Anthony Strevett

Candidate Name: Anthony Strevett
Age: 26
Candidate for [Elected Position]: Lansing Board of Education
Candidate Website: www.strevett.com
Candidate Contact for Public: Through contact form on website.
Are you registered with any party? If so, please share your party affiliation: No
Please share all your social media accounts: N/A
Please include a high quality photo of the candidate.
1. What motivated you to run for the position you are seeking election to?
I noticed a lack of advocacy on the Board specifically for our teachers and our
students with an educator’s perspective. I love this community and I want to serve
it by helping further grow our education system in its academic success and
equitable treatment of all students.
2. What is your vision for the public body you want to serve on?
I envision the Board of Education to be a trusted leadership body – trusted by
teachers, administration, families of students, and other community stakeholders.
This is done through transparency and follow-through. My vision for the district is
increased enrollment, increased graduation rates, and increased teacher
retention.
3. How does your vision differ from that of your opponents?
I am a younger candidate, which allows me to entertain ideas and beliefs that
don’t come naturally to me – I am not particularly “set in my ways” quite yet. This
is beneficial when leading a diverse district such as Lansing. I am also an
educator, so my primary focus is not a political agenda, rather it is for the well-
being of our students and our teachers.
4. Funding for schools has been a consistent concern for nearly three decades. Proposal 1,
passed in the 90s was supposed to level the playing field in funding assuring that
districts with distressed property values would receive comparable per pupil funding.
That has not been the case. If elected, how will you address the under funding of
schools?
An unfortunate result of being in a larger system of education is that we do not
have as much control over some decisions – especially that of school choice. One
solution I see to solve underfunding is to increase enrollment at our schools by

the students who reside in our community. Another solution is to investigate the
expenditures of our budget and to ensure that the funds we do have are being
spent appropriately. Unfortunately, I believe that some things have been made
priorities in budgeting when they should not have been.
5. Has school choice, which allows students and parents to apply for and attend a different
school district than the one they live in, been a success? Why or why not?
On paper, school choice seems like a positive: families can send their kids to
potentially better schools, increasing the incentive for underperforming schools
to improve. Unfortunately, in practice, school choice does not work – the system
is not sustainable. When students who are able to seek a better district leave, the
students who are unable to leave are left behind in a underperforming, and now
underfunded, district. This results in a district that spirals further downward. My
goal is not to keep students in an underperforming school district – instead, it is
to make the necessary changes to budget, policy, and staff to increase the
academic successes of a district, thereby increasing enrollment and per pupil
funding.
6. Proposals in Michigan have long sought to use public dollars to pay for private school
tuition and costs. Do you support vouchers for private schools? Why or why not?
I do not support vouchers for private schools. I believe that these vouchers
diminish the public’s ability to decide how to spend public dollars. Further, my
understanding is that private schools are not required to accept all students,
which would indicate a lack of equitable treatment. Education should be not based
on private preference. Education should be looked at as a public institution meant
to instill a sense of civic duty, provide an opportunity to respect others from
whom you are different, and teach the curricular subjects (mathematics, reading,
science, etc.). Community building is put at risk when public funds are used for
privatized interests.
7. If vouchers are approved, public schools may see a decline in enrollment. How would
you close the funding gap by a reduction in per pupil funding?
We would have little choice but to apply for grants and to advocate for legislative
action away from school vouchers. As I said previously that system is not
sustainable and it does more damage to a community than good.
8. Educators have been under scrutiny over LGBT youth support, LGBT history, the
American history of communities of color and more. In addition, school libraries are
pulling books off of shelves in public school libraries and public libraries.
a. Please share your perspective as you pertains to providing safe schools and
education for LGBT youth. Everyone deserves to be treated well, simply
because they are a human. If our culture is unable to treat one another with
respect, then we have an issue. That line of thinking extends to our school
district as well. My heart goes out to those who are mistreated or feel

unsafe. An anti-bullying campaign from the Board of Education may be in
order.
b. Please share your perspective about integrating the history of communities of
color into curriculums in the public schools. I have two thoughts: first, we
should not be teaching that one community’s history is more important
than any other. All lived experiences matter and we can all learn from them.
Second, as a school district with a diverse population, we should work to
integrate the history of communities of color. Together, they tell a beautiful,
if sometimes painful, story.
c. Do you support the removal of books some find objectionable from public school
shelves and public libraries? Why or why not?
If a book is especially inappropriate (in terms of provocative imagery and
language), then I would entertain its removal from a public school library.
However, once we begin censoring the information made available to our
students, we are limiting their ability to assess information and make
decisions themselves. On the whole, I do not believe removing books from

