Report on Oakland County Candidate Forum
On a beautiful sunny warm Sunday, October 23, 2016, sixteen local candidates spoke at the Oakland County Candidate Forum before a crowd of about 100 mostly Chinese American voters at the Chinese Community Center in Madison Heights, Michigan.
This event was non-partisan and its goal was not to support or oppose any candidates or political parties. Rather it was designed for the voters to get to know their candidates and make informed decisions for the 11/8 general election. The organizers first selected a number of positions and all candidates running for these positions were invited to speak at the forum.
The first part of the forum was devoted to candidates who are running for U.S. Congress (congressional district 11), Michigan State House (district 41), Oakland County Prosecutor, and Oakland County Sheriff.
Each candidate was given 5 minutes to introduce themselves. Below are the individual candidates who accepted our invitation to speak, in the order as they appear in the official candidate list . The text surrounding the picture is the profile that the candidate emailed to the organizing committee before the forum.
Dr. Anil Kumar, raised in a hard-working middle-class family, has served our community in Michigan for over 30 years as an accomplished doctor, teacher, small business owner and community leader.
Dr. Kumar is running for Congress to solve problems and help Michigan families as he has done his whole life. He is the Chief of Surgery at Crittenton Hospital and dedicates his time teaching future doctors at Michigan State University, is active in the Oakland County Medical Society, is a Sunday school teacher at his United Methodist Church and is helping wounded veterans through a variety of philanthropic efforts.
Dr. Kumar and his wife Marjorie from West Branch, Michigan have been married for 28 years and have two sons who went to local public school and are now in medical school.
STATE REPRESENTATIVE: State Representative Martin Howrylak was first elected to serve the 41st District in Michigan House of Representatives in November 2012, representing the residents of Troy and Clawson. He’s currently serving his second term in office.
LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEES: Howrylak is the vice chair of the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules and the vice chair of the committee on Oversight and Ethics. He is also a member of the committees on Criminal Justice, Judiciary and Tax Policy.
EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND: Howrylak received his Bachelor of Science degree with an emphasis in Geological Sciences from the University of Michigan in 1998 and a Master of Accounting degree from the University of Michigan in 2003.
PROFESSIONAL REPRESENTATIVE: Howrylak is a licensed and practicing Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in private practice in Troy. He has experience auditing local governments and small businesses, preparing and analyzing financial statements and advising small businesses. He has been a local business owner and entrepreneur since 1990.
COMMUNITY: Howrylak has been active in the Troy community for decades, serving most recently as a Troy City Councilman (2000-2011) and Mayor Pro-Tem. He previously served as a trustee on both the City of Troy’s Employee Retirement System and Retiree Health Plan and Trust. In addition, he was a trustee on the Southeast Oakland County Resource Recovery Authority (SOCRRA). Howrylak also previously served on the Troy Historic District Commission and is a Republican Party precinct delegate.
Howrylak was born and raised in Troy and is married to Jane. He is a member of the National Shrine of the Little Flower parish in Royal Oak
As a school board member, parent, business owner, and teacher, I have a multi-dimensional view of the impact legislative decisions have on our schools, and the knowledge to help craft good education policy for all the children of Michigan.
I was elected to the Clawson Board of Education five times, serving my community for more than 20 years. During this time I worked with dozens of school board members who represented a wide range of political ideologies. We always focused our policy decisions on “what’s best for kids.” This is the kind of cooperation we need in Lansing to get things done.
My experience on the school board also taught me that a budget is a tool to reach our goals. The money we send to Lansing should not be used to give huge tax breaks to large corporations, and profits to private charter school management companies, but instead to provide services to constituents, who paid those tax dollars in the first place.
My husband Bill and I have raised four adult children, who each have unique learning styles. As a result, I also have 20 years experience with schools as a consumer, navigating homework, co-curricular activities, Individual Education Plans, and parent-teacher conferences.
Before I became a teacher, I was a small business owner, and a field representative for the Southland Corporation, with profit and loss responsibilities for ten 7-Eleven stores.
I have taught students at every grade level, from PreK through grade 12, in both private and public schools, so I have first hand knowledge of the ramifications of mandates handed down from Lansing. It’s time to toss aside political agendas and do “what’s best for kids.”
