Wendy Root Askew

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Wendy Root Askew

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Democratic Party

Prior offices

Monterey Peninsula Unified School District school board Trustee Area 1

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Report an officeholder change

Education

High school

Pacific Grove High School

Bachelor's

California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

Personal

Profession

Nonprofit executive director and political aid

Contact

Personal website

Wendy Root Askew is the Trustee Area 1 representative on the Monterey Peninsula Unified Board of Education in California. She won her seat in the general election on November 3, 2015.

Though school board elections in California are nonpartisan, Askew is a self-identified Democrat.

Askew participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 survey of school board candidates. To read her responses, check out her 2015 campaign themes.

Biography

Email editor@ballotpedia.org to notify us of updates to this biography.

Askew has worked as a nonprofit executive director since 2014. She also works as a political aid to Monterey County Supervisor Jane Parke, a position she has held since 2009. Her previous work experience includes owning a small business and fundraising for nonprofits. Askew earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from the California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo.

Elections

2015

See also: Monterey Peninsula Unified School District elections (2015)

Opposition

Three of the seven seats on the Monterey Peninsula Unified School District Board of Education were up for general election on November 3, 2015. The election was held by district. Trustee Area 1 incumbent Diane Creasey, Trustee Area 2 incumbent Debra Gramespacher and Trustee Area 3 incumbent Jon Hill were up for re-election.

Creasey did not file to run for re-election in Trustee Area 1. Wendy Root Askew ran unopposed and won that seat by default. In Trustee Area 2, Gramespacher also ran unopposed and won the seat by default. The Trustee Area 3 race featured incumbent Hill and challenger Darrick Jory. Hill won re-election to the board.

Results

Incumbent Wendy Root Askew ran unopposed and won the Trustee Area 1 seat by default.

Funding

See also: Campaign finance in the Monterey Peninsula Unified School District election

Askew reported no contributions or expenditures to the Monterey County Elections Office in the election, which left her campaign with $876.13 on hand from her previous campaign.

The first campaign finance reporting deadline was September 24, 2015, and the second one was October 22, 2015. If candidates raised or spent more than $1,000 from a single source, including their own funds, between August 5, 2015, and November 2, 2015, they had to file a campaign finance report within 24 hours.

Endorsements

Askew was endorsed by the community organization Evolve. Askew was also endorsed by a number of community members. A list of her supporters can be found here.

Candidate themes

2015

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's school board candidate survey

Askew participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 survey of school board candidates. The following sections display her responses to the survey questions. When asked what her top priority would be if elected, the candidate made the following statement:

“	"1) SET AND MAINTAIN HIGH STANDARDS FOR STUDENTS, FACULTY, AND THE COMMUNITY. When we expect great things from our students, they rise to meet those standards. Just as important as setting high standards is ensuring that our programs engage students in the learning process and inspire them to a lifetime of learning. We must be relentless in our efforts to recruit and retain the highest quality employees who are committed to student achievement. We must strengthen and expand pathways to college and career and offer extracurricular activities that keep students engaged in their education. 2) MAKE FINANCIAL DECISIONS THAT HAVE THE HIGHEST RETURN ON INVESTMENTS. The new Local Control and Accountability Plan gives us an unprecedented opportunity to make investments where they will have the most significant impacts. We need to cultivate a culture of decision making that relies on data and best practices for student learning. A focus on Early Childhood Development programs, including Parent Education, set our students on an early path to success. We must find innovative ways to measure return on investment and capture savings that are realized beyond the District Budget. We must be proactive in developing Joint Use Agreements with Cities that promote community ownership of and investments in our Schools. We must continue to invest in sustainable energy solutions that keep district dollars at use where they are most impactful 3) ENSURE EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION OF LIMITED RESOURCES. ​Achieving equity does not always mean an equal distribution of resources. It requires thoughtful evaluations of student needs in each community and each school, an evaluation of existing resources, and a commitment to making decisions that are best for our students. We need to actively invite and engage the larger community of parents, community members, and local businesses as critical partners in our schools. We must recognize that poverty and lack of parental involvement are challenges to be overcome, not excuses for poor performance."	”
—Wendy Root Askew (2015)

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. Askew, however, did not provide rankings to the issues.

