Issue 1: Education
A 31-year teaching veteran of the Howard County Public School System, no candidate knows the area’s educational environment like Corkran. He is focused on sustaining and strengthening Howard County’s reputation for elite schools. After all, top-tier educational opportunities are why so many people choose to live here.
Maintaining excellence will take a long-term vision centered on securing the latest and greatest technology for classrooms, as well as retaining premiere teachers, administrators and staff. Corkran has established himself as an innovative educator with a pipeline of sources at the state and local level from whom he can draw knowledge and insight from to achieve Howard County’s educational objectives.
Issue 2: The Economy
Although routinely boasting one of the lowest unemployment rates in Maryland, Howard County must take specific steps to remain an opportune location to work. Business owners and citizens alike must be rewarded with prospects of growth, flexibility and higher wages. They must also trust that their hard-earned tax money is being well spent.
Corkran considers himself fiscally responsible who believes that tax money raised through the state should be allocated at the ground level – to programs that are important to Maryland’s population. Keeping as much money as possible invested in local growth is the only real way to advance Howard County’s thriving, vibrant economy for years to come.
Issue 3: Protecting the Environment
Corkran’s childhood on the eastern shore of Maryland cultivated his love of nature and his dedication to keeping it beautiful. He supports reasonable pollution controls and green technologies to curb harmful carbon emissions.
His strong ties to the Sierra Club have helped reinforce his reverence for community-level change, and he promises to devote time, energy and resources to improving Howard County’s stream buffers, conserving forests, educating residents and maintaining the county’s award-winning park system.
Issue 4: Transportation
Corkran is concerned about enhancing the present state of our transportation infrastructure. Whether it is through widening roads, improving public transportation or adding energy-efficient changes to the traffic system, Howard County’s leaders are facing a challenge in keeping up with a growing population.
Corkran will work side-by-side with politicians, transportation industry experts and the citizens of Howard County to devise and deploy smart action. It will take collaboration and compromise to overcome the challenge of transportation improvement, and Corkran possesses the strategic mind and patience to achieve it.
Issue 5: Health Care
Corkran’s dedication to securing affordable, quality healthcare for all citizens is a personal one. Not only does he possess experience working with community members who have overcome great health obstacles, he himself is a cancer survivor.
His battle was an eye-opening experience, one that hardened his resolve and helped him appreciate the talents of our doctors and nurses. To that end, Corkran wants to make sure that everyone within Howard County and beyond have the opportunity to receive comprehensive preventive care, treatment and follow-up for any health issues. He is a devoted proponent of the Affordable Care Act, and focused on making sure it works for all.
Howard County is regularly ranked the healthiest county in Maryland, scoring high on health outcomes and determinants including diet and exercise, access to quality care and air quality. Corkran will work on special initiatives geared toward improving an already robust healthcare enterprise within the county.