(This is the second installment of a continuing series posing 3 questions to Republican candidates statewide)Â
Vicki Stogdill is running for the seat representing Senate District 18 in the Iowa Legislature. She has been campaigning hard for months to give this traditionally Democratic territory a new voice at the State House. Every race in the Iowa Senate this year is of utmost importance, and Stogdill’s effort to engage the voters of District 18 will reveal much about the Iowa electorate at large.  Voters both in and out of her district should take the time to check out her positions and background on her website, and to show her support in any way they can. She brings to the table a long career in small business and a host of new ideas to strengthen Iowa’s communities and economy.
Recently, Vicki was kind enough to sit down with The Conservative Reader:Iowa to talk about her campaign and answer three questions that will have a direct impact both on her constituents and the state of Iowa.
—————————————————– —————————————————————————————————-
1.) Nearly 28% of the voters in your district are not registered with either political party, what two things would you like these folks to know about you and your candidacy before they vote in November?
A. I ran as an Independent/NP candidate in 2008 – which demonstrates that I’m not afraid to stand up for principles before a party affiliation. I won’t support a bill that’s not good for Iowa, regardless of party recommendations.  I want to foster greater cooperation between the two parties. People are tired of the “partisanship†at our State Capitol, and I’d like to help minimize that. Instead of the two parties going to their “opposing corners†in a disagreement, I will attempt to sit down and discuss where there are differences and find common ground, without compromising on principle. I will put “people before politics.â€
B. I will self-impose term limits to allow more Iowans to have a chance to participate in the process. I want to bring my business experience, creativity and problem-solving skills to the Iowa Capitol and have a positive influence on improving the future of our State. Let’s bring fresh ideas and perspective to the discussion.
2.) Education is both an issue you are passionate about and one that will be front and center next session. What major reforms need to be implemented to improve results state-wide (and in Des Moines especially), and why should voters resist the urge to not make these changes?
First of all, I don’t claim to have all the answers on how to “fix†Iowa’s Education system. However, I believe one of the biggest keys to restoring our State to excellence in education is to restore more local control to school districts. I am also a strong proponent of giving parents more choices in educating their children, and to having the dollars “follow the child” in those choices.
Iowa should repeal the “core curriculum†mandates and instead offer recommendations which would allow local school districts to decide how and what to teach again. Locally elected school boards and administrators should make curriculum decisions based on the needs of their community, such as whether to enhance vocation programs for kids who do not choose a 4-year college after graduation, etc. The Iowa Dept. of Education should be downsized to serve as an advisory support agency instead of an umbrella. The State should continue to license and certify teachers. School districts should conduct annual assessments (such as ITBS) and scores should be published locally for taxpayers to see what kind of results they are getting for their investment. The State would only step in if a school district is consistently under-performing.
While technology and cutting edge learning must be a priority — we can’t lose sight of the “tried and true” teaching methods and foundational basics that have served us well in the past. And throwing out “old” methods just because they’re old isn’t necessarily progress. Teachers should have the ability to use their creativity again – to inspire kids to learn, with oversight from their local school administrators and school boards, instead of the State. Iowa must stop trying to mold each child into a cookie-cutter curriculum and teaching methodology that obviously isn’t working. Iowa should continue to reject “No Child Left Behind†mandates.
In Des Moines our test scores and drop-out rates demonstrate that local voters need to recruit better local school board candidates and then “clean house†at the voting booth. The results of our local schools are unacceptable at best, and it is not the job of the State to fix it – it is the responsibility of the community to demand it. Local taxpayers must hold their local school boards and administrators accountable. When searching for administrators, we should look first at the wealth of Iowa educators who are qualified to lead our schools – instead of conducting expensive searches to bring in out-of-state educators.  We have more than enough talented educators in Iowa who already know the landscape, challenges and history of our state.
