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Zachary Rushing
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This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates. |
Zachary Rushing was a Democratic candidate for the District 4 seat on the Gwinnett County Board of Education in Georgia. He won without opposition in the Democratic primary election on May 20, 2014. Rushing was defeated by Republican incumbent Bob McClure in the general election on November 4, 2014.
Elections
2014
Zachary Rushing ran unopposed in the Democratic primary election on May 20, 2014. He faced Republican candidate Bob McClure in the general election on November 4, 2014.
Results
General
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Bob McClure Incumbent |
58.3% | 27,520 | |
| Democratic | Zachary Rushing | 41.7% | 19,667 | |
| Total Votes | 47,187 | |||
| Source: Georgia Secretary of State, "Gwinnett County Official Election Results," accessed December 19, 2014 | ||||
Primary
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Zachary Rushing |
100% | 2,952 | |
| Total Votes | 2,952 | |||
| Source: Georgia Secretary of State, "OFFICIAL COUNTY RESULTS," May 20, 2014 | ||||
Funding
Rushing reported no contributions or expenditures with the Georgia Government Transparency and Campaign Finance Commission as of May 20, 2014.[1]
Endorsements
Rushing did not receive any official endorsements in this election.
Campaign themes
2014
Rushing provided the following answers to questions from the League of Women Voters of Georgia:
| “ | What experience do you bring to the job and what is your motivation to serve as a school board member?
My first qualification is that of being a father of three awesome children who attend Gwinnett County public schools. The decisions made by this board affect me and my family directly. My first qualification as a concerned parent is also my primary motivation. I wish nothing more than to have my kids in a enriching educational environment that not only challenges them but is ran efficiently and allows them opportunities to both excel and compete not just regionally but globally. My heart for young people is not merely limited to or restricted to just academics but recreationally and spiritually. For the past your years I have served as a youth minister for Freedom Christian Ministry in Lawrenceville, GA and over the past five years I have been a youth soccer coach. I have learned in both endeavors that patience, kindness and attention to the needs of everyone makes the biggest change. If elected, what would be your three (3) top policy priorities and how would you work to achieve results? First and foremost Gwinnett County over the past two decades has seen a strong minority growth without strong minority representation. My election would directly address this issue before any new policies would have to be enacted. 57% of Gwinnett County is comprised by people of color. Yet our school board is at best a representation of the 43% that is not. While this does not directly change educational policy it does directly affect sensitivity (or lack thereof) on several issues for a very broad base of our students. Second, we must truly evaluate students' safety and consequences more deeply and create policies that better reflect many changing dynamics in our county. I feel that the currently school board has been slow, if not negligent, to this multi-faceted issue and has chosen to rather not deal with these issues when facing them head on would be a sustainable solution. Lastly, looking at the success and recent showing of Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science and Technology (number 3 in the nation and first in the state) I would like to work on implementing remote access to classes and resources at this highly ranked school. While slots to attend this school are highly competitive this leave many family, even with very gifted children, unable to send them to benefit in this wonderful learning environment. With a remote learning plan in place we could offer the benefits of this education to everyone without diluting its effectiveness. In your opinion, what is the single biggest weakness in your school system and what will you do while in office to address it? Without a doubt my school system suffers from a lack of new ideas. Too many individuals serving on the board with similar age, ethnic background, and political thought. The fact that the board routinely votes in unison on issues just to show "unity" is a joke. We are made better in all walks of life by an assortment of ideas. The Gwinnett County school board has suffered too long from too many like-minded voices all agreeing even when the situation should show multiple degrees of diversity of thought. This is unfair to the people of Gwinnett County and most importantly its students. I promise nothing more than to be a voice of those who ask questions and demand better answers. If elected, which of the 17 pathways being developed by the Department of Education would you support putting in your district school and why? While all are worthy of inclusion to any educational system, the three I am most supportive of are energy and information technology. The two listed are quite possibly the two most important fields facing young people today. The ability for us to power our world and the technical know-how to compete in a global ecosystem will be imperative to our young people much in the same way understanding manufacturing was at the turn of the 20th century. We are no longer competing against Jan and Tom down the street, but instead Arun and Jaya half a world away. The challenge of the 21st century is no longer how to add and subtract, but to how to forecast and deliver ever increasing amounts of data and information. Couple that with the largest growth in industry over the next three decades in energy. The task of transitioning energy sources from traditional to renewable and alternative energy sources is a field primed for expansion and new ideas that the students in our school system can supply. While the current emphasis on STEM (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) may cover this generically, dedicated pathways to the two fields listed above are both the most exciting and lucrative for our county's students. Which educational reform idea do you believe has the most promise for your school system? I am truly excited to see if proper core implementation on a national level will affect our county and its schools. While core has gotten off to a rocky start, I believe that as we transition towards its more standard implementation it can really help define and replace broken teaching cultures around the country. Current teaching culture and its overemphasis on testing and fact regurgitation has dulled many of our brightest students into nothing more than glorified fact sheets. The core education concept and and its renewed emphasis on critical data analysis and conceptual problem solving could produce a very dynamic and promising student body over the next few years. What is the appropriate relationship between the state and local communities regarding their contribution to school funding? School funding while always local first depends heavily on state contributions and guidance. This model is not broken, however, the responsibility aspect of it has become muddy. While state and federal funds may contribute to a school systems' success, it is the responsibility of the local school system to provide norms and standards in education that appeal first to the local community sensibilities then respect the standard set forth by the state then followed by national standards. It is to the prism to this understanding that we must look at the relationship between local and state funding. While local municipalities appreciate and happily receive state and national dollars for educational spending it is the responsibility of local school systems to create curriculum that is ideal for its students. School boards must listen to their community first before implementing policies and curriculum and being beholden to outside funds. Local school systems owe the members of its communities the time and respect to implement decisions based off community feedback before state or national standards.[2] |
” |
| —League of Women Voters 2014 Georgia Voter Guide (2014)[3] | ||
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Zachary + Rushing + Gwinnett + County + Schools + Georgia"
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Gwinnett County, "Board of Education," accessed May 20, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "2014 Georgia Voter Guide," accessed October 24, 2014
| 2014 Gwinnett County Public Schools Elections | |
| Gwinnett County, Georgia | |
| Election date: | November 4, 2014 |
| Candidates: | District 2: • Leon T. Hobbs • Ileana S. McCaigue • Dan Seckinger District 4: • Bob McClure • Zachary Rushing |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
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