libraries is an appropriate action.
d. If you support such removals, at what point does the purge of objectionable
books stop? When it is the Quran? When it is the Torah? The Nag Hamadi? The
Bible? What policies will you put in place to monitor and assess removal of
books?
Speaking specifically of religious texts, if one is made available, then they
should all be made available. To operate any differently would be to
indicate (albeit indirectly) an endorsement by the district for that particular
religion. For me, any book that is pornographic in nature should be
evaluated for its appropriateness for our students. However, books dealing
with LGTBQIA+, race, cultures, etc. should be not be removed simply
because topics are considered controversial by some.
e. If you do not support the removal of objectionable books, what policies will you
support to stop the removal of books from public school libraries?
The burden of proof will be on the party in opposition to a book. I love to
have community members who are engaged and are willing to share their
concerns with the Board of Education, and I will certainly listen to their
arguments intently. Perhaps the policy for removing a book should include
a majority vote of the Board of Education trustees.

9. There has been a split on how COVID was responded to by schools, and other
government bodies. Please answer the following questions:
a. Did you support the shut down of schools during the COVID-19 crisis? Why or
why not? Originally, I do support the shut down of schools. We did not
know what would happen. Now that we have vaccines and a sense of
protocol, I do not think shutting down our schools in the future due to
COVID-19 would be a wise decision. Too much is lost when children are not
learning in-person.

b. There has been a marked loss of educational gain as a result of the shut down.
How will you address this problem?
Agreed. I will work to hire and retain high-quality educators, including
those already in our district. I will also work to obtaining grants focusing
on providing direct instruction for literacy and mental health counseling for
our students.
c. Did you support face masks? Why or why not?
I believe the school district should not mandate the wearing of face masks.
However, if a guardian, student, or educator prefers to wear a face mask for
themselves, that is their prerogative.
d. Do you support the COVID-19 vaccine? Why or why not?
Absolutely. I believe it is supported by research – as are most vaccines. My
hope is that everyone will get the vaccine and the boosters for COVID-19,
but I would not force anyone to do so. It is their choice.
e. Do you support vaccination for all students in public schools? Why or why not?
I do not support a mandated vaccination for all students at this time. I
believe there are guardians in our district who are still unsure about this
vaccine. Instead of forcing their students to become vaccinated, we should
focus our efforts on educating the community as to the great benefits and
minimal risks.
f. There has been a growing mental health crisis among our youth. It was present
before the pandemic, but experts warn it has gotten worse since the pandemic. If
elected, how will you address the mental health needs of our students?
There absolutely is! I witness it daily in my schools. It not only affects our
students – it affects our educators as well! One thing I would strive for is
hiring mental health counselors and more student support specialists to
aid students in processing their emotions and thoughts in healthy ways. I
believe the community as a whole would benefit dramatically from this.
10. There have been a number of school shootings, with deeply tragic consequences for
students, teachers and administrators alike – as well as communities. If elected, what
will you do to address the school violence crisis, including school shootings?
First, I would work to enforce the protocols already in place in our school district.
This would include using the front office security appropriately, keeping
classroom doors closed, practicing active shooter drills, etc. I would also like to
increase the Public Safety department’s staff and resources and research the
effectiveness of metal detectors at our doors.
11. Elections have become a serious concern for some voters. Please answer the following
questions:
a. If you lose your election, will you accept the results? Why or why not?
Absolutely. I want the community to be served by the individuals they
believe will represent them well.

b. If your election is close and you chose to pay for a recount, will you accept the
result of a recount? Why or why not? Absolutely.
c. Much has been made about the 2020 election. Do you believe Donald Trump
won the election? Why or why not? No. I trust in democracy.
d. Do you believe there was widespread election fraud? Why or why not? No. I
believe America has a well-functioning election system.
e. Do you believe leaders in Washington are involved in a secret pedophilia ring?
Why or why not? No. I am not one to believe in conspiracy theories.
f. Do you believe the Jan. 6 Capitol incident was appropriate in light of the
election? Why or why not? Absolutely not. Our Federal Government was
attacked. In no way was that justified.

12. Are you a member, or have you ever been a member or donated to any of the following
organizations: No.
13. Please share with readers and voters your qualifications for the position you seek.
My desire is for the community to be represented well, for our educators to be
provided for, and for our students to be taught well. As an educator myself, I
believe I am a candidate who is able to lead and shape our district into this vision.
I am not a politician, so perhaps my inexperience will show, but I believe it as an
asset. We do not need disenfranchised individuals or politicians who come with
an agenda. We need dedicated leaders who have a heart for the community of
Lansing. I am, I believe, that person.