The is The Times’ final installment of paired Q&As with local legislative candidates. Today we present the answers from the candidates in the 167th State House district. They were both supplied with the exact same questions and the answers are unedited.
1. Why are you running?
Anne Crowley
It is critical that we move the Pennsylvania in a new direction. We must invest in our families and businesses to ensure a strong community. The building blocks for this investment are great schools and a healthy environment. I have the educational and professional background and experience to make a strong contribution to the solutions needed locally and across the Commonwealth.
2. Our community is looking to elect you as a leader. What would you want our readership and voters to know about how you demonstrate leadership?
I place a high value on service to my community and my country. I have been a leader most recently on the Tredyffrin-Easttown (T/E) School Board where I was an elected School Director from 2009-2013. I have also served on the Boards of the Chester County Department of Health, the Daemion Counseling Center and the Chester County League of Women Voters, as well as other civic, education and church groups. I directed outreach programs in several prominent national and state environmental organizations where I worked with their members regarding environmental legislation. As a Governor’s Fellow – while a military spouse living in Virginia – I helped organize and support the Southern Governors’ Economic Summit with Latin American countries.
3. Please provide an example of a tough decision you’ve had to make. Why was it tough?
The toughest decision I made while on the T/E School Board was to vote against a budget increase. I knew I was asking this award winning school district to tighten its belt again, but it was the right decision for the tax payer in tough economic times.
In addition, I always stood up for transparent governing processes that included more public participation, positions not always shared by fellow School Directors and the administration.
4. What makes you uniquely qualified to deal with the diverse personalities, priorities and perspectives that you will find in the PA legislature?
I have master’s degree in government from the University of Virginia. As a Governor’s Fellow, I saw the necessity of working across the political spectrum to find solutions. Professionally, I have worked in the private sector, public education, and for non-profit environmental organizations in five different states. This background makes me not only well-qualified for the position of state representative, but also gives me experience with dealing with the breadth of the community I will represent.
5. Why should voters vote for you?
I believe in local control and that Harrisburg has over stepped on many important issues in recent years. I am passionate about good government and making sure our community is prepared for the future – not only for today’s problems but tomorrow’s. I am a visionary leader who will take action. As a former teacher, school psychologist and School Board Director I know the critical issues we face in education today. I will work to end the Keystone exam graduation requirement and to ensure that we have a fair funding formula that can provide world-class education for all our children. I have traveled the state working for environmental organizations and know well Chester County’s concerns and needs. Finally, I will stand up for the policies that will promote a strong economy in our area.
6. Is there anything else you’d like to make sure our voters and readership know about you?
We moved here nineteen years ago after twenty-two of military service because of the great quality of life and good schools. I am the mother of two grown sons, both graduates of the T/E school system. I believe in a collaborative process where all stakeholders come together respectfully and work toward common goals. We need more women in the legislature. I will fight for equal rights for women and other groups. I believe in term limits and that we need a non-partisan approach to redistricting.
7. How should voters and our readership reach you if they have questions and would like to get involved?