A few other ideas that are worthy of consideration are to implement a dress code so students could focus on learning instead of fashion, which might also improve discipline and respect in our classrooms. We must also realize that it’s not the job of schools to “socially engineer†our kids—that task is the duty and responsibility of parents. In the Iowa Senate, I will work with educators, parents and the business community to arrive at recommendations which will prepare students for a career path after graduation. Iowans deserve better than what we’re currently delivering in Education, and I will work tirelessly to achieve positive results for Iowa’s kids, parents and taxpayers.
3.)Â Should you prevail in November and enter the Iowa Senate, what are the two or three votes you would most like to cast, and why?
While there are many bills I’m passionate about seeing passed – these three are among the most commonly suggested from my constituents, so they will be top priorities for me in the upcoming session:
A. Voter ID – because NOT verifying the identity of voters is unconstitutional – and my vote is disenfranchised when fraud is allowed to potentially cancel it out.
B.  Property tax reform – on all classes of property. For businesses, this will spur more expansion and investment which in turn will create more jobs when we stop penalizing the very engine of economic growth. For homeowners it will mean leaving more money in the pockets of those who earned it. For farmers, it will mean using a funding formula that doesn’t penalize them for success.
C.  Education Reform, as discussed above.
Where did you go to university? http://ampland.fun/ amp land (Phys.org)âResearchers have discovered the great white shark, one of the most feared ocean predators, can occasionally become prey for the mysterious cookiecutter shark, a lone predator one-tenth its size.
I’d like to pay this in, please http://xnxx.photography/ xnxx tube Fonterra cut its forecast in July after a drought this yearsapped milk production. As global dairy priceshover near record highs, Fonterra has warned that high inputcosts may dent margins in the current first half.
Do you know the number for ? http://rockettube.fun/ roket tube
It took about 18 months to complete the software and hardware overhauls while ensuring that upgraded and existing forecasting software played nicely with the new, Linux-based computers, Mr. Kyger says.
I’ll text you later http://xnxx.promo/ xnxx.in Expected to become the first petrol-powered family car in Europe to offer CO2 emissions of 99g/km, the model has a 1.0-liter three-cylinder EcoBoost engine that produces 100 HP (73 kW). In terms of fuel efficiency, the model has returned up to 67.5 mpg UK (4.1 L/100km / 56.2 mpg US) at the time of testing.
I work here redtubexxx “While we may disagree on priorities for federal policiesand we even have conflicting views about many issues, we are incomplete agreement that the current shutdown is harmful and therisk of default is potentially catastrophic for our fragileeconomy,” they wrote in a letter to Obama and members ofCongress.
I’m from England silverdaddies.com The former auto-lending arm of General Motors has struggled to recover from the mortgage meltdown. Last year, it put its troubled home loan subsidiary Residential Capital LLC into bankruptcy to stanch the bleeding from bad mortgages.
What’s the current interest rate for personal loans? thumb zilla It put in place laws that aimed to bring the Vatican Bank into line with international standards on transparency, prevention of terrorism, counterfeiting and fraud, but Bank chief Ettore Gotti Tedeschi nonetheless had to step down in 2012 for dereliction of duty. In 2013 Pope Francis ordered a new commission of inquiry into the Bank.
real beauty page sexvedio Dr. Walter Willett, chair of the department of nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health, said the study should not raise alarm for the tall, though it does provide additional evidence that greater height is associated with cancer.
I’m on a course at the moment myvidster.com “It’s not painful and it doesn’t itch,” said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease expert and chair of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt Medical Center, noting that the rashes center on bite sites that are often hidden on hairlines and in the underarms or groin area. “We may not even notice them.”
Hello good day girl boobs Aug. 11, 2013: A picture released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows Kim Jong-Un inspecting the production process of a new touch-screen mobile phone at an undisclosed location in the country.
