Corporate Executive. Member, Planning Board. Stamford Fire Commissioner 2009-13, Stamford Public Education Foundation (SPEF) Board of Directors, 2009-11
I have been a parent in the Stamford public school system for the last 20 years and resident of Stamford for 3 decades. I bring 30 years of corporate experience including C level executive experience to the BOE. As a concerned parent of the school system I want to give something back to the schools that gave my children so much. My son graduated from Westhill in 2018 and went on to Columba University and Fordham University. My daughter graduated in 2024 and went to NYU.
I am an Indian Immigrant who came to this country with $500 in my pocket in 1990 and because of my own struggles as immigrant I will bring that empathy to the board.
I will look at the budget in depth and see why despite spending 330 million our schools rankings and student achievement averages are not exemplary. I would encourage more involvement from parents to understand each individual student and help them via the third party programs (SPEF, other grants, early education before Grade1) I would ensure that there is more transparency by designing a system for more parent involvement and better informed parent via a more communication through report cards and other media.
We are getting a 3% increase in our budget (Its with the BOF right now) but first we need to look at where the 330 million is being spent. I feel that there is always enough money if we prioritize the right programs and run our operations efficiently. Look at why only 5 to 6% actually reaches classroom and on what we are spending on administration. Look for more state and federal funding opportunities by working with the state official and/or corporations. Changing demographics of Stamford should qualify us for more funding from sources other than Stamford tax payers.
ESL programs are important and as the demographics of a city change we need to adapt. At the same time we have to understand that through early education we can prepare the non-English speaking children for Grade1. For example encouraging and helping parents to ensure that their children (make sure they can afford to) take some language courses pre-k to G1 to hit the ground running in Grade1.