George: I’ll be a watchdog for Prince William County School Board funds

The run for Neabsco District School Board member is a two-way race, as Joseph George will face Diane Raulston for the seat.

The seat is an open one, as incumbent Lisa Bell will not seek relelection to the post.

Potomac Local sent a survey to Joseph George who is running for the seat. His responses are below: 

PL: What are the top three major issues facing the district you wish to represent?

George: 1. Ensuring that we are providing the best education for our students.
2. Ensuring that we keep the most capable teachers within our School District.
3. Ensuring that our District members, both parents and tax payers without children in the School District anymore, have a voice on decisions made that impact spending.

PL: What concrete solutions do you propose to address these issues?

George: 1 – Determine what programs are not working or being underutilized, and determine if there needs to be a re-focus conducted on them, or discard them all together.  Additionally, determine which programs are working well (most bang for our buck) and figure out if more students can be involved to their advantage and our budget.  Would work by prioritizing our critical needs and funding them properly. 

PL: From your prospective, what is the job description of the office you’re seeking? 

George: Representing the Neabsco District on the PWC School Board means to ensure that my District student’s needs are voiced to the rest of the Board Members, in order to make the best determination of how our dollars are spent, and what programs to promote.  The students are my number one priority and as a watchdog, I must ensure that funds are spent properly.  I must seek the advice from the community, because first and foremost, the schools belong to them, so their voices must be heard.

PL: What expertise will you bring to the office?

George: My expertise is one of a passionate parent, one that will seek out the hard answers and make the difficult decisions, based on community input.  Additionally, I will take my experience as an Analyst, taking facts and assumptions, in order to make acceptable decisions, as well as my exposure as a Principal Advisory Council Chairman to understand the significance of expenditures.

PL: Do you feel that the average citizen is well-informed and understands the workings of local government? If not, how do you intend on improving communication with your constituency?

George: I’d hate to say that the average citizen is “well-informed” on local government, because it may not be their concern about what local government is doing.  Many people I have met has told me that they feel like they have no say in what the School District does or does not do, due to the fact of not having a child in the system.  Many do not understand that they still fund the School District with their tax-dollars, which makes the need for their voice to be heard as much as parents with students in our schools.  A person’s sphere of influence is much larger than they know, if they put in a bit more effort to listen, ask questions, and seek out the truth.

PL:  Have you ever made any mistakes in your public life? How have they effected you?

George: Working for the Department of Defense, I have made mistakes in my public life, but all of which I have learned from, improved through, and assisted others in not making those same mistakes.  Mentoring and coaching individuals to become the best that they can be, I try to do on a daily basis.

PL: Our readers want leaders in local government. Why should they vote for you?

George: A vote for Joseph George means that the public’s voice will be heard (even those that do not vote for me will be heard as well) and I want them to have faith that I will make the tough choices, based on their input, as well as the input of my fellow Board Members.  When decisions are to be made that may be unpopular, I will be the one to explain why the choice was made, and allow those that are disappointed in the decision to speak with me one-on-one or in a public forum.  I want to ensure that I interact closely with my [would-be] counterpart on the County Board of Supervisors, Mr. John Jenkins, so that our District is in lock-step on what we are trying to accomplish.  I am new to the political process, but I am not new to making tough choices that impact millions of dollars, and those decisions are not taken lightly.