As a result of the lack of leadership the scandal has plagued the entire city and harmed our students and residents exponentially. All of this has caused a lack of interest in the educational needs of the students in Stamford. Overcrowding and over reliance of testing remains a concern. Additionally throughout the district we have experienced a large staff turnover. Limited resources for high achieving student coupled with unfunded state/federal mandates.[8] | ” |
| —Mike Altamura, Stamford Advocate candidate Q&A (2015)[10] | ||
How well has Superintendent Winifred Hamilton performed? Do you agree with her decision to retire?
| “ | I agree with her decision to retire. After 45+ years of service with the same employer, I would say that retirement is a sensible option. She has devoted most of her life for the SPS, and we should thank her for her commitment. I have personally known her for the past 18 months. Unfortunately this has been for her the most challenging time of her professional career. This has taken a toll on her, and I felt that she should have retired sooner, given the circumstances. A new school year, fresh new BOE members, and a new superintendent (does not have to be a permanent one) would give new hope for the entire city.[8] | ” |
| —Mike Altamura, Stamford Advocate candidate Q&A (2015)[11] | ||
Should the search for a new superintendent be delayed until after the election?
| “ | The only thing this board should be doing is looking for an interim superintendent. Why are we searching for a superintendent to start mid-way through the school year? What kind of candidates are you going to find that want to start while school is in session? A worthwhile candidate surely will be employed while school is in session. Does the current BOE leadership have an alternate plan in mind? I believe they do. Their plan is not to have the position filled by Jan. 1 so that we are required to postpone the superintendent retirement date and having no leadership change. We need an interim superintendent. Let’s take our time finding a permanent leader that has experience, integrity, fair-mindedness and, most importan,t that has experience with our diverse population of students. There are four current members who will stay on the board, this does not even meet a quorum. Why then embark in such an important decision without a full board. We need to get it right, we owe it to our students, we owe it to the city residents, and we owe it to our taxpayers.[8] | ” |
| —Mike Altamura, Stamford Advocate candidate Q&A (2015)[12] | ||
How do you think the current board handled the Stamford High School sex scandal? What might you have done differently?
| “ | I believe that the BOE members were not well advised by the team of lawyers that we have been paying top dollars for many years. There was and still is disagreement between board members. The board president, instead of uniting the members, was instead divisive, showing favoritism toward certain board members. I believe in transparency, and censuring board members from speaking at a public meeting is not transparent in my view. We need a board that has the students’ needs as the number one priority, instead of their own personal interests.
Without having the privileged information that the BOE members had, and not knowing who knew what and when, it is hard to speculate. Regarding the law firm that gave erroneous advice, I would look into hiring a new firm to advise and represent the BOE from now on. They have cost the taxpayers of Stamford millions of dollars.[8] |
” |
| —Mike Altamura, Stamford Advocate candidate Q&A (2015)[13] | ||
The condition of the district’s facilities has been called into question lately. Should the Board of Education bring its facilities management in-house or should it continue to contract with an outside firm? Why?
| “ | The in-house facilities management is definitely something that needs to be look at and analyzed. Will it give our children well maintained schools and save our taxpayers money? If it does both, why not. If we choose to continue with an outside firm then we need to re-evaluate the current provider. It seems that for so many years, due to inadequate supervision and total trust given to the management company, we have found ourselves in a disastrous situation. It is disappointing to see trees growing on top of a school roof. We need and we can do better with our tax dollars. Lastly, let’s employ local tax-paying contractors to take care of our schools.[8] | ” |
| —Mike Altamura, Stamford Advocate candidate Q&A (2015)[14] | ||
Define what you think the school board’s role should be in the district. Does the superintendent currently have too much power?
| “ | The BOE is responsible for hiring, supporting and evaluating the superintendent. Another BOE function is to be an advocate for the SPS, staff and in particular students in the interactions with other governmental entities and the public. Another purpose is to establish standards, accountability and to assess the operations of the district. Another role of the BOE is to give direction and a vision for SPS, and also to be the judicial body by conducting hearings as appropriate. Finally, to work together with other members on the board to create board policies and to delegate authority to the superintendent. I think that the current superintendent has a lot of power, since the BOE has been so ineffective, that she pretty much took over control of the BOE.[8] | ” |
| —Mike Altamura, Stamford Advocate candidate Q&A (2015)[15] | ||
How specific should the Board of Education’s goals be for the superintendent?
