Why not?
Last week I saw a lot of people while working at the Book Fair. Several asked if I would run for the open seat on the Board of Ed. I also spoke with someone last week who conspicuously did NOT ask if I would run.
I told them that I have no intention of running for this open seat.
When it's a mid-term opening, the sitting board picks the replacement from among the candidates (who sent in cover letters, resumes and filled in a form), in consultation with the Superintendent. I've been through this process before, and see no need to try again.
By my calculations, I have less than a 50% chance with these odds.
I'm not trying to sounds self-depreciating. The good thing about running for office is people show what they think about you. That includes BOE members. While a few members reached out to me to share well-wishes, most of them clearly didn't want me on their side of the table. As with any election, this appointment is a numbers game. Instead of needing a couple of thousand votes, I'd need five - and it's much easier to predict based on the past. My unscientific poling (well, my experience with the BOE members) tells me that of the 8 members who vote, two would vote for me outright, based on the their opinions of who I would be as a BOE member. One would vote for me over others if all candidates were equally qualified. Another two might vote for me if the other candidates were significantly weaker than me (and they don't tell you who is running until the end), and at the final three members would never vote for me no matter what.
Also, I believe that the BOE does what many businesses do: asks someone whom they want to fill the position to apply. In the workplace, this isn't a guarantee that you will get the position, and here it might not be either, but for me, it discourages me from applying.
If the BOE really wanted me, they could have had me. Why put myself through a losing battle? In six months there will be an election, and voters can choose their favorite candidate, a more balanced process. When it comes to trying to get on the BOE and not making it, I've been there, done that. Got the yard signs.
I told them that I have no intention of running for this open seat.
When it's a mid-term opening, the sitting board picks the replacement from among the candidates (who sent in cover letters, resumes and filled in a form), in consultation with the Superintendent. I've been through this process before, and see no need to try again.
By my calculations, I have less than a 50% chance with these odds.
I'm not trying to sounds self-depreciating. The good thing about running for office is people show what they think about you. That includes BOE members. While a few members reached out to me to share well-wishes, most of them clearly didn't want me on their side of the table. As with any election, this appointment is a numbers game. Instead of needing a couple of thousand votes, I'd need five - and it's much easier to predict based on the past. My unscientific poling (well, my experience with the BOE members) tells me that of the 8 members who vote, two would vote for me outright, based on the their opinions of who I would be as a BOE member. One would vote for me over others if all candidates were equally qualified. Another two might vote for me if the other candidates were significantly weaker than me (and they don't tell you who is running until the end), and at the final three members would never vote for me no matter what.
Also, I believe that the BOE does what many businesses do: asks someone whom they want to fill the position to apply. In the workplace, this isn't a guarantee that you will get the position, and here it might not be either, but for me, it discourages me from applying.
If the BOE really wanted me, they could have had me. Why put myself through a losing battle? In six months there will be an election, and voters can choose their favorite candidate, a more balanced process. When it comes to trying to get on the BOE and not making it, I've been there, done that. Got the yard signs.
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