Age: 65
Kids: An 11-year-old who attends Frank Porter Graham
Profession: Semi-retired not-for-profit consultant
Education: Master of Social Work in administration from Fordham University, Master of Journalism in marketing and advertising from Northwestern University, Bachelor of Arts in radio and television from Arizona State University
Experience: Former 7th-grade English teacher, founder of the CHCCS Special Needs Advisory Council, Frank Porter Graham mascot
Endorsements: The Independent
Website: garywallachschoolboard.blogspot.com
Why do you want to be elected to the school board?
The district has a proud history, terrific students and talented, hard-working teachers. But, we face significant challenges. For the last two years, we have missed meeting our adequate yearly progress goals. We advocate for funding and worry about losing critical services. Our children’s educational opportunities often depend on which school they attend. We can do better. That is why I decided to run for school board. We need to apply basic management principles to our educational programs. We could do a cost/benefit analysis of our $115 million budget. Finding just 1% that could be used more wisely would free up over a million dollars. Expanding our volunteer program could mean more volunteers helping the schools with more at-risk children. As a board member, I would strongly advocate for these changes.