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MEET THE CANDIDATES FOR SCHOOL BOARD AREA 2

The Morongo Unified School District will have two seats to fill on its Board of Education during the upcoming November election: one seat for Area 1 and one seat for Area 2. Reporter Andrew Dieleman introduces us to Patrick Crow and Cathy Nelson, the two candidates running for Area 2…

Candidate Dr. Patrick Crow is retired from the Marine Corp Communication-Electronics School, is a father of MUSD students, and has been a permanent Morongo Basin resident since 2007.

“I think [the school district] is stuck in mental models that are slowing [its] progress and I think it’s time [for the school district] to just do better [for students]. I think [the school district also] needs to start creating and looking at [student] data a whole lot better.”

Candidate Cathy Nelson is a retired MUSD teacher of 21 years, former negotiator and chair member of the Morongo Teacher’s Association, and 22-year resident of the Morongo Basin.

“I really value public education and I understand how to provide education success[fully] from inside the classroom, from across the negotiating table, and from the needs of the community.”

Candidate Dr. Patrick Crow

Candidate Dr. Patrick Crow:

Q) How long have you been a resident of the Morongo Bason?

A) “I have lived in the Morongo Basin three separate times while traveling for the Marine Corp. I moved here in 1996, then again in 2000, and in 2007 I moved here again and called it my permanent home.

Q) What is your work background?

A) “I am retired from the Marine Corp. I served as an infantryman for my first four years, then transferred to Communications Electronics Maintenance, and spent my last 5 years at the Marine Corps Communication-Electronics School aboard the Marine Corp Air Ground Combat Center as a chief instructor and curriculum developer. My Doctorates degree is in Higher Educational Leadership with a specialization in K-12 learning analytics.

Q) Do you have experience serving on boards, with the school district, or in any political setting?

A) “I’ve never worked in a political setting or on a board, but I have served on student councils and committees throughout the school district over the years and have been attending MUSD meeting on and off for the past ten years.

Q) If elected, what do you plan to accomplish?

A) “I believe that the school district can do better for its students. I believe the school district is stuck in mental models that are slowing its progress. Much of my personal philosophy on education leadership stems from Dr. Peter Sengi, a senior lecturer at MIT, who theorized five blocks to learning organization: Systems thinking, Personal mastery, Mental models, Building shared vision, and Team learning. I believe that these are five disciplines that any learning organization, including MUSD, should be applying. We need to work together to build [cooperative] teams, not just as students, but as teachers, administrators, and staff. I would also like to create a better system of collecting and analyzing hard data to help move the board from subjective decision making to data-driven decision making.”

Candidte Cathy Nelson

Candidate Cathy Nelson:

Q) How long have you been a resident of the Morongo Bason?

A) “I’m heading into my 22nd year of living in the Morongo Basin.”

Q) What is your work background?

A) “I am now retired, but I taught for 21 years in the Morongo Unified School District.”

Q) Do you have experience serving on Boards, with the school district, or in any political setting?

A) “Yes. Aside from teaching, I served on many MUSD committees at the time reviewing topics ranging from safety plans to curriculum instruction. I also served as a PTO President, as a member and chair of a school site council, and on the Morongo Teachers Association as chair of communication for the safety committee and on the negotiations team.”

Q) If elected, what do you plan to accomplish?

A) “I see serving on the MUSD Board of Education as my next step of community service as an education professional. I understand how to successfully provide education from inside the classroom, from across the negotiating table, and from the needs of a community. I highly value public education and look forward to the opportunity to be a member of the Board of Education to help continue providing education to students.”

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