Student Candidate Guide 2014 Election 2014 Candidates – Mecklenburg County Commission (At-Large) Office Candidates # seats in election At-Large Scott Carlisle (R) Pat Cotham (D) Trevor Fuller (D) Ella Scarborough (D) Emily Zuyus (R) 3 candidates will be elected High school students surveyed all candidates for this Election 2014 office. Candidates who completed the questionnaire are included in this guide. * = The candidate did not provide the requested information. Return to the Student Candidate Guide for other Election 2014 candidates; information about government, elections, and voting; how to participate in GenerationNation’s Kids Voting election and Charlotte‐Mecklenburg Youth Council; educational tools, and more. www.generationnation.org/index.php/election/candidateguide2014 www.GenerationNation.org GenerationNation @GenNation
Transcript
Student Candidate Guide 2014
Election 2014 Candidates – Mecklenburg County Commission (At-Large)
Office Candidates # seats in election
At-Large Scott Carlisle (R) Pat Cotham (D) Trevor Fuller (D) Ella Scarborough (D) Emily Zuyus (R)
3 candidates will be elected
High school students surveyed all candidates for this Election 2014 office. Candidates who completed the questionnaire are included in this guide. * = The candidate did not provide the requested information.
Return to the Student Candidate Guide for other Election 2014 candidates; information about government, elections, and voting; how to participate in GenerationNation’s Kids Voting election and Charlotte‐Mecklenburg Youth Council; educational tools, and more.
Website www.scott4meck.com Email [email protected] Facebook facebook.com/Scott4MeckBOCC Twitter @elect_scott Instagram Scott4Meck Occupation Commercial Real Estate Appraiser Education Providence High School and UNCC Political viewpoint Practical Republican Favorite news source Suprisingly BBC, they report on American political news without
bias. I also watch News 14 and read Twitter Grew up in Charlotte Youth interests in civics, government, and leadership
I enjoyed helping people and volunteering in the community.
Community involvement and leadership experience
Chairman of Mecklenburg Young Republicans, Campaign Chair of Mecklenburg County GOP, volunteer with Beds For Kids, The Brookstone School, Toys for Tots, Salvation Army, and American Red Cross.
First issue I will tackle Teacher pay. North Carolina and Mecklenburg County is
consistently on the Top 10 lists for best places to live, work, do business, travel, visit and so on. Yet we are ranked 48th in the nation on teacher pay. This is unacceptable and if we want to remain a world class city then we have to invest in our children's future and the future quality of life in Mecklenburg County. Increased teacher pay will help to recruit, retain and reward the best possible educators for our children and our children's future.
How I will impact…
Education I will work with the School Board to better the CMS system as a whole. Through increased funding to teachers we will be able to
recruit, retain and reward the best educators for our children. For far to long we have been losing our best and brightest to the surrounding counties and states who offer higher wages. Though increased funding specifically for teachers, this will stop. I also want to work with the School Board and Heath Morrison to identify and eliminate wasteful spending and redirect that funding into successful programs and personnel. I am not, I repeat, not talking about reducing the over all funding of our schools. I believe that CMS and our children deserve every dollar we are giving them, but I want to make sure that your money is used in the most efficient possible way, otherwise we are just wasting your money.
Economy The Commission could continue to actively recruit new companies and corporations to the area and region through business incentive programs and the higher quality of life that our citizens enjoy. This would help to lower the unemployment in Mecklenburg County. In addition I would work on cutting the red tape on new developments. Helping aid developers in getting the proper approval to start construction sooner and hire more local workers.
Government budget Fiscal Responsibility is at the heart of my platform. Along with other members of the County Commission, I want to implement Zero Based Budgeting to identify and eliminate government waste. This budgeting tool has been successful in other local governments in eliminating wasteful and under performing programs and in turn saving the tax payers money.
