Board of Education member seeks District 5A delegate seat

Thursday, Jan. 19, 2006

It’s no surprise that schools would be among the items at the top of C. Scott Stone’s agenda if he’s elected delegate for District 5A in Carroll County.

The 13-year Carroll County Board of Education member announced his candidacy for the position flanked by gold, red and white balloons before a crowd of about 30 people Tuesday night in Westminster.

On the Web For information about Carroll County Board of Education member C. Scott Stone’s campaign for a District 5A seat in the Maryland House of Delegates, visit www.cscottstone.org.

Family and school officials surrounded Stone, a longtime Hampstead resident, as he made his announcement, promising to be a good listener to all voices from his district.

‘‘I will faithfully represent the will of the people and work collaboratively with other officials of Carroll County,” he said.

Stone outlined his agenda Tuesday night. He said he would like to focus on increasing retirement benefits for teachers, since Maryland’s teacher pension plans are among the worst in the nation.

Among other issues, Stone said he supports protecting property rights, managing growth and requiring the state to notify victims of identity theft as 22 other states do. Stone said he would only support slots if a portion of the profits benefit the non-racing horse industry and goes to public education. He would also want the state to provide treatment for gambling addiction.

District 5A includes Hampstead, Manchester, Finksburg, Gamber, Silver Run, Lineboro, Warfieldsburg and the eastern portion of Westminster. Stone is set to face off against incumbents Del. Tanya Shewell (R) of Westminster and Del. Nancy R. Stocksdale (R) of Westminster.

Stone has served as a member of the Carroll County Board of Education since 1993. He also served on several school committees in addition to the Westminster Bypass Blue Ribbon Panel, the Carroll County YMCA Board of Advisors, the School Facilities Committee, the Carroll County Master Plan Concurrency Management Work Team and the Carroll County Technology Board.

The North Carroll High School graduate is a registered professional engineer in Maryland and Pennsylvania. He received a bachelor’s degree in engineering from Johns Hopkins University, a master’s degree in computer science from Loyola College, and works in the office of technology services at Towson University.

He and his wife Theresa have been married for 30 years, and the couple’s two adult children attended Carroll County Public Schools from kindergarten through 12th grade.

Over the next 11 months, Stone said he would be busy getting out into the communities he hopes to serve. ‘‘I’m looking forward to getting out, meeting the people and getting a better understanding of the issues that matter to them.”