Editor’s note: MoCo360 is running profiles of candidates based on questionnaire answers they submitted for our voters guide.
An incumbent seeking her second term and a self-employed attorney making her first run for office are the two candidates running for an at-large seat on the Montgomery County Board of Education.
Board Vice President Lynne Harris and Rita Montoya are two of six candidates competing for three open board seats in the Nov. 5 general election. Incumbent Shebra Evans and Laura Stewart are vying for the District 4 seat and candidates Brenda Diaz and Natalie Zimmerman are competing for the District 2 seat.
School board elections are nonpartisan and board members serve four-year terms. The school board is divided into five geographic district seats, as well as the two at-large seats. To run for a district seat, candidates must live in the district they are running to represent. However, all voters in the county may vote for candidates representing each district regardless of where the voter lives.
In the at-large race, Harris and Montoya moved on to the general election after winning the most votes out of the six candidates who ran in the May 14 primary. Harris received about 32% while Montoya received about 31.8%, according to the Maryland State Board of Elections.
Early voting begins Thursday and runs through Oct. 31. Polling sites will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. For more information on local races and coverage of election forums, check out the MoCo360 2024 Voters Guide.
Here are the school board at-large candidates:
Ruth Lynne Harris
City/town of residence: Silver Spring
Date of birth: July 27, 1962
Current occupation and employer: at-large member, Montgomery County Board of Education
Political experience: I worked many campaigns, served as a legislative director in Annapolis and as vice president of advocacy for Montgomery County Council of PTAs (MCCPTA) – one of the largest advocacy organizations in Maryland; 2020 successful candidate for the at-large seat on the Board of Education.
Why are you running for this office?
I want to push our continuous improvement work, intentionally bringing the customers (students and staff) to the table for all problem-solving, policy-making, priority-setting conversations. We must ensure the work continues to make every building and classroom a truly inclusive and affirming place, where everyone feels safe, welcome and valued. We must continue making Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) a Net Zero school system. We must ground every MCPS conversation in pragmatic common sense. We must ensure our system continuously works to revise and update all curricula – with students participating in the work – so our content is climate current, engaging, rigorous, fun and reflects the truth and experience of our very diverse community.
What experience (work, political or other) has prepared you to hold this office?
Fifteen years as an education advocate – starting in 2008 when my son started kindergarten. That included 10 years in MCCPTA with seven years on MCCPTA’s executive committee, including three years as vice president of advocacy and three years as president, doing a deep dive on a huge array of issues with students, families, staff and community in schools and clusters all across the county; and my four and a half years of experience teaching medical science at Thomas Edison High School of Technology in Silver Spring. That plus my experience as a nurse, lawyer and public health practitioner give me a wide lens through which I analyze every issue – all of which I’ve brought to my service on the board since 2020.
What is the most important issue in this race? How do you plan to address it?
Those serving on the board must bring a broad perspective and believe MCPS should be grounded in a philosophy of “windows and mirrors” – where every student sees themselves and their culture reflected in the content and educational experience, and also gains a thoughtful understanding of the experiences of others. In that way we provide an education that creates critical thinkers and problem solvers who are ready for 21st-century global opportunities, truly believing that everyone has value. I will do that by continuously listening to the lived experience of our students and ensuring our antiracist work moves forward in a fully inclusive way to create not just an antiracist school system, but an antibias school system.
Transparency and accountability have been particularly challenging for the school system as shown by the recent sexual harassment scandal involving a former principal. How do you plan to help the school board rebuild trust with the school community?
The most important step in rebuilding trust is becoming truly trustworthy. We must hold MCPS accountable to the work of professionalizing our Department of Human Resources and Development, including Compliance and Investigations. A culture shift will be required. We have solid external and internal recommendations to create a department reflective of industry standards and best practices. Every person in MCPS must feel safe in reporting incidents and making complaints and have the tools to do that. Our processes must investigate every complaint fairly, ensuring due process. The board must regularly review the progress of that work, ensuring it moves swiftly.
Do you have a child in the school system? What school do/did they attend and what grade?
My son attended MCPS for his entire kindergarten through grade 12 journey: Highland View Elementary School in Silver Spring, Silver Spring International Middle School and graduating from Albert Einstein High School in Kensington in 2021.
Are you an MCPS alumnus?
No. I attended public schools in Kansas: grades kindergarten and first at Santa Fe Trail Elementary School in Overland Park. We then moved to Abilene where I attended Garfield Elementary School (grades through two through six), Abilene Junior High and Abilene High School, graduating in 1980.
Rita Montoya
City/town of residence: Silver Spring
Date of birth: Dec. 18 [No year given]
Current occupation and employer: attorney, advocate and consultant; self-employed
Political experience: This is my first time running for office
Why are you running for this office?
As a mom of two young kids, I am running for the at-large Board of Education seat because elementary school families, families of color and families with learning differences deserve a voice. As a mother of color, PTA president, nonprofit leader, trained attorney, former juvenile public defender, public servant and policy advocate, I bring a variety of perspectives to the Board of Education. My own educational journey — from Head Start preschool to law school via community college — is also a testament to what students can achieve when provided with the appropriate support mechanisms.
What experience (work, political or other) has prepared you to hold this office?
The culmination of my experience — as a mother, attorney, policy advocate, public defender, PTA and nonprofit leader, business adviser and community member — prepares me to tackle the various issues facing MCPS and the board. My approach of employing efficient solution-oriented approaches to ensure equitable results and empower others as well as my experience engaging with stakeholders at all levels positions me to facilitate change and growth as needed.
What is the most important issue in this race? How do you plan to address it?
Closing the achievement gap is the most important issue because, ultimately, children go to school to learn but achieving this requires addressing other important issues such as educator/staff pay, hiring and professional development; school safety and behavior protocols; and curriculum and extracurricular options. I plan to advocate for sufficient funding and proven programs/curriculums; providing space for educator voices; and supporting schools, administrators and educators to meet their students where they are academically and behaviorally — rather than a one-size-fits-all approach — so students can receive focused attention and progress.
Transparency and accountability have been particularly challenging for the school system as shown by the recent sexual harassment scandal involving a former principal. How do you plan to help the school board rebuild trust with the school community?
I will help the school board rebuild trust with our community — students, families, educators, administrators, legislators and the public — by modeling the behavior the board should undertake. I will provide access to information in a timely fashion — not at the last minute or on Friday evenings after hours; hold virtual “office hours” weekly so the community can engage with me directly and ask questions or relay their thoughts; and engage in proper due diligence — looking into things; asking questions; and requesting additional information as needed — because I know it is our actions that build trust, not our words.
Do you have a child in the school system? What school do/did they attend and what grade?
Yes, grades two and four. My children attend elementary schools in the Bethesda-Chevy Chase cluster and previously attended a Spanish-immersion community school in another MCPS cluster.
Are you an MCPS alumnus?
No.