Children and youth By creating a world class education system where we put the children first, this will help to assist all of our children to reach their full potential in education and set them on the path for success. A great education is the foundation for our children's success and well being as they mature into adulthood. Our children truly are our future and if we don't take action now to better our education system here in Mecklenburg County we are not only failing our children, but our community.
Community health/safety One of the many problems with our backed up court system is issues directly relating to homelessness, such as minor non‐violent trespassing and pan handling charges. I support the formation of a homeless court to deal with these minor violations. This will not only free up the higher courts but it will allow our less fortunate citizens to receive mental health and substance abuse counselling. This will further save the county money by not having to house them in our county jail, which neither benefits our indigent population or our overcrowded jail system.
Through responsible fiscal policies we will be able to attract large businesses to our community that will bring better and higher paying jobs. We will also stream line the development process which will aid in the continued growth and success of our economy while promoting a higher quality of life.
Most important role of county government
To aid in the growth and success of the county, by both promoting our economic growth and higher standard of living. We all pay one of the highest tax rates in the entire Southeast, this makes it difficult for our citizens to thrive and provide the quality of life that all of our citizens should enjoy. This also makes it very difficult to recruit new business to our area that create jobs and grow our economy. The proposed sales tax referendum will unfairly punish both the middle and lower class, and will have negative impacts for the future development of Mecklenburg County.
Way candidate will help leaders to collaborate
While I have a "R" next to my name, I don't believe that a good idea has a party affiliation. A good idea is a good idea and I will consider all ideas without prejudice no matter who they came from. Being elected at‐large, I will truly represent all of Mecklenburg County's citizens, and not one narrow interest or idea. My door will always be open to any of our county's citizens and I will listen to their concerns and work with both Republicans and Democrats to advance in the future aid and growth of our community.
At end of term, biggest accomplishment will be
Hopefully that I have helped to create a world class education system that will benefit not only the children today but those to come.
What else should people know about you?
I was born, raised, and educated right here in Mecklenburg County and I want to serve the community that has given me so much. I want to be your voice on the County Commission. I know politicians are always promising you the world, and I won't. But I will promise you that I will work with both parties and listen to anyone who has concerns about our community. I said before and I truly mean it, a good idea does not have a party affiliation. I may have a "R" next to my name, but I will represent all parties and people in our community equally.
Website www.patcotham.org Email [email protected] Facebook pat cain Cotham Twitter PatCothamMeck & DNCPATNC Instagram PatCotham Occupation County Commisisoner Education University Of Missouri,1973 Two degrees.Journalism and Spanish Political viewpoint Democratic Favorite news source Twitter Grew up in Moved often‐St. Louis,Phiadelphia,Tampa,San Francisco,Iowa,‐I
was aways good in geography Youth interests in civics, government, and leadership
Grew up in 1960's so influenced By President Kennedy, Martin Luther King then Vietnam was a powerful reminder that young people could die in Vietnam but could not vote. I protested in college for voting rights
Community involvement and leadership experience
Blumenthal Trustee, Many Boards, DNC Member (1 of 7 in NC) Chair Uptown Forum‐Distinguished Dem Woman of the Year 2013, Grassroots Leader award 2012,Help people with criminal record find jobs‐
First issue I will tackle It depends on the makeup of the Board. First I would need to
reach out to new members and hopefully build a relationship with them. I would try to reach out again to the Democrats to see if they want to work together for the good of the people. Issues that are important include a better relationship with CMS but the Chair would have to lead that. I would do that to hopefully be more a more productive board. I am working with some retired executives on an economic development project that would bring more tourists to town who follow competitive swimming. To tackle any issue we would need five votes so hopefully we can
work together giving each other respect. How I will impact…
Education We support them with funding. I have tried to learn more about the schools and I visit them regularly. I meet with the Superintendent and School Board Member plus non profit leaders like MeckEd and Communities in Schools. I keep up with laws in Raleigh affecting education. I would like to help teachers more with something guaranteed‐but it takes five votes.