I am a career prosecutor closing in on nearly 30 years of experience. I am currently a Senior Assistant Attorney General in the criminal divisions public corruption division. Prior to that I was a major crimes prosecutor for the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office. I was assigned to the Oakland County Violent Gang Taskforce. I have personally tried hundreds of jury trials. I have personally dealt with thousands of victims. I am NOT a politician.
I support Veterans, Sobriety, Drug and Mental Health treatment courts and believe that participation in these programs is essential to monitor non-violent offenders and assist them in their recovery from addictions and PTSD so as to make them productive members of society. I am also a proponent of the Canine Advocacy Program. This is a program designed to bring therapy dogs into court to comfort young children who are victims of crime and must testify in an adult court.
I believe that the training of assistant prosecutors is of utmost importance. I plan on seeking the assistance of the Prosecuting Attorney’s Association of Michigan and the National College of District Attorney’s to provide extensive free and scholarship training to ensure that Oakland County has the highest trained assistant prosecutors. I will implement a mentor program to pair a seasoned assistant prosecutor with new and less experienced assistant prosecutors to insure there is always someone that can answer questions for the newest members of the prosecutors’.
I am married and have an almost 13-year-old son. I am a part time Firefighter and Emergency Medical Technician for my local community.
I am endorsed by County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, Chief Medical Examiner L.J. Dragovic. Senator Marty Knollenberg; Senator Mike Kowall; State Reps. Jim Tedder, Mike Webber; Peter Lucido; Congressman Mike Bishop; Senator Mat Dunaskiss; Rep. Mike McCready; Rep. Klint Kesto; Senator Dave Robertson; County Commissioners Mike Gingell; Mike Spisz; Bob Hoffman; and many others both Republican and Democrat.
Elected Oakland County Prosecutor 2008 and re-elected 2012
Former employment: Judge of Michigan Court of Appeals, Oakland County Circuit Court Judge, Southfield District Court Judge, Adjunct Professor of Law: University of Michigan & Michigan State University. Trial Attorney -Private Practice of Law
I have successfully served as the elected Prosecutor for the past eight years bringing decades of trial and supervisory experience to the office.
I tried both civil and criminal cases as an attorney. However, it is my experience serving as both a trial and appellate judge, and an adjunct professor of law teaching evidence and trial practice that has given me an unrivaled foundation to meet the demands of this office.
I have been recognized as the “Best of the Best” lawyers in Metro Detroit by Crain’s and named a “Champion of Justice” by the Michigan Association of Justice. My favorite recognition was the “One Tough Cookie” award by the Girl Scouts. My office serves a county of 1,200,000 people. My job requires oversight of the prosecution of close to 20,000 cases a year that includes felonies, misdemeanors, child abuse and neglect, juvenile and family support. It must be done in a manner that promotes both efficiency and justice. It requires the managerial experience necessary to supervise the attorneys and support staff as the CEO of this very large law firm.
There are many recent endorsements that I have received,, but are too numerous for a half page, including the Detroit FreePress, Downtown Publications, UAW, AFSME, Building Trades, Oakland County Democratic Black Caucus, Oakland County Association of Police Chiefs, Police Officers Association of Michigan, Michigan Association of Police, Oakland County Deputy Sheriffs,& innumerable police associations listed in my handout material.
Craig S. Covey 59 years old Democrat
Current Occupation: Community Liaison and PR Director, Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner
Oakland County Resident (Ferndale) resident 30 years
http://www.coveys-corner.blogspot.com
B.A. Political Science & Communications, Ohio State University 1979
City Councilman – City of Ferndale 2 terms 1999-2007
Mayor, City of Ferndale Elected twice 2007-2010
Oakland County Commissioner 2011-2013
I would provide leadership locally & statewide for prison reform and sentencing reform to halt overcrowding and early release of dangerous criminals with a focus on fairness and following best practices.
I would immediately halt the current sheriff’s war on medical marijuana, and instead would follow the voters’ requests in helping patients, caregivers, and compassion clinics access needed medicine. We should ramp up efforts to halt the increase in opiate addiction and put resources into fighting heroin and meth addiction with enforcement coupled with education, prevention, and treatment.
