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Zaneb K. Beams
Zaneb K. Beams was a candidate for an at-large seat on the Howard County Board of Education in Maryland. She advanced from a primary election on June 24, 2014, to face seven other candidates for four seats in the general election on November 4, 2014. Zaneb K. Beams lost the general election on November 4, 2014.
Biography
Beams earned her B.A. in history from Swarthmore College. She later earned her M.D. from Rush Medical College. Beams is a pediatrician with her own practice in Columbia. She and her husband have four children who have attended district schools.[1]
Elections
2014
The June 24, 2014, primary ballot included incumbents Sandra H. French and Cynthia L. Vaillancourt as well as challengers Bess I. Altwerger, Corey Andrews, Tom Baek, Zaneb K. Beams, Olga Butler, Allen Dyer, Maureen Evans Arthurs, Dan Furman, Leslie Kornreich, Christine O'Connor and Mike Smith. French, Vaillancourt, Altwerger, Beams, Dyer, Furman, O'Connor and Smith faced off in the general election on November 4, 2014.
Results
General
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan |  Cynthia L. Vaillancourt Incumbent |
15.9% | 44,142 | |
| Nonpartisan | Sandra H. French Incumbent |
15.4% | 42,810 | |
| Nonpartisan | Bess I. Altwerger |
13.6% | 37,774 | |
| Nonpartisan | Christine O'Connor |
13.5% | 37,561 | |
| Nonpartisan | Dan Furman | 11.9% | 33,114 | |
| Nonpartisan | Zaneb K. Beams | 10.6% | 29,548 | |
| Nonpartisan | Allen Dyer | 9.9% | 27,663 | |
| Nonpartisan | Mike Smith | 8.8% | 24,449 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.4% | 1,152 | |
| Total Votes | 278,213 | |||
| Source: Maryland State Board of Elections, "Official 2014 Gubernatorial General Election Results for Howard County," December 2, 2014 | ||||
Primary
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Cynthia L. Vaillancourt Incumbent |
13.5% | 15,851 | |
| Nonpartisan | Sandra H. French Incumbent |
12.5% | 14,688 | |
| Nonpartisan | Bess I. Altwerger |
10.9% | 12,733 | |
| Nonpartisan | Dan Furman |
10.1% | 11,880 | |
| Nonpartisan | Zaneb K. Beams |
8.6% | 10,042 | |
| Nonpartisan | Christine O'Connor |
7.2% | 8,477 | |
| Nonpartisan | Allen Dyer |
6.6% | 7,724 | |
| Nonpartisan | Mike Smith |
5.7% | 6,730 | |
| Nonpartisan | Leslie Kornreich | 5.4% | 6,388 | |
| Nonpartisan | Olga Butler | 5% | 5,849 | |
| Nonpartisan | Maureen Evans Arthurs | 4.9% | 5,752 | |
| Nonpartisan | Corey Andrews | 4.9% | 5,744 | |
| Nonpartisan | Tom Baek | 4.7% | 5,482 | |
| Total Votes | 117,340 | |||
| Source: Maryland State Board of Elections, "Official 2014 Gubernatorial Primary Election results for Howard County," accessed October 18, 2014 | ||||
Funding
Beams reported no contributions or expenditures to the Maryland State Board of Elections, as of September 17, 2014.[2]
Endorsements
Beams earned the endorsement of the Howard County Education Association (HCEA) and The Baltimore Sun prior to the primary election.[3][4]
Campaign themes
2014
Beams explained her themes for the 2014 race on her campaign's Facebook page:
| “ |
I am running for Howard County Board of Education. In terms of areas of interest and focus: 1. Work with and support our educators in creating a world-class learning environment. 2. Foster an excellent learning environment across all subjects and specialties to help our children become college and/ or career ready. 3. Make the health and wellness of all children a priority. A general guiding goal would be to ensure that the Board of Education itself is a healthy, functioning organization that works appropriately with the Superintendent, the local and state governments, families, and educational staff, and other stake holders. I would want to foster a culture on the Board of Education that keeps the mission of the body at the forefront of all my considerations and actions as a member. As a pediatrician, I focus on these three aspects of child and family development every day. I discuss learning and learning readiness from the minute an infant is born, and at every wellness evaluation. At birth we discuss feeding, eye contact, singing, varied activities, and safety. At one year we talk about language development, reading books and building with blocks. At preschool we talk about holding pencils, jumping with two feet, singing, and understanding family roles. At elementary school age we discuss areas of interest, non-academic activities, and even career choices. And so on, at each developmental stage. I work with parents and children all the time to encourage and support learning habits and environments at home and to think about long term goals from the start. And of course I focus on physical activity, nutrition, and other aspects of health and safety. These would be areas of interest and expertise I would bring to my participation on the Board of Education. |
” |
| —Zaneb Beams's Facebook page, (2014) | ||
What was at stake?