Economy If you ask Developers and Contractors they would say that I have been a champion to help them with county issues that delay jobs and growth. If contractors are waiting for permits, people are not working. I have helped that process and I would continue to do more to keep pressure on the county to be ore efficient so more jobs would be created. I also vote to support incentives for new businesses. Supporting CPCC is also helpful to the economy. Continuing to help people who need a second chance helps the economy too.
Government budget Asking questions and understanding it is critical. I was not happy this year in May when we just accepted it and had no discussion. People deserve to hear us talk about it. We listened for hours to people making suggestions then never discussed it‐I thought that was not right, but I was in the minority. So, again, it takes five votes which is difficult currently. Maybe new members will be more willing to listen and discuss and compromise.
Children and youth That would go to education and I believe we need stronger relationship with CMS. Many kids need extra help and I would support more wrap‐around services for children as there is at Reid Park in the Family Resource Center. Technology is critical and I worry when I see old computers in schools‐they need better IT Solutions. We have to develop community support for it.
Community health/safety I have been very involved with the Health Department and Community Outreach. Supporting our new Heath Director would be a good start. He is wanting to make changes and he has great ideas.
Community growth/quality of life
I have supported and will support land purchase for parks and greenways. Bringing more businesses to Mecklenburg is a passion for me. I meet with international people often and try to get them to bring more business here. Quality of life means different things to different people. We need more entrepreneurs and more internships for young and old! Pushing business and government to welcome interns would be very worthwhile.
Most important role of county More than half of our money goes to CMS so that is most
government important. Making our county a great place to live, work and recreate is a general goal. It does encompass caring for vulnerable people through DSS. The county has many other services from Veterans to Libraries to helping Homeless People.
Way candidate will help leaders to collaborate
I reached out to Republicans when I was Chair and we worked together and accomplished more in one year than had been accomplished in a decade. My Democratic colleagues were not happy and they ousted me as Chair. It is obvious they have a different agenda so I rarely hear from them The current Chair has not asked me to lead any committees. I just accept it and take the "high road" and try to make a difference every day. I work for the people and I only answer to them. I continue to reach out to the Republicans as they were elected too and I respect the voters.
At end of term, biggest accomplishment will be
I led the biggest changes in County Government with bringing more accountability to the people by successfully being a strong voice for new leadership in county management and keeping the pressure on to fix the Reval debacle of 2011 where 46000 households were negatively affected. I am proud of what I accomplished working in a bi‐partisan way. As of March, 2014 we have found $1Billion of commercial property that was not being taxed, Certainly that proves we needed tremendous change to better serve the people.
What else should people know about you?
I host three Chinese high school students every year. They enrich my life and I get a glimpse of the future as we live in a global world now.
Website www.votetrevorfuller.com Email [email protected] Facebook www.facebook.com/trevormfuller Twitter @TrevorMFuller Instagram Occupation Attorney Education J.D., Georgetown University Law Center; A.B., Hamilton College Political viewpoint I am a Democrat Favorite news source Grew up in In Buffalo, New York Youth interests in civics, government, and leadership
Because I was a leader on the debate team in high school, I had a high interest in civic and social issues. This was the beginning of my interest in government and leadership.
Community involvement and leadership experience
I serve as the chairman of the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners. Before that, I had leadership roles in several community and civic organizations.
First issue I will tackle After re‐election and passage of the quarter‐percent sales tax
referendum, I would take action to initiate the additional funding for our teachers, for jobs, for the arts, and for our libraries. I believe this will turn out to be a defining moment for our community.
How I will impact…
Education By taking action to address teacher compensation. And by continuing to focus funding on education in the sciences, technology, engineering, and math.
Economy By continuing to focus on bringing real jobs to our community, and by completing the process of creating Mecklenburg County's
first economic development plan and policy. Government budget By continuing to show fiscal prudence and foresight, as evidenced
by the forward‐looking budget we passed in 2013, and the forward‐leaning budget we passed this year.
