Meet the Appo. School Board candidates
running for the five-year seat (term through 2013)
Edna Cale
How long have you lived in the Appoquinimink School District? 67 years
Education: Bachelor of Arts, plus 1.5 years toward Master’s in community counseling from Wilmington College (now Wilmington University).
Career: Presently retired. I have been employed as an alcohol and drug counselor, family service worker for the Division of Family Services of the State of Delaware, classroom volunteer and substitute for classrooms. Presently I am a part-time physical fitness technician.
Community Involvement/activities: CASA volunteer, mentoring, bowling organizer for seniors, missionary worker, adult Sunday school teacher, member of Delaware School Board Association (DSBA)
Family: I have successfully raised four biological children who all graduated from Middletown High School. I served as a foster mother for 15 more children. I am the proud grandmother of four biological grandchildren and 17 foster grandchildren. My husband is deceased.
How many children do you have enrolled in Appoquinimink School District and what schools do they attend? I am raising one of my grandchildren. She currently attends Middletown High School. I have a second grandchild at Brick Mill Elementary School and a third at Louis L. Redding Middle School, my alma mater.
Why do you want to be on the Appoquinimink School Board? I believe the quality of education in this district is the best in the state, and feel I have contributed to that success as an active and involved member of the Board of Education. During my tenure, the board’s accomplishments have included emergency funding of paraprofessionals positions at our early childhood centers, passage of a referendum to build Appoquinimink High School, the Townsend Early Childhood Center, Alfred G. Waters Middle School and a new, as yet unnamed, elementary school, which will open in fall 2009 on Bunker Hill Road (adjacent to AHS). There has also been installation of state-of-the-art technology in our schools to ensure that our children have access to the tools and training they will need to be successful in the 21st century.
In addition, I have had the pleasure of representing the Appoquinimink School District at the county, state and national level. I participate actively in the Delaware School Board Association, attend monthly meetings of the New Castle County Combined School Boards Association and make it a priority to be part of the National School Board Association (NSBA) Conference each year, where I gain valuable information, ideas and knowledge from colleagues around the United States, which is then incorporated into our local district.
I wish to serve another term so that I can continue the valuable work we’ve begun, and implement the district’s vision of providing a world-class education to ALL students.
What is an area you would like to improve and how would you plan to do so? I am very proud of Appoquinimink’s accomplishments; however, the achievement gap is still a concern. I would like the opportunity to continue working on the School Board to help bridge that gap. Our district’s teachers and staff members are exceptional and we have implemented wonderful prog- rams. Now I believe our focus has to be on ways to personalize the instruction we provide to children – a process called differentiated instruction – which recognizes the varied backgrounds, knowledge, and various learning styles of our children. Many of our teachers have been trained to do this. However, given another term as a board member I would recommend even more ongoing training/professional development.
I would like to see us adopt a statewide assessment tool that gives teachers immediate feedback on student progress so that our children’s needs can be addressed early. As a member of the State School Board Association, I will be able to support the recommendation of this change.
I would also like to see a program established at the elementary level that provides opportunities for advanced study to students who are performing at, or above the state’s grade level expectations. My continued membership as a local School Board member and the representative to the State School Board Association can bring this into existence.
With projected reductions in State funding for next year, how would you address this regarding programs in the district? The Appoquinimink School District has always provided a quality education to our students and supportive services to the families we serve. We will continue to do so, despite downturns in the economy. We are aggressively seeking creative funding alternatives. As of today the problem isn’t as bleak as previously stated. However there will be some restrictions put in place.
What do you want the district to be like in five years when your term is completed? I would like to see the district able to provide more global education classes from K-12 so our students can become self supporting and able to compete in their career choice upon graduation from high school and or college; and have more students enrolled in honors and Advanced Placement classes.
Leroy Lewis
How long have you lived in the Appoquinimink School District? 11 years
Where do you live in the district? Augustine Creek
Education: High school
Career: Research technician, DuPont.
Family: Wife, Lisa. Daughter, Tara. Son, Trevor.
How many children do you have enrolled in Appoquinimink School District and what schools do they attend? Two. One at Middletown High School and one at Alfred G. Waters Ninth Grade Academy.
Why do you want to be on the Appoquinimink School Board? I would like to be on the board because I am unhappy with some of the recent decisions made by the district and the reasoning behind these decisions. I want to ensure that the district adheres to the strictest ethical standards.
What is an area you would like to improve and how would you plan to do so? Giving parents the chance to be more involved in the decisions made that directly affect their children’s education. I feel that a parent knows more about their child’s educational needs than any one else.
With projected reductions in state funding for next year, how would you address this regarding programs in the district? I would never be in favor of reducing the number of teachers presently employed by the district. I would look first at cutting some of our administrative costs before omitting programs that are important to our students.
What do you want the district to be like in five years when your term is completed? I want the Appoquinimink School District to be the No. 1 district in the state, with the parents and the district working hand in hand to produce productive members of society.
Nemishh Mehta, MD
How long have you lived in the Appoquinimink School District?
4.5 years
Where do you live in the district? Brennan Estates, Bear
Education: Pediatrics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Ind.; MD, Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia; Bachelor of Science, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pa.
Career: Practicing physician with almost 10 years experience, currently with Bear Internal Medicine and Pediatrics in Peoples Plaza, Newark, a private practice founded by myself and my wife in 2004.
Community Involvement/activities: Appoquinimink New Elementary School Feeder Pattern Committee, Olive B. Loss PTA/volunteer, Bear Babe Ruth Baseball coach/volunteer, Brennan Estates Maintenance Corporation board member; Brennan Estates Deed Restriction Committee chair, Pediatric Advisory Committee, Christiana Hospital
Family: Married to Shilpa Mehta, MD; Children Nikhil, 8, and Shreya, 5
How many children do you have enrolled in Appoquinimink School District and what schools do they attend? My son Nikhil is in second grade at Olive B. Loss Elementary School. My daughter Shreya will start first grade this fall at Olive B. Loss Elementary School.
Why do you want to be on the Appoquinimink School Board? As a product of a public school education, I want to ensure all the children in the district continue to receive a high quality education. This quality should be unwavering in a time of rapid growth. I want the district to remain at the forefront of academic progress and technology. I hope for a continued improvement in the high school graduation rates. Additionally, I realize the importance of a proactive inclusion of parents in education and supportive cooperation with our educators and administrators. As a parent, pediatrician and business owner, I care greatly about education and I believe I have the background and ideas to make a difference for our children and district.
What is an area you would like to improve and how would you plan to do so? Some areas I want to see improved include continuing work on the rapid growth in our school district that will necessitate the continued building of new schools and/or expanding current schools. I also want to see an improvement in high school graduation rates. For this we would need to take a careful look at some of the obstacles our children face during middle and high school and offer solutions. Ultimately the focus of the Board of Education needs to be returned to our children. This can only be achieved by cooperation and input among the school board members, school administrators, teachers, superintendent and parents.
With projected reductions in state funding for next year, how would you address this regarding programs in the district? The Appoquinimink School District continues to grow at a fairly steady rate. However, the county, state and country are seeing a downturn in the economy. This of course will affect the national, state and local budgets. Retention of our excellent teachers will be very important for the district. An open dialogue between parents and administrators will be necessary. We as a school board need to work with the budget and find ways to continue to offer a high quality education without cutting overall funding of programs in the district.
What do you want the district to be like in five years when your term is completed? Many colleagues and parents presume my children attend private school. However, I am proud to tell them my children attend school in the Appoquinimink School District. In five years, I still want to be able to say this. This can only be achieved by a continued effort as a school board to stay focused on the big picture – our children and their education.
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