How Come BOE Candidate Stephen Austin Won’t Say What His Employment Is??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Lots of new CEOs and executives join companies with minimal knowledge of their day to day operations. This is often seen as a good thing to shake things up. The new CEO looks at the company's priorities, budget, staffing, etc... with a critical eye, asking uncomfortable questions that prior management could not or would not ask. The same applies to a new commanding officer in the military.

This seems to be the real fear of many on this board.

If MCPS officials are confident that they are spending their budget correctly and 100% to support the education of our children, they should be proud to educate someone from the outside. Let the PowerPoint presentations fly.

Often seen as a good thing, by whom? Would you hire a school superintendent who didn't know anything about schools? I wouldn't. I also don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools. And I really, really don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools and doesn't seem very interesting in learning, either; or even listening.

He has no experience with schools, school system or is even a very involved parent with his kids schools. Huge red flags. However he is worried about his property and the schools his kids attend. Another huge red flag.

+1. Also, a board member is not a CEO or even an executive. They are representatives of the residents of Montgomery County, and all board members represent the all the residents of the county.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Lots of new CEOs and executives join companies with minimal knowledge of their day to day operations. This is often seen as a good thing to shake things up. The new CEO looks at the company's priorities, budget, staffing, etc... with a critical eye, asking uncomfortable questions that prior management could not or would not ask. The same applies to a new commanding officer in the military.

This seems to be the real fear of many on this board.

If MCPS officials are confident that they are spending their budget correctly and 100% to support the education of our children, they should be proud to educate someone from the outside. Let the PowerPoint presentations fly.

Often seen as a good thing, by whom? Would you hire a school superintendent who didn't know anything about schools? I wouldn't. I also don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools. And I really, really don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools and doesn't seem very interesting in learning, either; or even listening.

He has no experience with schools, school system or is even a very involved parent with his kids schools. Huge red flags. However he is worried about his property and the schools his kids attend. Another huge red flag.

And what is wrong with that? If you do not care about the value of one of your biggest investments falling significantly, then I have some stocks to sell to you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For me, the bottom line on Stephen Austin is that, until the boundary issue arose and raised concerns in his mind that his property value might decline and his kids might have to attend schools different than the ones he assumed they would attend, he did absolutely nothing to help make county schools better. Nothing. Every other candidate for the At-Large seat has at least done SOMETHING to address issues/concerns in MCPS. His Facebook posts consistently show him to be a thin-skinned Johnny come lately who thinks simple questions about his touted financial expertise are just too personal and certainly not to be scrutinized by the voters he wants to represent. You want an independent audit of MCPS books? I am with you! You want an IG? I am with you. You want a guy who had no interest in anything MCPS just a few months ago? No thanks.

You seem to be implying that the bold text above isn't a valid reason to take an interest in BOE politics? I can't think of a better reason than something that affects one's own children is often the catalyst for people to run for a BOE seat. Also, property values isn't an irrelevant consideration. What about higher taxes in MOCO slated for funding education? (which then allows MOCO to move money around - kinda like state lottery money). That's also a financial consideration (like property values), but based on your logic, nothing that has a financial impact on people living in MOCO is an "approved" reason to get involved with BOE politics.

This is the problem with some MoCo politics. They value diversity in many areas, but not in viewpoints. If you don't agree with them, then your viewpoint is not valid and you should be shunned.

Look at this Austin thing with a bunch of councilmembers ganging up on him and signing a letter against him. Now I fully understand that many people may not agree with his views, but why target him? The information on all candidates standings is readily available online -- the voters can make their own decisions without councilmembers bullying people.

There are other folks who are running who don't necessarily agree with the BOE, but they have not targeted them. Austin is divisive, with zero background or experience in education. It's a terrible combo for a BOE member.

That's because the others do not have a reasonable chance of winning and making a change. It's like saying "Well, no one ran negative advertisements about Tulsi Gabbard and John Delaney".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Lots of new CEOs and executives join companies with minimal knowledge of their day to day operations. This is often seen as a good thing to shake things up. The new CEO looks at the company's priorities, budget, staffing, etc... with a critical eye, asking uncomfortable questions that prior management could not or would not ask. The same applies to a new commanding officer in the military.