| “ | The superintendent objectives, unlike the past few years, should be very specific and targeted toward his/her performance in achieving the assigned goals of the BOE. Some of the strategic objectives that I would like to have in place are:
Eliminate the fear of retribution that exist in the SPS. Freedom of speech and transparency throughout the SPS. Implement district-wide program to prevent bullying. Implement communication strategy to increase community awareness and involvement in our schools. Establish mental health classes/groups in the high schools. Continue to address discipline and impose stronger disciplinary measures on disruptive students at all grade levels including elementary, middle and high schools.[8] |
” |
| —Mike Altamura, Stamford Advocate candidate Q&A (2015)[16] | ||
Would you make expanding preschool programs a priority?
| “ | Many of our entering kindergarteners have not attended preschool programs and a very limited group has attended the program. It is my belief that expanding our preschool program will eventually be a step forward in closing the education gap. In the past we have made gains in closing the education gap by lowering the high-achieving body of students instead of bringing up the low-achieving body of students. The preschool program is a very important issue to consider and to be part of a master plan to raise the low-achieving students. As always, are there financial resources available in the budget to fund such a program?[8] | ” |
| —Mike Altamura, Stamford Advocate candidate Q&A (2015)[17] | ||
How should the district better support the mental health of its students, given its limited resources?
| “ | We need to engage our community and make them aware of the mental health crisis. Let’s work with other agencies in our community to fund and support our initiatives. Mental health should be addressed at a high priority just like any other health issues. Let’s encourage the grants department to seek out more on mental health grants. Continue with separate staff development for our support staff, so that they can provide targeted services. Let’s move forward with adding mental health classes in our high schools or revamping the current health classes to include mental health, so that students could learn about mental health and in turn help themselves and others. We provide breakfast and lunch to students who cannot afford it because we know that a full stomach improves the ability to learn. Is it not the same for a student that is engulfed with family/mental issues?[8] | ” |
| —Mike Altamura, Stamford Advocate candidate Q&A (2015)[18] | ||
Campaign website
Altamura provided the following campaign flyer on his Facebook campaign page:
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Mike Altamura' 'Stamford Public Schools'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Stamford Public Schools, Connecticut
- Stamford Public Schools elections (2015)
- Stamford Public Schools elections (2014)
- Incumbency no guarantee of success in Nov. 3 school board elections (November 6, 2015)
- What happened in Nov.'s top board elections? (November 4, 2015)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Facebook, "Mike Altamura for the Board of Education 2014," accessed September 19, 2014
- ↑ Stamford Advocate, "Stamford GOP school board candidate withdraws," September 2, 2015
- ↑ Stamford Advocate, "Stamford Democrats dump school board incumbents," July 23, 2015
- ↑ Stamford Democratic City Committee, "Our 2015 Democratic Candidates," accessed August 10, 2015
- ↑ Stamford Advocate, "Rauh to run for Stamford school board," August 5, 2015
- ↑ Connecticut Green Party, "2015 candidates," accessed September 10, 2015
- ↑ Connecticut State Elections Enforcement Commission, "Understanding the Connecticut Campaign-Finance Laws – a Guide for Municipal Candidates," accessed September 16, 2014
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 8.8 8.9 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Stamford Advocate, "Stamford Board of Education candidates answer why they’re running," October 8, 2015
- ↑ Stamford Advocate, "Stamford Board of Education candidates talk about district’s strengths, weaknesses," October 8, 2015
- ↑ Stamford Advocate, "Stamford Board of Education candidates: How well has Hamilton performed?" October 8, 2015
- ↑ Stamford Advocate, "Stamford Board of Education candidates discuss search for new superintendent," October 8, 2015
- ↑ Stamford Advocate, "Stamford Board of Education candidates talk about Stamford High sex scandal," October 10, 2015
- ↑ Stamford Advocate, "Stamford Board of Education candidates talk about the district’s facilities management," October 10, 2015
- ↑ Stamford Advocate, "Stamford Board of Education candidates talk about board’s role," October 17, 2015
- ↑ Stamford Advocate, "Stamford Board of Education candidates discuss goals for superintendent," October 17, 2015
- ↑ Stamford Advocate, "Stamford Board of Education candidates discuss expanding preschool," October 24, 2015
- ↑ Stamford Advocate, "Stamford Board of Education candidates discuss mental health services for students," October 24, 2015
| 2015 Stamford Public Schools Elections | |
| Fairfield County, Connecticut | |
| Election date: | November 3, 2015 |
| Candidates: | Four-year terms: •  Incumbent, Polly Rauh •  Angelica Gorrio • David Mannis • Ligia Marroquin •  Rolf Maurer •  Mike Altamura • Andy George • Nicola Tarzia •  John Zito One-year terms: • Jennienne Burke • John Ciuffo • Monica DiCostanzo • Gerald Bosak |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
| 2014 Stamford Public Schools Elections | |
| Fairfield County, Connecticut | |
| Election date: | November 4, 2014 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, Jackie Heftman • Incumbent, Julia Wade • Betsy Allyn • Mike Altamura • Andy George |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
