GEA Board of Education Candidate Questionnaire 2021

Candidate Name: Moira Rader

1. Will you pledge to support educators’ collective bargaining rights in your district throughout
contract negotiations and other labor-management interactions to ensure that teachers are
respected and that their rights not infringed upon? Yes
2. Will you pledge to include the local teachers’ union in discussions surrounding all matters
related to your local school district, it’s schools and it’s funding? Yes
3. Will you oppose all proposals that would censor teachers from teaching about inclusion,
diversity and equity? Yes, I would emphatically oppose any such censoring of teachers.

4. Please share with us what it is that distinguishes you as a champion for teachers, students
and public education?

I am an absolute advocate and champion for our teachers, students and pubic education. As a
four-year member of the Guilford Board of Education, I believe we must remain focused on
continuing the great work of this district and looking towards the many ways we can enrich and
expand upon those initiatives to create a more equitable learning environment for every student.
I am proud to be part of the Protect Guilford Schools fusion campaign of like-minded Democrat
and Independent community members whose focus and platform includes building on our
district’s successes while valuing and supporting an honest, inclusive and equitable education
for all children. We want to insure that our teachers, administrators and staff feel supported,
safe and entrusted to utilize their expertise and professional creativity to inspire learning and
stretch our students to reach for their personal potential. We will continue to provide our
teachers with the best resources, instructional materials and professional development to
elevate student learning and insure a thriving learning environment.

In an effort to constantly improve the quality of education in Guilford, I would continually

advocate for the prioritization of students’ mental health and wellness, insuring that academic
rigor is balanced with opportunities for creative outlets via our outstanding music, art, theater
and athletic programs. I will seek ways to strengthen best practices regarding the budget
process, continually identifying opportunities to evaluate our resources and think creatively
about budget allocation. I will continue to be accessible to our community and listen to the
needs expressed by the families of our district. I will insure that communication is paramount
with our administration and teachers, and that we remain dedicated to the shared mission
statement of our district.

Coming from a family of educators, I personally consider our teachers among the great heroes
of our children’s lives. I will serve to continually protect and defend their rights as professional
educators, understanding the supportive role we play as BOE members. Our teachers should
feel constant support and professionally encouraged to expand their skills to best meet their
students potential. Our students should feel encouraged to examine their past, present and
future within the lens of a supported and safe learning environment.

5. How will you continue to ensure that the schools are resourced at the level they require in
order to continue our recent history of success?
During my tenure, the BOE has successfully crafted annual budgets that are thoughtful, fiscally
responsible and seek to continually elevate the district. We have strengthened the district’s
focus on the social & emotional well being of students, while supporting rigorous curriculum that
speaks to the potential of every student. We reaffirmed our commitment to reviewing and
improving our curriculum and school climate as it relates to diversity, equity and inclusion.These
efforts have included a community-driven initiative to replace our high school mascot,
participation in the CT Teacher Residency Program and the creation of a Family Equity Liaison
position to serve students and their families. I want to continue my place on the BOE to insure
these initiatives continue to grow and flourish, so that our schools are places of innovation,
engagement and inspiration.

I understand the issues at hand and have an intimate knowledge of the process and policy that
is required to secure these initiatives. Now is not a time for disruption and destruction. Our
school district deserves qualified, rational and engaged BOE members that put the focus on
protecting our schools and supporting our stellar administration and teachers through
excellence in policy, curriculum, extra-curricular enrichment, staff professional development,
fiscal creativity and responsibility, and encouraged community engagement.

6. In Guilford, teachers collaboratively write the curricula which are then approved by the
Board. Teachers are afforded a wide degree of professional latitude and academic freedom
when selecting supplemental materials and designing daily instruction within the confines of
the Board approved curricula. If elected, will you continue to support these professional and
academic responsibilities and freedoms? Yes. Absolutely!

7. Some candidates have stated that Guilford teachers are teaching CRT in their classes and
are indoctrinating their students into a leftist, Marxist ideology. The BOE, Superintendent
and the President of the GEA have all publicly stated the is not true. How do you respond to
these statements?

As a current BOE member, I can affirm with firsthand knowledge that these statements are
abjectly false. Not only are they false, but they seek to undermine our teachers and impose fear
and confusion within our community. These claims are derisive, dangerous and have no place
in our learning community.

I have witnessed firsthand the struggle our community is working through regarding hard
questions around systemic racism, complicit behaviors and abject falsehoods asserted at our
work on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives within the school district. But, the resounding
support of the majority of our community, inclusive of copious communications from recent
alumni and constituents, reaffirms the need for these important initiatives. We must continue to
delve deeper into the understanding of social justice and assert that our shared history is a
great asset to building better connections and improving as a citizenry. Nothing should be
feared when it is told truthfully and substantiated with factual data and resources. Our students
deserve the opportunity to understand context and originate their own conclusions regarding
historic facts and our greater story as a country. Our community members also have the
responsibility to model this behavior and seek out their own avenues to grow and better
understand their place in this important work. Our efforts can only succeed when our students
know that the educators and adults around them support learning opportunities for them to think
critically, evaluate different sources and come to their own educated conclusions.
I believe our district should continuously seek new ways to emphasize and celebrate the value
and contributions that every child and staff member brings to our learning community. I am
acutely aware that many of our students experience marginalization for various reasons. A
child’s race, religious affiliation, gender identity, sexual identity, learning disability, physical
challenges, mental disability or any other difference should never be a hindrance to an equitable
and inclusive education. We are a better community for embracing our differences and
celebrating our individual perspectives. We can support the highest academic rigor and gifted
learners while also embracing the needs and achievements of those who learn differently or
need more scaffolded support. It’s not an either/or decision when it comes to academic inclusion
and opportunity. It’s the mission of our district to be a professional learning community where
instruction invites effort and supports academic rigor for all students and educators. The key
word being ALL.