Issues in the election
Ethics claims against Cynthia Vaillancourt
On May 8, 2014, the Board of Education approved a resolution by a 5-2 vote admonishing member Cynthia L. Vaillancourt for violating board confidentiality. The resolution stated that Vaillancourt disclosed information from closed sessions to outside parties and interfered with work done by the county's five-member ethics panel. Vaillancourt accused her fellow board members of inserting themselves into the 2014 election by engaging in "nasty politics" and following "base motives." She also argued that fellow board members left her out of e-mail threads about ongoing ethics investigations, which forced her to directly contact the county panel. Outgoing board member Brian Meshkin, who joined Vaillancourt in voting against the resolution, also criticized the board for damaging the board's integrity with these accusations.[7]
Board president Ellen Flynn Giles stated after the resolution that the board had previously warned Vaillancourt about her communications with outside parties regarding confidential matters. The resolution could be the first step toward future actions against Vaillancourt including official censure and impeachment. Giles and fellow board members Janet Siddiqui, Sandra H. French and Frank Aquino were involved in the attempted removal of board member Allen Dyer in 2011.[7] Dyer remained in office through the end of his term in 2012 due to legal challenges to the board's actions.[8]
Suspension, resumption of Corey Andrews's campaign
Corey Andrews suspended his campaign for a board seat on May 19, 2014, in response to an increasingly negative tone in the election. Andrews cited the board's resolution against Cynthia L. Vaillancourt and claimed that board members have abused their powers to maintain their positions on the board. Andrews sent the following e-mail to supporters on May 19, 2014, to explain his campaign's suspension:
| “ |
I got into this race to make a difference for the Howard County Public School System. It is important that we protect this local treasure. The fact is, there are forces preventing those who want to make a difference from doing so. The Howard County Board of Education exposed its corruption a few weeks ago when it abused its power and censured Cindy Vaillancourt in the attempt to smear her name before the upcoming election. Board members have had their personal emails breached by school system staff. Critical documents have been withheld from some Board members. There have even been attempts at physical intimidation by other Board members. Several Board members, along with a select few candidates, have been coordinating an effort to control the Board and who is on it. Two candidates have resorted to extremely negative campaigning behind closed-doors. This is not the first time I have run for this position. When I filed to run, I was prepared for a heated campaign. I was not prepared to deal with corruption and abuse of power and am not interested in serving on a Board with people who use such unethical tactics. Therefore, I am immediately suspending by campaign for the Howard County Board of Education. Sometimes, it feels like the "bad guys" are winning. The people of Howard County deserve better than this. |
” |
| —The Baltimore Sun, (2014) | ||
Andrews reconsidered his withdrawal and resumed his campaign on June 10, 2014. In an interview with The Baltimore Sun, Andrews stated that he received supportive e-mails and phone calls after his withdrawal that encouraged resumption of his campaign. Andrews withdrew from the race after the deadline to remove names from the ballot so his name would have appeared on the primary ballot if his campaign remained suspended. He placed 12th in the primary election and did not advance to the general election.[10]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Zaneb + Beams + Howard + County + Public + Schools"
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Dr. Beams Medical Practice, "Home," accessed June 5, 2014
- ↑ Maryland Campaign Reporting Information System, "View Filed Reports," accessed October 20, 2014
- ↑ The Baltimore Sun, "Teachers union announces recommendations for Howard Board of Ed. race," April 24, 2014
- ↑ The Baltimore Sun, "Howard County Times' endorsements for school board race in the primary election," June 18, 2014
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Facebook, "Dr. Zaneb Beams for Howard County Board of Education," accessed June 5, 2014
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 The Baltimore Sun, "Howard BOE accuses member Vaillancourt of confidentiality breach," May 8, 2014
- ↑ The Baltimore Sun, "Administrative law judge upholds Dyer impeachment," December 6, 2012
- ↑ The Baltimore Sun, "Andrews suspends campaign for Howard BOE," May 20, 2014
- ↑ The Baltimore Sun, "Andrews says he's back in race for Howard BOE," June 11, 2014
| 2014 Howard County Public Schools Elections | |
| Howard County, Maryland | |
| Election date: | November 4, 2014 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Bess I. Altwerger • Corey Andrews • Tom Baek • Zaneb K. Beams • Olga Butler • Allen Dyer • Maureen Evans Arthurs • Sandra H. French • Dan Furman • Leslie Kornreich • Christine O'Connor • Mike Smith • Cynthia L. Vaillancourt |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
