Mark Finnicum
Non-Partisan | Montana
Candidate Profile*
Leans Conservative
BIOGRAPHY
EDUCATION
Fergus High school, Lewistown, graduated, 1979
community collage of the Air Force, 2
WORK & MILITARY
US Air Force, SGT, 6
AFFILIATIONS
Episcopal church, Past member, leader, United Way of Cascade county
campaign worker, American Red Cross, Blood (12 gallons) and Platelet (150) donor
Toastmasters, DTM, many leadership positions including regionally, Rotary
Club President and district governor for MT, Chamber’s Military Affairs Committee, Member
POLITICAL OFFICES HELD
GFPS trustee, 3
POLITICAL OFFICES SOUGHT
Candidate did not provide
ENDORSEMENTS*
LIBERAL (1)
*Great Falls Education Association
SELECTED FINANCIAL SOURCE DOCUMENTS
OTHER INFORMATION
Declaration for Nomination and Oath of Candidacy
Political Party: Non-Partisan
Primary Voting History for Mark Finnicum during time of residence in district and/or at current address:
- Voted in the Primary elections of 2018 & 2020
QUESTIONNAIRE
RIGHT TO LIFE
Abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, should not be a resource for instruction or services in the school.
Agree
Human life begins at conception and deserves legal protection at every stage until natural death.
Strongly Agree
ECONOMY
Free enterprise and the right to private property are essential elements of a productive economic system.
Strongly Agree
School districts should be able to use taxpayer money for lobbying the state legislature.
Disagree
What is your position on government funding of public education from Pre-K through college?
The law is that public education is available to everyone. Regardless of anything. That means that there needs to be a funding mechanism in place to make that happen. Thus enter the voter into the equation. Federal, state and local taxpayers are all asked to contribute. the current system is far to confusing and complex.
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
At school, students should be able to speak freely and civilly about matters of conscience and faith, including Christianity.
Agree
I would love to see a pray and the pledged said every day in every school brought back. losing those things was a leap in the wrong direction.
School districts should not discriminate against individuals, organizations or small businesses because of their belief that marriage is only a union of one man and one woman.
Agree
Students should not be allowed to pray in school.
Disagree
EDUCATION
What is the function of the local school board?
The function of the board is to advocate for the children. Our District has extensive strategic goals that are children centered and have action items spelled out. Not just a one and done thing, they are reviewed and implemented. One of the boards roles is to help set the vision and set standards for the schools and the superintendent.
Who should have the authority to set curriculum and determine resources used in those curricula?
currently the state and local school districts set the curriculum. We have recently complexly redone the ELA curriculum locally. (approved and not implemented yet) GFPS did that. using COVID funding to pay the bill. We had parents, teachers, principles, and board members doing that. Each curriculum is supposed to be updated approximately every 6-8 years. Many get pushed aside because of lack of funding.
When should parents be restricted from speaking in school board meetings?
Only if speaking out or order or out of control. There is a place in every meeting for public comment as its stand alone item, and public comment is asked for in each action item.
Please list in order the following priorities in relation to the role of a K-12 public school (omitting any that do not apply): Mathematics, Information Technology, Science, Political Activism, Personal Finances, Gender Identity, Physical Fitness, American History, Critical Race Theory, Language Arts, Art & Music, Vocational Learning, Sexuality, Foreign Language, Social Emotional Learning
Did not answer
American civics education should emphasize our nation's founding principles of liberty and equality.
Agree
Before students are taught courses such as Comprehensive Sex Ed (CSE) or Social Emotional Learning (SEL), they must opt-in with written parental permission.
Agree
The loss of local control in education is too high a price to pay in exchange for federal dollars.
Agree
I support the teaching of curricula (such as the 1619 Project, No Place for Hate, Second Step, etc.) that emphasizes slavery and racism as the foundation of American history.
Did not answer
Parents are the ultimate authority in their child’s education and should be able to freely pursue whatever educational options they deem best for their child.
Agree
Parents should have an active role in their children's education. Having them prepared for learning early in their lives is very important. Depending on if the "options" are available, should help the parents to pick what schools they should attend. Public or private
VALUES
Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
I have been a Christian my whole life. I believe in the biblical values in the scriptures.
I support allowing public high school students to participate in athletic competition based on the gender with which they identify instead of biological sex.
Strongly Disagree
it is up to each person to be happy with themselves, its the United States of America, When you change gender, you should give up the ability to compete in the new gender.
Who is responsible for teaching sexual education to children, and what is the appropriate age when it should be taught?
it should be the parents who do the teaching. Currently it is in the public education system, and parents can and should exclude their child if they so choose to.
If you support the teaching of Sex Ed, please answer the following question: Sexual education should include these topics (list all that apply and add your own, if needed) -- Physical and emotional health outcomes; contraceptive methods; consent; abstinence; sexual orientation and gender identity; human anatomy/the reproductive system; abortion methods and side effects; stages of pregnancy and fetal development; sex acts and pleasures of sex
Did not answer
Judeo-Christian values established a framework of morality that is necessary for our system of limited government.
Did not answer
No healthcare diagnosis or treatment, whether mental, reproductive, or otherwise, should be given to a child without first receiving written consent from the parent.
Agree
any treatment should have the parents consent.
No school official should be involved in the sexual transitioning of a student, including the use of alternative names and pronouns.
Agree
Correct, this is the parents responsibility to do.
ELECTIONS AND VOTING
People should be able to vote without photo identification.
Disagree
in person voting and same day registration should have photo id required.
ABOUT YOU
Have you ever been convicted of a felony or been penalized in either civil or criminal court for sexual misconduct? If so, please explain.
NO
A candidate's personal moral values should not be relevant when considering a candidacy for elective office.
Agree
When you consider your views on a wide range of issues from economic and social matters to foreign policy and religious liberty, which of the following best describes you overall?
Lean Conservative
I have had this view, for my whole adult life
Please provide publicly available information, including interviews and media reports, validating your answer to the previous question (other than your website).
Did not answer
Is there anything else you would like voters to know about you?
Having a seat on the School Board is a big responsibly that I do not take lightly. We are responsible for nearly 11,000 human beings entering our doors every day. Their education and safety is the number 1 priority. I have taken an even bigger role, by being on the state school board as well. That board has the ability to bring bills to the state legislation using more resources to effect positive change within public schools network state wide. The MTSBA is a great resource for Montana districts to go to for advice and directions. We did vote exit the national school board association as they have not listened to the state boards, and have run amuck with their actions and polices, not even following their own bylaws. I like to think of myself to be a good listener and thinker. I ask enough questions to give me a logical path to follow, when the information changes and the track should be changed, I do change. I believe this to be a valuable trait that will benefit our children and educators for the long run. I certainly can and will dedicate myself for the next 3 years, if reelected.
2ND AMENDMENT
Teachers who are licensed to carry should be allowed to carry guns at school.
Did not answer
OTHER IMPORTANT ISSUES
Under what circumstances (if any) should schools be allowed to require vaccinations?
require, only if the state Governor dictates it.
I support mask mandates.
Disagree
Early on in COVID months, I did vote to have masks on. Our first priority was to have children IN SCHOOLS (while being as safe as we could), and that seemed to be the best way to keep schools open and not forcing us to go remote again. I did vote to keep schools open, during a split vote. later on in the pandemic, I was the only board member to vote no to continuing the mask mandate.