I would show leadership in recruiting new deputies by going into minority and other communities to reach and recruit Black, Latino, Asian-American, Arabic, LGBT and women for law enforcement careers. Community policing with a diverse police force will make us all stronger and safer.
Each candidate focused on his/her own introduction and policies in a friendly manner. Some candidates referred to their opponents in positive ways, nothing like the attacks among certain presidential candidates.
After their speeches, the candidates were entertaining questions from the audience.
The forum invited only candidates who are running for a selected list of positions, due to limitations of time, space, and resources. However, a few other candidates also came to the forum and asked for the permission to speak. It was hard to turn down these enthusiastic candidates and each of them was given 2 minutes to introduce themselves. In the order they spoke, they were:
After a 10-minute break, the second part of the forum was devoted to candidates who are running for Troy School Board. As an award winning school district, Troy school board has candidates with excellent qualifications and each spoke for 5 minutes, followed by questions from the audience.
All five candidates accepted our invitation and spoke in the order based on their last name.
Kumar Bhatt is a long time (25 years) residnt of Troy, and parent of two Troy School educated children. Kumar has a Bachelors degree in Metallurgical Eng from MS Univ. of Baroda, India, a Masters in Material engineering from the Ohio State Univ., and MBA from the Univ. of Chicago. Kumar is a member of high IQ society, American Mensa. He is currently the Marketing Officer for their local (1000 member strong) Southeast Michigan Mensa Chapter.
Kumar worked as a senior project engineer at GM’s Advanced Engineering group in Warren, MI. He was instrumental in developing automotive industry’s first light weight, high performance aluminum matrix (composite) drive shaft. It was implemented on 1996 Corvettes for which he received award for innovation. Later Kumar joined IBM in their Global Business Services as Management Consultant, and specialized in transforming under-performing corporate divisions to be competitive in global markets. He has consulted for Automotive (GM, Ford, Nissan, Benz), Electronics, SW/HW (Samsung, IBM), Earth Moving Equipment (Caterpillar, Komatsu), Aerospace (Boeing), Paper (Smurfit Stone), Health Insurance(Aetna), plus several other industries (Direct Mail, Aerial Lifts etc.), and Federal Govt. (FEMA). His clients were in US, Europe and Asia. He left IBM and created a boutique consulting company that consults for and invests in business start-ups.
Kumar has volunteered in Troy Athens School's Robotics and Marching Band; he was a member of Troy School District’s Building Rationalization Committee. Several years ago, Kumar was instrumental in saving our Troy Library from permanently closing down.The School Board and the Administration, rightfully so, want to make Troy Schools world class. Kumar wants to contribute to Troy School Board by leveraging his transformation experience, and (methodology) expertise. 2. As a member of Mensa, he brings diversity of thought to the School Board, and different approaches in solving issues related to Troy Schools. 3. As an innovator, he has several ideas in raising additional revenue to augment our school budget to help our children achieve their potential – Smaller class sizes, Special help for students from economically disadvantaged background, Resources for gifted children, Entrepreneurial training, Establishing Troy School Alumni Association, and many more.
Loving husband and father of four Troy School District graduates
Dedicated Troy teacher for 41 years (retired in June)
Trusted Troy business owner for over 30 years
Former City Council Member and Planning Commissioner
BA, University of Michigan; MA in Educational Administration, Central Michigan University
Areas of focus:1. Focus direction: Maintain focus on the most important thing – ensuring student learning. My 41 years of teaching at Athens High School will provide insights into the work of the school board on ways to empower educators to support the needs of all learners.
2. Cultivate a Collaborative Culture: Foster strong, positive relationships with all stakeholders. As a former city council member, I understand the power of community as we work together to ensure learning for all.
3. Innovative budget: Engage the community in providing fresh perspectives to the budgeting process. Provide employees, students, and community members with incentivized vehicle for thinking creatively about budgetary issues. As a participant on the City’s Financial Ideas Team (FIT), I worked with a group of diverse stakeholders to find innovative solutions to budgetary issues.
