Michelle Richardson-Bailey
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Michelle Richardson-Bailey is the District 3 representative on the Pasadena Unified School District school board in California. Richardson-Bailey won a first term in the by-district primary election on March 7, 2017.
Richardson-Bailey participated in Ballotpedia's 2017 school board candidate survey. Click here to read her responses.
Elections
2017
Four of the seven seats on the Pasadena Unified School District Board of Education were up for primary election on March 7, 2017. In her bid for re-election to District 1, incumbent Kimberly Kenne defeated challenger Rita Miller. District 3 incumbent Adrienne Ann Mullen lost her re-election bid against challenger Michelle Richardson-Bailey. The race for the District 5 seat featured incumbent Elizabeth Pomeroy and challenger Matthew Baron. Pomeroy won another term on the board. Incumbent Scott Phelps ran unopposed and won re-election to the District 7 seat. Because all four winners in the primary received at least 50 percent of the vote, they were elected outright. No general election was held.[1][2][3]
Results
| Pasadena Unified School District, District 3 Primary Election, 4-year term, 2017 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Michelle Richardson-Bailey |
57.44% | 1,204 |
| Adrienne Ann Mullen Incumbent | 42.56% | 892 |
| Total Votes | 2,096 | |
| Source: Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Los Angeles County Election Results: Consolidated Municipal and Special Elections March 7, 2017," accessed March 30, 2017 | ||
Funding
Richardson-Bailey reported $6,709.00 in contributions and $4,314.64 in expenditures to the Pasadena City Clerk, which left her campaign with $2,394.36 on hand in the election.[4]
Endorsements
Richardson-Bailey was endorsed by the following organizations and elected officials:[5][6] [7][8]
- United Teachers of Pasadena
- California School Employees Association - Pasadena Chapter #434
- National Women’s Political Caucus Greater Pasadena Area
- Pasadena Star-News
- The San Gabriel Valley Tribune
- ACT Pasadena
- State Sen. Anthony Portantino Jr. (D-25)
- Pasadena City Councilman Tyron Hampton
Richardson-Bailey also received endorsements from other leaders in the community. Click here for a list of her supporters.
Campaign themes
2017
Ballotpedia survey responses
Michelle Richardson Bailey participated in Ballotpedia's 2017 survey of school board candidates.[9] In response to the question "What do you hope to achieve if elected to the school board?" the candidate stated on February 28, 2017:
| “ | To create policies that will foster greater student success, empowering teachers to teach and students to learn. To work to increase enrollment in our district, and to ensure equity and access though out the district, prioritizing the classroom ensuring that resources get to the district's most neediest students. I also plan to create a better perception of PUSD and public education by engaging parents, the faith based and the business communities.[10][11] | ” |
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 |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| “ | My number one concern is addressing the achievement gap. Contributing factors to this issue are many. Another approach to this issue is by first acknowledging that there are societal biases that contribute greatly to this issue.[11] | ” |
| —Michelle Richardson Bailey (February 28, 2017) | ||
Positions on the issues
The candidate was asked to answer eight 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.) |
|---|
| Yes. |
| 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 only intervene in severe cases of misconduct or mismanagement. |
| Are standardized tests an accurate metric of student achievement? |
| No. Not every student tests well. Also,there are those students who are effected [sic] by mitigating factors that contribute to a low test performance. |
| 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? |
| Offer additional training options. Offer additional training options. |
| Should teachers receive merit pay? |
| Yes. |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| No. If the state has money to give, it should be given to further assist public education. |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| When district policy is clearly violated. however, the district should provide an immediate (school) alternative. Expelled students students should not miss one day of school for non-violent offenses. |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| Student-teacher ratio Smaller class sizes are beneficial in that they create a more conducive learning environment. Students get more attention from the teacher, perform better and have the potential to learn faster just to name a few. |
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ City of Pasadena, "Election Information: Qualified Candidates," accessed December 13, 2016
- ↑ Pasadena Unified School District, "Board Members," accessed December 13, 2016
- ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Los Angeles County Election Results: Consolidated Municipal and Special Elections March 7, 2017," accessed March 8, 2017
- ↑ Pasadena City Clerk, "City of Pasadena Public Portal for Campaign Finance Disclosure," accessed August 1, 2017
- ↑ Michelle Richardson Bailey For School Board, "Endorsements," accessed March 2, 2017
- ↑ The San Gabriel Valley Tribune, "Endorsements: Kenne, Richardson-Bailey and Pomeroy for Pasadena school board," February 23, 2017
- ↑ ACT Pasadena, "The Phoenix Online Volume 45, Number 1: ACT Candidate Forum Is Well Attended," accessed February 8, 2017
- ↑ Pasadena Star-News, "Endorsements: Kenne, Richardson-Bailey and Pomeroy for Pasadena school board," February 23, 2017
- ↑ Note: The candidate's answers have been reproduced here verbatim without edits or corrections by Ballotpedia.
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2017, "Michelle Richardson Bailey's responses," February 28, 2017
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| Pasadena Unified School District elections in 2017 | |
| Los Angeles County, California | |
| Election date: | Primary election: March 7, 2017 • General election: April 18, 2017 |
| Candidates: | District 1: • Incumbent, Kimberly Kenne • Rita Miller District 3: • Incumbent, Adrienne Ann Mullen • Michelle Richardson-Bailey District 5: • Incumbent, Elizabeth Pomeroy • Matthew Baron District 7: • Incumbent, Scott Phelps |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |
