Mother Of Three Running For School Board Seat In Calvert County

CALVERT COUNTY, Md. – Melissa Goshorn is on a mission to improve the Calvert County school system. She announced last month that she is running for a seat on the Board of Education, District 3.

Melissa has three school-aged children and says she moved to Calvert County for the amazing public school system. But during COVID, like many other parents, she became deeply concerned about her children’s education.

“When COVID hit and schools shut down I began to advocate for my then kindergarteners to get the chance at an excellent education, one that was not possible for many CCPS students through a computer screen. I quickly learned during that time that schools were run by politics, something I knew very little about.”

She says she did her best to go through the proper channels; school board, county commissioners, delegates and senators, and state board of education. She wrote emails, spoke at board meetings and state hearings, submitted PIAs, joined committees, and even took on the role of Maryland State Director of Power2Parent, a national Parental Rights organization.

“I made some noise and got some movement so community members started to approach me to assist them with their challenges and issues with what their children were learning.”

She said the inability for students to learn due to classroom behaviors or the violence that seems to be increasing across the county, all she could do was speak on their behalf, ask questions, and point them in the right direction.

“After years of advocating from the sidelines with little to no action on behalf of the school system, I decided my only choice to represent the children and families of Calvert was to win a seat on the Board of Education.”

When asked about her goals, Goshorn told The BayNet she will ensure curriculum transparency when it comes to school policies.

“There should be no surprise to families in what our children are learning in school. Families should have the ability to go online and review the materials being made available to their students, before the students.”

She says when major school changes or decisions are being considered, families and school staff should be made aware through surveys or emails, not just a simple post to Board Docs.

She also wants to ensure the existing code of conduct is enforced, not just for students but staff as well.

“Our staff and students need to feel safe and in CCPS. It breaks my heart when I hear a student or staff member is attacked by a student, verbally or physically and has to return to school with fear of their safety and personal well-being. No teaching or learning can happen when a person is living in fear.”

Another goal is to manage the budget with a fine-toothed comb, demanding true line item budgets, thorough analysis of spending, and creative budgeting to ensure financial resources go to support all student growth. The budgeting also ties into classroom sizes. She says she wants a study done on how many staff members are needed to fully staff the school system, what physical space limitations may exist, and what that cost would be.

Goshorn says she does not have any plans to start a social media page for her campaign. Instead, she wants to focus her energy on meeting with members of the community in person or by phone and email.

You can find out more about her campaign at Goshornforboe.com or email her with questions at friendsofmelissagoshorn@gmail.com.

Contact our news desk at news@thebaynet.com