Children and youth Providing a strong, sustainable educational system is the single most important thing we can do for children and youth. In addition, we need to put an end to childhood homelessness.
Community health/safety By continuing to focus on the prevention of chronic diseases. Community growth/quality of life
Once we complete our first‐ever economic development plan and policy, we can then focus on strategies to encourage economic growth in ALL parts of the county. By doing so, we will increase the quality of life for everyone.
Most important role of county government
To provide for the education, health, safety, and well‐being of the 1 million people who call Mecklenburg County home.
Way candidate will help leaders to collaborate
By continuing to find opportunities to work together on the big issues affecting our community, like economic development efforts.
At end of term, biggest accomplishment will be
To have put in place a true blueprint for addressing the high concentrations of poverty and lack of economic mobility that exist in Mecklenburg County.
What else should people know about you?
Helping others is most important and meaningful to me. As a consequence, my motto is: "Put people first." Everything else flows from there.
Website www.ellascarborough.com Email [email protected] Facebook ella scarborough Twitter @ellascarboroug1 Instagram Occupation Adjunct Professor at Central Piedmont Community College and
Urban League of Central Carolinas Education B.S. Degree‐ Library Science Education, South Carolina State
University; M.S.‐ Organizational Leadership, University of Charleston at West Virginia; Graduate of the Institute of Political Leadership at the University of NC Wilmington
Political viewpoint Democrat Favorite news source MSNBC and XM Radio‐ Joe Madison Show Grew up in Sumter, SC Youth interests in civics, government, and leadership
When I was in 7th grade, I was elected the class president. I became very interested in being a public servant as a result of this experience because I saw first hand how I could make a positive impact on the lives of others.
Community involvement and leadership experience
Former Charlotte City Councilmember, Former President of the NC League of Municipalities, President of Black Women's Caucus, Former Chapter President of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., Former Chair of the Deaconess Board at Friendship Missionary Baptist Church, Serve on Coleman W. Kerry Scholarship Board at Friendship Missionary Baptist Church
First issue I will tackle The first issue I want to address is attracting businesses to our
County that are committed to providing livable wages for our citizens. I will do this by working with my colleagues and the business community on economic development.
Education I am an educator and providing quality education is critical to our community. We must provide equitable resources for all students in Mecklenburg County, and maintain public education. This can be accomplished by working with the State Legislators, local School Board members and most importantly working with the Charlotte‐Mecklenburg school teachers.
Economy I will impact the economy by working with the county manager and my colleagues to bring companies that will hire at least 60% or higher of Mecklenburg County residents and explore ways to raise mininum wage in the county.
Government budget I will develop a better dedicated revenue source to maintain our tax base.
Children and youth I will continue to strengthen the policies that positively impact children and work with Mecklenburg County, families and communities to see what their needs are and what works best for them.
Community health/safety I will develop a relationship with the County Manager, health officials and law enforcement agents along with the residents to ensure we are communicating the concerns of the community. I want to maintain the reputation and integrity of Mecklenburg County to be a place where residents may safely raise their family.
Community growth/quality of life
I want to continue to maintain our parks and recreation and public library by upgrading systems and facilities to ensure that the quality of life is afforded to all of our residents in Mecklenburg County.
Most important role of county government
In my opinion, the most important role of county government is to provide human services for all residents of Mecklenburg County. These services include: education, parks and recreation, maintain fiscal responsibilty for the tax base and maintain open communication with my colleagues and the County Manager. Most importantly, attend neighborhood meetings to keep abreast of organizations and community issues and concerns.
Way candidate will help leaders to collaborate
I will work to be open with both parties on issues that will impact policies for all citizens and residents of the County and communicate effectively to ensure both sides are heard.
At end of term, biggest accomplishment will be
More jobs opportunities will be provided.