This seems to be the real fear of many on this board.

If MCPS officials are confident that they are spending their budget correctly and 100% to support the education of our children, they should be proud to educate someone from the outside. Let the PowerPoint presentations fly.

Often seen as a good thing, by whom? Would you hire a school superintendent who didn't know anything about schools? I wouldn't. I also don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools. And I really, really don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools and doesn't seem very interesting in learning, either; or even listening.

He has no experience with schools, school system or is even a very involved parent with his kids schools. Huge red flags. However he is worried about his property and the schools his kids attend. Another huge red flag.

None of the current board members have any finance experience that gives them any credibility to oversee a $2.8 Billion dollar budget.and yet they get elected. Why is their no financial oversight of this budget? why is their no review of any programs to see if any of these programs are meeting their goals? Why did they see fit to give the Superintendent another 4 years without saying what goals he met to earn it? Why was he given a raise? These are red flags to me and a lot of other taxpayers in this county. Someone needs to start asking the hard questions especially now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Lots of new CEOs and executives join companies with minimal knowledge of their day to day operations. This is often seen as a good thing to shake things up. The new CEO looks at the company's priorities, budget, staffing, etc... with a critical eye, asking uncomfortable questions that prior management could not or would not ask. The same applies to a new commanding officer in the military.

This seems to be the real fear of many on this board.

If MCPS officials are confident that they are spending their budget correctly and 100% to support the education of our children, they should be proud to educate someone from the outside. Let the PowerPoint presentations fly.

Often seen as a good thing, by whom? Would you hire a school superintendent who didn't know anything about schools? I wouldn't. I also don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools. And I really, really don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools and doesn't seem very interesting in learning, either; or even listening.

He has no experience with schools, school system or is even a very involved parent with his kids schools. Huge red flags. However he is worried about his property and the schools his kids attend. Another huge red flag.

None of the current board members have any finance experience that gives them any credibility to oversee a $2.8 Billion dollar budget.and yet they get elected. Why is their no financial oversight of this budget? why is their no review of any programs to see if any of these programs are meeting their goals? Why did they see fit to give the Superintendent another 4 years without saying what goals he met to earn it? Why was he given a raise? These are red flags to me and a lot of other taxpayers in this county. Someone needs to start asking the hard questions especially now.

In contrast: Steve Austin has no experience that gives him any credibility to oversee a $2.8 billion budget.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Lots of new CEOs and executives join companies with minimal knowledge of their day to day operations. This is often seen as a good thing to shake things up. The new CEO looks at the company's priorities, budget, staffing, etc... with a critical eye, asking uncomfortable questions that prior management could not or would not ask. The same applies to a new commanding officer in the military.

This seems to be the real fear of many on this board.

If MCPS officials are confident that they are spending their budget correctly and 100% to support the education of our children, they should be proud to educate someone from the outside. Let the PowerPoint presentations fly.

Often seen as a good thing, by whom? Would you hire a school superintendent who didn't know anything about schools? I wouldn't. I also don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools. And I really, really don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools and doesn't seem very interesting in learning, either; or even listening.

He has no experience with schools, school system or is even a very involved parent with his kids schools. Huge red flags. However he is worried about his property and the schools his kids attend. Another huge red flag.

And what is wrong with that? If you do not care about the value of one of your biggest investments falling significantly, then I have some stocks to sell to you.

Y'all need to make up your minds whether it's "Steve Austin cares about children, the property values accusation is a smear!" or "Steve Austin cares about property values, as everyone should!"

This seems like a good place to remind everyone that one-third of households in Montgomery County are renters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

That's because the others do not have a reasonable chance of winning and making a change. It's like saying "Well, no one ran negative advertisements about Tulsi Gabbard and John Delaney".

Not really. Jay Guan has raised more money than any other at-large candidate. All things being equal, that makes him MORE likely than Steve Austin to have a chance of winning. I honestly don't understand why there's this belief on DCUM (maybe in real life too) that Steve Austin has a chance and Jay Guan is a spoiler - except maybe that Steve Austin is a white guy from Bethesda while Jay Guan is a Chinese-American guy from Clarksburg.

