Wendy Maurer planned to file her paperwork on Monday to run for the office of Rock Hill District Supervisor.
A Republican small business owner and member of Stafford’s Economic Development Authority, Maurer has long been active in the Stafford community. She seeks to replace Cord Sterling, who announced he would not seek reelection in November after accepting a new job as a staffer in the U.S. Senate.
Maurer has three children in Stafford County Public Schools and she immediately identified large class sizes and overcrowding as campaign issues.
“We have significant overcrowding in our schools,” said Maurer, whose three children attend Mountain View and Colonial Forge high schools, and Rodney Thompson Middle School. “I believe the schools have been focusing more on administration and less on teacher pay.”
Rock Hill School Board representative Patricia Healy agrees that schools are overcrowded, and said a move by the School Board to eliminate more than 50 teachers was a difficult budget decision to make.
While the Board of Supervisors is the taxing authority providing a large chunk of the county budget to the school system, it’s the School Board who decides how to spend the cash. Maurer said a full review of the budget, as well as categorical funding practices by the Board of Supervisors is what’s needed place priorities on education in the county.
“Categorical funding can make it more difficult to make changes in a timely fashion,” said Healy. “If we need to move money from one category to another, we’ll need to go back to the Board and its processes before that can be done.”
Maurer said she’ll have strong opinions about what the School Board should do, but said she’ll respect boundaries.
“…I’m not going to be in there to run the school board – that is their job – but I will work closely with my school board representatives…” said Maurer.
Maurer also said improving the quality of roads in the district is another priority. Nearly all of the roads in the Rock Hill District are antiquated 2-lane thoroughfares with no shoulders, providing access to housing developments, schools, and businesses.
Maurer owns LRH Group, LLC in Quantico, a defense contracting company supporting the Army. Her husband is also employed by the company.
Voters will head to the polls Nov. 3 to select a new Rock Hill District Supervisor.
