Letter of Support for Susan Michaelson

I am a long time Radnor resident who has had two children go through Radnor schools from K-12.  I came to the area as Professor and Dean of the business school of a local college, and have since moved on to become an entrepreneur running a global business.

I will be voting to return Susan Michaelson for another term on the School Board.  She is a second-career educator after having spent a long career in banking and management consulting.  She is a Georgetown grad, and has an MBA from Wharton.  Since the Radnor School District operates with an $83 million (yes $83 million!) we need someone with Susan Michaelson’s background and experience to properly manage our resources. 

As a professor I was drawn to Radnor in the early nineties by its reputation as a great school system.  Frankly, our experience was quite mixed.  Some years and teachers were superb, while others could not have been worse.  Fortunately for today’s students, Mrs. Michaelson remains very focused on the curriculum concerns expressed by elementary, middle, and high school parents because she, too, has been there, and understands that far too often, Radnor schools have not lived up to their reputation.  That must change, and fast.

Perhaps more important to me these days is what our schools now cost.  My taxes, high from the beginning, have since skyrocketed a whopping 160% (and yours will have skyrocketed as well).  Meanwhile, the Radnor School District appears to be nothing short of a cash cow, and has just announced another “accidental” multi-million surplus.  That brings the five year total to over $20 million.  How did this happen?  Apparently, the currently Democratic Party controlled school board appears to have no financial, strategic, or operating plan!  I could not run my business like this, and it is outrageous that the School District thinks it can.  These deficiencies are nothing short of taxpayer (that is you and I) abuse, and Mrs. Michaelson has fought them vocally and diligently.   We need more School Board members like her. 

But as bright and experienced and committed Susan Michaelson is, she cannot be a steward over our children and tax dollars on her own; she must be part of a team of equally qualified school board members. Since in off-year elections the elections are decided by very small margins (a few years ago 5 votes made the difference) I urge you on November 5th, to come to the polls and vote for Susan Michaelson and the entire Republican slate (Falcone, Heldring, Link).  Their literature says that “we should expect more,” and they are absolutely correct.