Would you like a receipt? ghetto tube The Saskatoon, Saskatchewan-based company, the world’slargest potash producer by capacity, expected 2013 earnings of$2.45 to $2.70 per share, down from a prior forecast of $2.75 to$3.25. Analysts on average had forecast $2.89, according toThomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Do you have any exams coming up? femjoy angels Munoz said Drummond’s pay offer came close to what the unionwould accept, but he said the company would not concede to theirdemands for a fixed monthly base salary plus hourly wage,instead of by-the-hour wages only.
I want to make a withdrawal sexy girl wallpaper Analysts at Cowen and Co initiated coverage of thebiotechnology company with an “outperform” rating, saying thecompany’s experimental anticoagulant REG1 could be moreeffective than bivalirudin, a competing drug sold by TheMedicine Co under the brand name Angiomax.
Please note a good cash prize for you. iowa.theconservativereader.com
http://bit.ly/2KxJaYd
Where do you live? http://9taxi.in.net/ taxi9
But some analysts wonder whether we have seen the worst and better days might be ahead for beleaguered gold miners. Hedge fund manager David Einhorn of Greenlight Capital, for example, said this week he is buying gold mining stocks.
Directory enquiries http://egotastic.in.net/ egotasticallstars.com Taqa holds a 39.9 percent working interest in the companyset up to operate the field, with Canada’s ShaMaran Petroleum holding 20.1 percent, U.S.-based Marathon Oil holding 15 percent and the KRG 25 percent.
I’d like to pay this in, please http://tiava.in.net/ tavia porn “As a child of Grenadian parentage, I am keenly aware of the proud history of service and sacrifice by Caribbean-Americans in our nation, a history to which Elijah belongs. Every day, young immigrants are volunteering to serve in our nation’s military and putting their lives on the line. We must do all we can to support them and their families, especially in their hour of need,â said Williams, who noted Millardâs parents are from Guyana and Jamacia.
An estate agents http://planetsuzy.fun/ planetsuzy hd
As part of the roast, clips from Mitchell’s early years in Washington were shown, much to her chagrin. “I don’t know who that brunette with the bad clothes and the awful hair is – oh my God,” Mitchell told the crowd.
In a meeting http://lamalinks.fun/ lama nudes
“Air Canada has been providing the best available information to media on this matter. However, these comments do not refer to the search for Larry by Air Canada employees that is ongoing or our interest in returning him safely,” it said.
I’m sorry, I’m not interested http://imagefap.in.net/ moviefap Boston-based Admirals Bank, arguably the most aggressivemarketer of the solar loan, 18 months ago began offering a solarloan product, which essentially is a second mortgage. It nowworks with about 700 installers, including PetersenDean.
Accountant supermarket manager http://xvedio.in.net/ sexvedio Iâm rooting for the Nets! Iâve never followed an NBA owner that is willing to bet a financial loss all for a championship. Is it really worth it? How much did the Miami heat revenue last year after winning their championship?
I’d like a phonecard, please http://lamalinks.fun/ lamalinks.com But if Assad is assassinated or de-camps, the ultimate winners would likely be the Al Qaeda-backed Sunni militias. So a strike against Assad, to the extent that it weakens him, is a boost for right-wing Islamists. And were a strike to have no effect at all on Assad or the war, then it merely underlines our impotence.
Where did you go to university? http://egotastic.in.net/ egotastic The shrine is also deeply political, reports the BBC's Rupert Wingfield-Hayes from Tokyo. Today its history museum continues to peddle a version of World War II history that either ignores or denies the crimes committed by Japan in Korea and China.
Three years http://ghettotube.in.net/ ghettotube It appears that portfolio managers and analysts are stickingwith SAC for now with bonus season in sight, as well as a beliefamong some staff that they could not easily find work at otherbig funds, SAC employees and recruiters have said.
Can I use your phone? http://yuvututube.fun/ yuvutu tube mobile But as pressure started to build, there was no indication that even back-room negotiations were starting between the White House and Congressional Republicans who are refusing to re-open the government or raise the debt ceiling without concessions on policy or spending.