And nobody has said negative things about Jay Guan.

So, maybe, it actually is about Steve Austin's uncivil monologue, and not about his "diversity of opinion"?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Lots of new CEOs and executives join companies with minimal knowledge of their day to day operations. This is often seen as a good thing to shake things up. The new CEO looks at the company's priorities, budget, staffing, etc... with a critical eye, asking uncomfortable questions that prior management could not or would not ask. The same applies to a new commanding officer in the military.

This seems to be the real fear of many on this board.

If MCPS officials are confident that they are spending their budget correctly and 100% to support the education of our children, they should be proud to educate someone from the outside. Let the PowerPoint presentations fly.

Often seen as a good thing, by whom? Would you hire a school superintendent who didn't know anything about schools? I wouldn't. I also don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools. And I really, really don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools and doesn't seem very interesting in learning, either; or even listening.

He has no experience with schools, school system or is even a very involved parent with his kids schools. Huge red flags. However he is worried about his property and the schools his kids attend. Another huge red flag.

And what is wrong with that? If you do not care about the value of one of your biggest investments falling significantly, then I have some stocks to sell to you.

That shouldn’t be what drives public education decisions across the entire county. Period.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Lots of new CEOs and executives join companies with minimal knowledge of their day to day operations. This is often seen as a good thing to shake things up. The new CEO looks at the company's priorities, budget, staffing, etc... with a critical eye, asking uncomfortable questions that prior management could not or would not ask. The same applies to a new commanding officer in the military.

This seems to be the real fear of many on this board.

If MCPS officials are confident that they are spending their budget correctly and 100% to support the education of our children, they should be proud to educate someone from the outside. Let the PowerPoint presentations fly.

Often seen as a good thing, by whom? Would you hire a school superintendent who didn't know anything about schools? I wouldn't. I also don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools. And I really, really don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools and doesn't seem very interesting in learning, either; or even listening.

He has no experience with schools, school system or is even a very involved parent with his kids schools. Huge red flags. However he is worried about his property and the schools his kids attend. Another huge red flag.

This is a huge red flag for me as well. Despite having what appears to be a pretty flexible job, Austin had basically not stepped foot in a MCPS school - even his own children's school - until MCPS started talking about adjusting adjacent school boundaries in order to alleviate overcrowding and address underutilization of facilities.

Anyone with a map want to clue me in on what Austin's so worried about? Is his house right on a border or something?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

This is a huge red flag for me as well. Despite having what appears to be a pretty flexible job, Austin had basically not stepped foot in a MCPS school - even his own children's school - until MCPS started talking about adjusting adjacent school boundaries in order to alleviate overcrowding and address underutilization of facilities.

Anyone with a map want to clue me in on what Austin's so worried about? Is his house right on a border or something?

Deep concern that someone will force their children onto buses to White Oak at gunpoint, or at least that's what some of his supporters I've talked to are worried about.

Also, property values.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

This is a huge red flag for me as well. Despite having what appears to be a pretty flexible job, Austin had basically not stepped foot in a MCPS school - even his own children's school - until MCPS started talking about adjusting adjacent school boundaries in order to alleviate overcrowding and address underutilization of facilities.

Anyone with a map want to clue me in on what Austin's so worried about? Is his house right on a border or something?

Deep concern that someone will force their children onto buses to White Oak at gunpoint, or at least that's what some of his supporters I've talked to are worried about.

Also, property values.

Austin's concern seems *personal* though. If he's deep in Pyle/Whitman territory, no adjacent boundary adjustment is going to change his kids' feeder pattern, nor touch his home value.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

This is a huge red flag for me as well. Despite having what appears to be a pretty flexible job, Austin had basically not stepped foot in a MCPS school - even his own children's school - until MCPS started talking about adjusting adjacent school boundaries in order to alleviate overcrowding and address underutilization of facilities.

Anyone with a map want to clue me in on what Austin's so worried about? Is his house right on a border or something?

Deep concern that someone will force their children onto buses to White Oak at gunpoint, or at least that's what some of his supporters I've talked to are worried about.

