Campaign email: nallenboefcps@gmail.com
Website: https://eni2022.org/nancy-allen/
Age: 60
Employment: Yes, I work for a professional membership association
Education: Bachelor of Social Work, McDaniel College (Western Maryland College)
Why are you running for the school board?
I saw a need for a more fair and balanced representation on the board that would directly reflect and represent Frederick County. The decisions made by the BOE have been in direct opposition to what the majority of parents and the community wanted for their children. The disregard for the rights of parents, lack of accountability from the BOE for the disastrous situation of FCPS special education population that resulted in a DOJ investigation, and the lack of transparency in the implementation of policies and curriculum based on ideologies, theories and practices not founded on qualifiable or quantifiable research. I want to rebuild the trust that has been lost by the current BOE.
What makes you a good candidate for the board?
I have varied and strong skill set that includes management and leadership in the areas of human resources, daily business operations, events, grants, contracts and compliance with local, state and federal laws and regulations. I will serve the parents, children and teachers of Frederick County Public Schools as a conservative critical thinker with a passion and persistence for the truth. Children are our future. Let’s focus on building and creating leaders for tomorrow.
Please name a public leader you admire and explain why.
Admiring public leaders is not something I do. I either like or dislike, agree or disagree with current leadership and their decisions. I have not been invested in admiration of public leaders for many years, so the last public leader that left a significant impression on me was Ronald Reagan.
What is the most important issue facing your school board, and what would you do about it if elected?
I feel that academics are the most important issue facing our school system. The focus on serving the student with a traditional learning experience has fallen to the wayside. Ideologies and theories that are being taught and practiced in the classroom that take time away from the core subject matter. The goal would be to bring each student up to the greatest achievement level based on their abilities and provide a challenging environment for students in order to stimulate the desire to learn while creating critical thinkers and leaders for the future.
How concerned are you about school safety, and what if anything should be done to improve it?
School and classroom safety are critically important for students and teachers. I fully support all Student Resource Officer (SRO) programs in place and would work to strengthen those programs through advocacy and funding at the county level.
Do you have any concerns about the way history is taught in your district’s schools, and if so, what are they?
We need to give all students the ability to discern for themselves the good, the bad and the ugly of past events. Allow students to understand that with history, decisions were made based on what was known and practiced at a particular time or period and how those events influenced where we are today. We don’t need to segregate history based on race. We can teach history as a subject that allows the students to discern and apply critical thinking skills to determine the outcomes of past actions and how you can take what was learned in the past, apply it to today and how history helps us to make better decisions for today and future generations.
Do you think there are circumstances when books should be removed from school libraries, and if so, what kind of books should be removed?
Any book that contains pornographic pictures and content. Many books under question and discussion that have parents upset and addressing their school boards are books that violate the federal laws on child pornography.