Elizabeth Hammond, a Troy native and community leader, will bring students, teachers, parents, and administrators together to create meaningful change in the Troy School District.
After graduating from the University of Michigan, Elizabeth spent over a decade building a successful Michigan based business. She grew her company from nothing to an almost $50 million dollar operation employing nearly one hundred people in the Detroit Metropolitan area alone. In 2015, she was named one of Crain’s Top 40 Under 40. Her business, Contract Direct, is one of the top 200 privately held companies in Michigan.
Today, Elizabeth continues to run her own business while raising three children with her husband Christopher. Elizabeth currently serves as the President of Wyngate of Troy Homeowners Association and as the PTA Secretary for Hamilton Elementary. She also supports a number of local philanthropic causes both personally and through her business.
Elizabeth was raised in Troy, Michigan, by her parents, Tracey and Steven Johansson. Tracey is a former entrepreneur who retired to spend more time with her grandchildren. Steven is a retired mechanic who now teaches high school students at one of Oakland County’s Technical Campuses. From an early age, Elizabeth’s parents instilled in her the importance of public service and a good education. Those values are the foundation upon which Elizabeth serves today.
Elizabeth’s husband, Christopher, has worked for Oakland Schools in Information Technology for almost 20 years. Elizabeth and Christopher have three children, twins, Kaiden and Kameron (Hamilton Elementary) and their youngest son, Ethan.
I am a 25-year Troy resident and homeowner. I am General Counsel for FANUC America Corporation. My wife, Lynne, and I have three children who attended Troy Schools – Bemis, Boulan, and Troy High. Our two sons, Jake and Harrison, have graduated and currently attend the University of Michigan. Our daughter is a senior at Troy High.
I have been actively involved in all facets of Troy schools for many years. I have volunteered in the classroom and led extracurricular activities such as Destination Imagination. I have chaperoned field trips from the 4th grade Lansing trip to the High School Choir Nashville trip. I have been a member of the Troy High Boosters club for approximately seven years and I am now President of the Troy High PTA. I have served a number of roles for the Troy High All Night Party committee, including Chair and Past Chair. I was a member of the 2011-2012 Troy School District Facilities Study Team, which was an invaluable experience to prepare me to serve as a board member, because, as a team of community members, we studied Troy school finance and other data such as class size, student enrollment, class schedules, and transportation, we visited all of the facilities and many of the classrooms, and we interacted with the board, each of the administrators, and guest speakers; we essentially lived the life of a board member for a year.
For four years, I have been a Trustee for the Troy Foundation for Educational Excellence (TFEE), which raises funds in the community and issues grants to Troy teachers who have proposed innovative ideas for the classroom. In 2009, I ran for Troy School Board and in 2010 I applied for an appointment to the Board, both of which uniquely exposed me to the importance, role, and function of school board members and instilled in me a passion to stay involved ever since that time. From 1999-2015, I served as coach and manager for many teams and many sports through Troy Parks & Rec and TBB. I have served in leadership positions such as President and Treasurer for multiple non-profit organizations. I plan to use this experience, my passion for education, and my skills as an attorney to help the Troy Schools provide a world-class education to our students. More information can be found at www.vote4bernie.org.
Who Am I?
Longtime resident of Troy, married and father of two students in the School District.
Actively involved in multiple initiatives:
School Facilities board
Science and Chinese Olympiads
Destination Imagination
Athletics, Band and Homecoming
Engineer by profession, Masters in Computer Science at the University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth.
Two decades of experience as an IT Professional at Ford Motor Company.
Why am I running?
I believe education is the most rewarding gift that one can give and receive.
I support any activity that enhances the learning experience for every student
I bring a unique perspective to the district, given my diverse cultural and technical background.
Being a part of the Troy School Facilities board has shown me that I can effectively bring a lot of positive change.
This forum was co-organized by:
The cost of organizing this forum was a little more than $200.Special thanks go to members of the organizing committee, candidates, volunteers, and attendees for their effort and support. Best wishes to the candidates in the coming election.
Get Out the Vote! Be a responsible citizen! Your vote is your voice and our power!
Photos are provided by courtesy of Charles Liu.