Also, property values.

Austin's concern seems *personal* though. If he's deep in Pyle/Whitman territory, no adjacent boundary adjustment is going to change his kids' feeder pattern, nor touch his home value.

Maybe he's worried about getting reassigned to Seven Locks ES, since it's not a neighborhood school?

http://gis.mcpsmd.org/ServiceAreaMaps/SevenLocksES.pdf

No, I'm not being sincere.

Also, at this point, it doesn't really matter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Lots of new CEOs and executives join companies with minimal knowledge of their day to day operations. This is often seen as a good thing to shake things up. The new CEO looks at the company's priorities, budget, staffing, etc... with a critical eye, asking uncomfortable questions that prior management could not or would not ask. The same applies to a new commanding officer in the military.

This seems to be the real fear of many on this board.

If MCPS officials are confident that they are spending their budget correctly and 100% to support the education of our children, they should be proud to educate someone from the outside. Let the PowerPoint presentations fly.

Often seen as a good thing, by whom? Would you hire a school superintendent who didn't know anything about schools? I wouldn't. I also don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools. And I really, really don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools and doesn't seem very interesting in learning, either; or even listening.

He has no experience with schools, school system or is even a very involved parent with his kids schools. Huge red flags. However he is worried about his property and the schools his kids attend. Another huge red flag.

This is a huge red flag for me as well. Despite having what appears to be a pretty flexible job, Austin had basically not stepped foot in a MCPS school - even his own children's school - until MCPS started talking about adjusting adjacent school boundaries in order to alleviate overcrowding and address underutilization of facilities.

Anyone with a map want to clue me in on what Austin's so worried about? Is his house right on a border or something?

A huge red flag for me is that it appears that the current Board of Education and sitting politicians do not want anybody on the board who does not go with the flow and does not challenge them. This to me is a very big deal. I have always always said that there should always be checks and balances and political organizations. It should never be ruled by a single party or only by like minds. There should be diversity in thought and different points of view.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

A huge red flag for me is that it appears that the current Board of Education and sitting politicians do not want anybody on the board who does not go with the flow and does not challenge them. This to me is a very big deal. I have always always said that there should always be checks and balances and political organizations. It should never be ruled by a single party or only by like minds. There should be diversity in thought and different points of view.

I don't see the other 12 at-large candidates as being of like mind. If you read through their responses, you'll find a good deal of diversity of thought.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Lots of new CEOs and executives join companies with minimal knowledge of their day to day operations. This is often seen as a good thing to shake things up. The new CEO looks at the company's priorities, budget, staffing, etc... with a critical eye, asking uncomfortable questions that prior management could not or would not ask. The same applies to a new commanding officer in the military.

This seems to be the real fear of many on this board.

If MCPS officials are confident that they are spending their budget correctly and 100% to support the education of our children, they should be proud to educate someone from the outside. Let the PowerPoint presentations fly.

Often seen as a good thing, by whom? Would you hire a school superintendent who didn't know anything about schools? I wouldn't. I also don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools. And I really, really don't want a BoE member who doesn't know anything about schools and doesn't seem very interesting in learning, either; or even listening.

He has no experience with schools, school system or is even a very involved parent with his kids schools. Huge red flags. However he is worried about his property and the schools his kids attend. Another huge red flag.

This is a huge red flag for me as well. Despite having what appears to be a pretty flexible job, Austin had basically not stepped foot in a MCPS school - even his own children's school - until MCPS started talking about adjusting adjacent school boundaries in order to alleviate overcrowding and address underutilization of facilities.

Anyone with a map want to clue me in on what Austin's so worried about? Is his house right on a border or something?

A huge red flag for me is that it appears that the current Board of Education and sitting politicians do not want anybody on the board who does not go with the flow and does not challenge them. This to me is a very big deal. I have always always said that there should always be checks and balances and political organizations. It should never be ruled by a single party or only by like minds. There should be diversity in thought and different points of view.

DP... seems to me there are several people running who disagree with the BOE, but their tone is not so divisive. The divisiveness and lack of any kind of volunteering are the huge red flags for me.