Age: 85
Family: Wife and daughter, age 9. Three adult children after graduation from West High took an extra year of high school abroad, two in France, and one in Germany.
Originally from: Madison
Lived in MMSD since: 1934
Education: Madison schools, UW (BA), McGill University (Medical School), Residency Internal Medicine
Occupation: Private practice 21 years in Madison. Clinic practice 10 years in Moscow, Russia. Military practice six years in Germany/Iraq. Recent practice two years; Addiction Medicine in Milwaukee and Madison.
Employer/job title: MD
Political experience: Rotary Club. Attendance at occasional School Board meetings.
Other notable affiliations: Colonel, Medical Corps, Ret. Res. Rotary Club from 1985
Essay questions
Why are you running for school board, and why should people vote for you?
My main concern is the wide achievement gap in reading. It takes “the whole village to raise a child.” A major shortcoming of our “village” is lack of attention during the child’s first 3 to 5 years when the brain is more plastic, malleable.
What are the most important issues facing the district?
Disengagement at the middle and high school level can be prevented by neighborhood elementary schools and preschools. I would like to open a school on Allied Drive, reopen the Hoyt, Dudgeon and Odana schools, and allow optional walk-in access to the paired schools.
Should there be police officers in MMSD high schools? Why or why not?
Yes, for the next year, longer if a high level of anxiety persists. A uniformed authority figure on the campus will give pause to the disruptive student to whom removal to a special class is just a big joke and a vacation.
How has the district handled the rollout of its behavior plan over the past few years?
A move to consider would be Chicago’s Urban Prep Academy. 100% of the graduating class of Urban Prep – all disadvantaged black boys – enroll in college. Success at preschool and K-5 will prevent development later of “at risk” students.
How should the district move forward with the Personalized Pathways program?
I would encourage foreign language exposure (optional). After graduation from West all three of my kids took a year of high school abroad. A few years later they lived with me for a year or two in Moscow where they learned Russian and found jobs. The “world is their oyster.”