What else should people know about you?
Ella Scarborough is compassionate, experienced and dedicated to making life better in Mecklenburg County for all residents and is willing to work with all of my colleagues to make this goal become a reality.
Website emilyzuyus.com Email [email protected] Facebook facebook.com/vote4emilyzuyus Twitter @emilyzuyus Instagram http://instagram.com/emilyzuyus Occupation Owner of a recruiting firm Education BS in Marketing, UNC Charlotte (Go Niners!) Political viewpoint Fiscal Conservative Favorite news source WFAE & The Charlotte Observer Grew up in Charlotte & Greenville, NC Youth interests in civics, government, and leadership
I don't remember discussing government or civic issues with my family. I have made a conscious effort to make sure my daughters are engaged with issues affecting our local, state, and national government. We have discussions at our dinner table!
Community involvement and leadership experience
Elder at Avondale Presbyterian Church, volunteer at CMS schools, Room In The Inn volunteer
First issue I will tackle Currently, many businesses are having difficulties with the
county's Code Enforcement Department. This is the department responsible for obtaining building permits and doing inspections on construction. It is crucial for this department to make doing business in Mecklenburg County a pleasure rather than a nightmare. The Code Enforcement Department must be reformed. That is this first issue I will tackle.
How I will impact…
Education I am proud to be a CMS parent. (We have two daughters ‐‐ a high school freshman and a 7th grader.) A strong public education system is crucial for our community. Every child deserves an equal opportunity to succeed in life. During my campaign, I have
been actively attending education forums, meeting with leadership at CMS and CPCC and meeting with school board members to see how they can best be supported. I commit to being a strong advocate for education on the board.
Economy We need more jobs. The property tax rate in our county is hurting our citizens and making us less attractive to businesses. I will work tirelessly to find ways to save money in our county’s operations so we can lower the tax rate. This will bring more jobs to Mecklenburg and improve our economy.
Government budget Again, my main goal with respect to our county’s budget is to look for ways to save money. Our country is just coming out of the worst economic recession since the 1930’s. My family has had to become more frugal with our money – certainly we should expect the same from our county government.
Children and youth I commit to working in our schools to educate and entice students to become more interested in our county government. By educating our children, we will motivate new leaders for our government in the future.
Community health/safety Mecklenburg County's government is responsible for the health and safety of our citizens. I will be an advocate and engaged with citizens in every segment of our county for community safety.
Community growth/quality of life
I love Mecklenburg County. I have spent 26 years of my life here. As a young professional, I met my husband here. We were transferred out of state with his job and I was determined to get back here to raise our family. Mecklenburg County has much to offer its citizens. In order for us to be able to continue to offer a high quality of life, we must make long‐term decisions to ensure we continue to grow. This growth will enable citizens to get jobs. This growth will allow the county to continue to offer services to our citizens in need and a quality education for all children in our community. It will ultimately improve the quality of life of our citizens.
Most important role of county government
Our county government is responsible for setting our property tax rate, adopting an annual budget to spend our tax dollars and establishing priorities to address the county’s needs. However, above all else, our government must make thoughtful decisions that will ensure our county continues to grow in the future.
Way candidate will help leaders to collaborate
I commit to communicating and working with all elected officials regardless of their political affiliation. As an At Large candidate, I have been meeting with elected officials from the different towns in the county. I have also met with members of our North Carolina House and Senate. Citizens are tired of the gridlock at all
levels of government. Communication is key to an effective board and effective leadership.
At end of term, biggest accomplishment will be
My biggest accomplishment will to have enthusiastically been a voice for the entire county. In 2011, I was a citizen with a problem with the county’s Tax Assessor Department. I understand the frustration of being an average citizen trying to get the attention of our county government. I commit to being accessible and engaged – something that I think has been lacking with some commissioners.
What else should people know about you?
I have a quote on the wall by my back door. It says…” Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” ~ Ferris Bueller
