Campaign email: votemikelukas@comcast.net
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michael.lukas.3998
Age: 60
Employment: Retired after working for the Navy for 38 years.
Education: Bachelor of Science, Electrical Engineering, University of Maryland College Park. Graduate studies at George Mason University and Naval Post Graduate School.
Why are you running for the school board?
Opportunity. That’s the answer I have given throughout my tenure as a board member. Providing every child, regardless of socio/economic background, the opportunity to succeed after graduating from CCPS. I represent all stakeholders in the system (teachers, parents, students, taxpayers) and hold myself accountable to them by maintaining high academic standards and fiscal accountability. I marched, lobbied and testified for the Blueprint for Maryland schools, which is a transformational tool that will provide resources for: full day pre-K, areas of poverty, increased CTE (career and technical education) programs and incentives to hire and retain highly qualified teachers and administrators. I will continue to push these efforts.
What makes you a good candidate for the board?
As a current board member, I have the experience and leadership that is vital, given there will be seven new members. I am passionate about providing opportunity to ALL children having grown up in poverty and understanding the obstacles many families have. I retired after 38 years working for the Navy as an engineer and Branch Head, and my wife is a former educator (CCPS and CSM) and our son is a CCPS graduate. I am involved in numerous community organizations and desire to incorporate these nonprofits to help our school system continue to move in a positive direction.
Please name a public leader you admire and explain why.
Steve Jobs. As an engineer I admire his tenacity and desire to make the world a better place. He left us too soon. Oprah Winfrey. Her work ethic and philanthropic endeavors speak for themselves. She came from a less-than-ideal childhood and captured the American dream.
What is the most important issue facing your school board, and what would you do about it if elected?
Learning loss and social/emotional health due to COVID. As a current board member, I have obligated funding for counselors and psychologists to help students deal with the effects of not interacting with students for over a year which manifests itself in disciplinary issues. Academically, extra resources have been (and I will continue this) provided for programs to get kids back on grade level in reading and math. Parental and community involvement is also necessary and I will continue to implement programs that involve our parents and community organizations in our learning process.
How concerned are you about school safety, and what if anything should be done to improve it?
I am always concerned about student and staff safety. We have a “see something, say something” program, which has proven effective in preventing unfavorable events before they occur. In our school system, we have taken many measures to keep our schools safer, including guided vestibule entries for visitors, background checks for all volunteers and employees and the hiring of a director of school safety and security.
Do you have any concerns about the way history is taught in your district’s schools, and if so, what are they?
It needs to be factually accurate. We have expanded offerings and will continue to do so in order to be reflective of the community we represent.
Do you think there are circumstances when books should be removed from school libraries, and if so, what kind of books should be removed?
Books need to be age-appropriate. As long as they are not illegal or violate COMAR (annotated code of Maryland) then they are choices for students.
