Joseph Gray to Run for Ward 6 School Committee

My name is Joe Gray and I am running for the School Committee seat in Ward 6. It would be my honor to be the representative of the families and children of this Ward.

A little bit about my background and then a brief summary of some the issues, that I see before us.

I was born on the island of Trinidad. Raised in Boston, Massachusetts and became a naturalized American citizen at a young age. Except for a short stint of a couple of years in Catholic school, I have attended the public school systems in Boston and finally graduated from Boston Latin.

I spent four years in the United States Army as a crypto technician and a short time in the National Guard unit out of Quincy.

My day job is as a technology professional managing computers and network repair at Massachusetts State law School.

I have three children in the public school system here in Malden. One of them has started Malden High this year as a freshman. As a long time advocate for improving the quality of education in the public school’s of Malden, I felt it imperative to represent the interests of the children, families and educators of our great city on important issues.

My desire to serve, since my first teenage job working in a church rectory till my days in the U.S. Army, has re-asserted itself. With my daughter becoming a freshman this year, it is my pleasure to be an active member of the Malden High Parent Council. Actively representing Malden High before the school committee and city council, on behalf of local families, is an honor.

Some of the major areas before the school committee, that I will continue to advocate this year are

1. Technology infrastructure upgrades. The new national teaching and testing standards require massive technology enhancements to schools that have fallen below minimum acceptable levels.
   Helping shepherd the roll-out and maintenance of ongoing technology initiatives, such as the High School ChromeBook program.
   
   
2. Space needs. New Malden initiatives are on the table for a vocational curriculum. There is also an ever expanding student head count, which is competing for space with the other initiatives in the existing school properties.
   
   
3. Strategic Plan. Malden is required to have on record, a 5 year strategic plan for the public school system. According to current school committee members, it could take a year and a half to write the next plan due in 2015. Unclear where this stands, since priorities shift every year.
   
   
4. School Maintenance. I have taken a leading position on enlightening the public concerning the extreme and worsening state of disrepair of at least some of our public schools in he city since Fall of 2014. Due to my diligence and work with various stakeholders from parents to educators to the mayor, we now have a chance this budget year of getting meaningful repairs and upgrades to the school buildings of Malden.
   
   
5. Representation. Creating a voice for the concerns of the teachers, children and parents not just only in Ward 6 but across the entire city. Our High School represents families from every corner of Malden, including Ward 6.
   
   
6. Security. Continual improvements and work with the Malden police department to ensure a safe learning environment. Fighting to stop random efforts from the City Council to defund the Teen Enrichment Center.
   
   
7. Budget. Money concerns every year and annual suggestions that additional faculty and/or staff need to be cut to balance the budget deserve push-back.
   

Woven through the major school system issues, is implementation of the new Common Core teaching standards. Common Core is fueling much of the changes throughout the school system. There has been much debate about Common Core. It will be our responsibility to implement Common Core to produce a robust education system to the best of our ability. It is the law in Massachusetts as implemented by the legislature.

I want to make it clear, that ensuring a high quality curriculum, comprehensive safety, quality teachers, modern facilities and a vision for the future are all goals, that I’m hoping to help achieve with your help.

“My personal pet gripe(reasonable or not) is that it seems that if the city council deems something to be an emergency, like fixing the roads, they can find the money(million$) out of thin air. And waste it. Admit they mismanaged. And waste some more again. Just look up the archived city council sessions online at MATV. Yet our children’s demonstrable need for a safe and quality level of education doesn’t qualify as an emergency, ever, without a fight. As the old saying goes, I have a dog in this fight. I want the best possible learning environment for my children.”

To see the latest information about my campaign, myself and other issues, please link to https://www.facebook.com/ward6joegray . It is not a one topic web site. Do not hesitate to engage on any topic of the day and ask questions as to where I stand on any specific issue concerning the schools or anything else. If an issue is too sensitive or out of bounds, I will say so. I am not telling my shoe size. I feel that voters should know who and what their elected leaders are about on relevant issues of the day. I have no fear of taking a controversial stand on many issues(within the bounds of social good taste).

I encourage everyone to take all of us candidates to task with tough questions, policy stances and what we will do in elected office. Then choose.

My name is Joseph Gray. I will make Malden proud. Residents and volunteers are encouraged and urged to contact me at (781)248-7354 or at maldentalks@outlook.com . Thank you for your support.

https://www.facebook.com/ward6joegray