Education policy
Click here to learn more about education policy in California.
Education on the ballot

Issue importance ranking
Candidate's ranking	Issue
N/A	Expanding arts education
N/A	Expanding career-technical education
N/A	Balancing or maintaining the district's budget
N/A	Improving college readiness
N/A	Closing the achievement gap
N/A	Improving education for special needs students
N/A	Expanding school choice options

Positions on the issues

Askew 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
What is your stance on implementing Common Core standards?	Candidate did not answer this question.
Should your district approve the creation of new charter schools?	Candidate did not answer this question.
Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system?	Candidate did not answer this question.
Are standardized tests an accurate metric of student achievement?	Candidate did not answer this question.
How can the district ensure equal opportunities for high and low achieving students?	Candidate did not answer this question.
How should expulsion be used in the district?	Candidate did not answer this question.
If a school is failing in your district, what steps should the school board take to help the students in that school?	Candidate did not answer this question.
Do you support merit pay for teachers?	Candidate did not answer this question.
How should the district handle underperforming teachers?	Candidate did not answer this question.
How would you work to improve community-school board relations?	Candidate did not answer this question.
Additional comments	"I believe that: 1) SAFE SUCCESSFUL SCHOOLS ARE FUNDAMENTAL TO THE SUCCESS OF OUR LOCAL ECONOMY. Safe successful schools attract growing businesses and quality employees. Our community is actively recruiting new businesses to move their operations to Marina and the Monterey Peninsula, and the quality of our schools is a significant factor. We need to continue expanding our excellent innovative programs, while addressing the inequities that exist for students who have barriers to participating in those programs. Students who graduate from our schools become our local workforce and we need smart capable innovative thinkers to fill positions that will be created as our aging workforce retires at increasing rates. 2) SUCCESSFUL STUDENTS START WITH SUPPORTED PARENTS. Maternal education is one of the most significant indicators of a child’s future success and yet nearly 20% of mothers over the age of 25 who give birth on the Peninsula do not have a high school diploma or equivalent. Another significant indicator of a child’s future success is having a parent who reads, sings, or tells a story together everyday. Only 50% of future MPUSD students have this simple advantage. Parents will always be their child’s most influential teacher and we must consider how to better support and educate parents before their children enter school. 3) ELECTED OFFICIALS HAVE A SACRED DUTY TO REPRESENT THE VOICES OF THEIR CONSTITUENTS. Not all constituents are able to attend or comment at Board meetings, nor are all parents able to serve on the PTA, or volunteer in their child’s classroom. Many constituents may not even have children enrolled in the district, but they all deserve to be heard and represented by their elected Board member. It is the responsibility of the Board member to make decisions that have the greatest positive impact on the greatest number of constituents."

Political philosophy

When asked to describe her political philosophy, Askew said:

“	The most significant reason I have decided to run now is because of the major changes in the way that state distributes funding to school districts. The new Local Control and Accountability Plan gives School Boards an unprecedented opportunity to make investments where they will have the most significant impacts. I am committed to cultivating a culture of decision making that relies on data and best practices for student learning and making financial decisions that have the highest return on our investments.	”
—Wendy Root Askew (2015)

Candidate statement

Askew submitted the following statement to Ballotpedia:

“	First and foremost I am a mother to an adorable three year old, wife to a local architect, daughter to a career parent educator and retired Army Colonel, and granddaughter to a beautiful career Army Wife. I earn a living working part-time for the County of Monterey as a political aide advising District 4 County Supervisor Jane Parker on health and human services issues and as a part-time Director of the Parenting Connection of Monterey County, a small non-profit that provides early childhood development and parent education programs for local families. After spending my childhood as an Army brat, my parents settled in Monterey to be close to my grandparents. I graduated from Monte Vista Elementary School in Monterey, and later from Pacific Grove High School. I earned a BS in business administration from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and ultimately decided to return to Monterey to be close to my family. In 2002, my husband and I purchased a home in Marina and we began volunteering in the community. In 2005 I was appointed to the Superintendent's Facilities Task Force where a diverse group of district stakeholders collaboratively developed a Facilities Master Plan with focus on rebuilding trust between the public and District leadership necessary to pass future facilities bonds. In 2007 I was selected to represent the City of Marina on a Joint Use Facilities Advisory Committee to monitor the progress of planned development in the city and implement a Joint Use MOU for for improved youth development and sports facilities in Marina. In 2010 I was a signatory and steering committee member of the Measure P campaign which successfully passed a $110 million School Bond to improve our aging District facilities. I have worked with numerous non-profit boards staff member implementing policy, as well as served on Boards where we developed policy.	”
—Wendy Root Askew (2015)

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Wendy Root Askew' 'Monterey Peninsula Unified School District'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Wendy Root Askew - Google News

See also

• Monterey Peninsula Unified School District, California
• Monterey Peninsula Unified School District elections (2015)
• 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

Suggest a link

• Monterey Peninsula Unified School District

• Office website
• Campaign website
• Facebook page