Raleigh Public Record (https://theraleighcommons.org/raleighpublicrecord/topics/voter-guide-2011/page/2/)
Age: 55
Occupation: Real Estate Broker
Website: www.venitapeyton.com
How long have you lived in Wake County? Over 25 years
Do you have children in the district? No
Why have you decided to run for office? I was finally able to help get in a whole new set of school board members with fresher, newer ideas. My whole goal is to empower the parents in district 4.
Age: 59
Occupation: Management at a Commercial Real Estate Firm
Website: www.redmondforraleigh.com
How long have you lived in Raleigh? Thirty-two years. Grew up in Rockingham County, went to Chapel Hill for college, then went to Research Triangle Park for work and decided to live in Raleigh. Why have you decided to run for office? This is the most unique time for the City of Raleigh.
Age: 48
Occupation: Retired Computer Engineer
How long in Wake County? Since 1962
Do you have children in the district? No
Why have you decided to run for office? Wanting to give back. My career in computers and information management as well as management itself—I got to see a lot of statistics and got to see how corporations as well as government entities did well and didn’t do well and the more I saw about the school board and the more I saw about education, I figured this would be a good place to apply.
Age: 33
Occupation:General Manager for North Hills
Website: www.bonnergaylord.com
How long have you lived in Raleigh? All of my life, except for college, when I lived in Chapel Hill. Why have you decided to run for office? I would like to continue to serve this city and help to make this city an even more fantastic place than it already is. I was born here, grew up here, and have been provided a lot of opportunities by the city, and I feel that it’s incumbent upon me to try to give back and make a difference here.
In the 10 years Charles Meeker has served as mayor of Raleigh, its population has grown by 46 percent. “The city is a very different place than it was 10 years ago,” said Meeker, who steps down this year. “We’ve had lots of development in suburban areas; we’ve had two major bond issues to increase greenways and develop downtown. The amount of growth was not anticipated 10 years ago.”
As a result of that surprise growth, Meeker said, Raleigh residents have gained more housing, employment and entertainment options. On the downside, growth has placed added demands on the city’s infrastructure, particularly on roads carrying swelling volumes of traffic.
Age: 72
Occupation: Retired
Website: www.ronmargiotta.org
How long have you lived in Wake County? 11 years
Do you have children in the district? Previously a grandson
Why have you decided to run for office? [My grandson] is the reason I became interested in the school board, because of the assignment policies that my grandson went through. I think he was reassigned three times in a four-year period.
Age: 65
Occupation: Retired Educator
How long have you lived in Wake County? I’m a native. I’ve worked other places, but I was born here and this is home. Why have you decided to run for office? I became concerned about the Wake County school system.
Age: 48
Occupation: Freelance Writer and Consultant
Website: www.christineforwake.com
How long have you lived in Wake County? 21 years (but out of county in 1995-96)
Do you have children in the district? One at Ligon Middle School, one in a high school out of the district. Why have you decided to run for office? I’ve been a community volunteer since I moved to Wake County, involved in public issues.
Age: 53
Occupation: Accountant
Website: www.evansforwake.com
How long have you lived in Wake County? 31 years
Do you have children in the district? I have two children who have recently graduated from Wake County Public Schools. Why have you decided to run for office? I’ve always been really proud of Wake County public schools for all the ways they were forward thinking and continued to move our county forward as much as possible toward excellence for all students. Honestly, when the newest board majority was elected a couple of years ago, I just started hearing things that were concerning me.
Age: 45
Occupation: Campus Director, ITT Technical Institute in
Durham
Website: www.cynthiamatsonforschoolboard.com
How long have you lived in Wake County? 17 years
Do you have children in the district? Two children in middle school. Why have you decided to run for office? Because I want to have a positive effect on academic excellence and assignment stability.
