Dr. King brings would bring experience to school board

WOONSOCKET - Dr. George King, candidate for School Committee, says in a press release this week, “I am a psychologist, and worked for 20 years with the Massachusetts Mental Health Department. I have understanding of those with special needs and the concerns of their families. Early childhood education will achieve optimum potential for outreach and support of the family structure.”

He added, “I raised three adult children successfully, and I know what concerns parents and what needs to be done to help our children succeed. I’ve worked with community organizations like the Boy Scouts, been active in my children’s school, and supported after school activities. I will visit schools, talk with students and teachers, and listen to parents input.

“I am experienced in budgetary operations. As a businessman, I know what is required to make a business successful. I believe that our school department can be successfully operated as a good business can, by creating a strategic plan for success and following it.”

The basis of a good business plan is a solid foundation, that supports the structure built upon it. That foundation is a strong, realistic budget. One brick short, and the whole structure is endangered.

My priorities for effective budget management of the school department are:

1. To invest in our students - their programs, curricula, and “tools” needed to be competitive internationally.

2. To invest in career support for high quality teachers

3. To invest in an organizational management study to find efficiencies that cut out the “fat.”

As your school committee member, any special interest “needs” will be scrutinized and questioned to ensure that the top priorities are not compromised, and that budget parameters are not exceeded. As your school committee member, I will continue to support the taxpayer’s concerns and spend wisely to ensure quality education in Woonsocket.