2012 MCPS Graduate Running For School Board

GAITHERSBURG, MD — A 2012 Poolesville High School graduate has filed paperwork to run for the at-large seat on the Montgomery County Board of Education.

Cameron Rhode, a 25-year-old Gaithersburg resident, announced he was running for Jeanette Dixon's seat on his campaign's Facebook page Thursday evening. According to multiple news outlets, Dixon is not running for re-election.

"I spent 19 years in public school and I'm still not Bored of Education," Rhode posted, adding he can offer "a unique perspective" to the board as a recent graduate.

Rhode — who also recently graduated from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County — tells Patch that he wanted to run for school board shortly after receiving his diploma.

"I knew I wanted to run after reflecting on my unique perspective as a recent graduate of Montgomery County Public Schools. I attended UMBC as an undergraduate and as a graduate student, so 2019 was the first calendar year since 1998 in which I did not attend public school," Rhode said. "My lifetime of enjoying and benefiting from public education makes my candidacy for Board of Education a natural fit."

If he wins the election on Nov. 3, Rhode says he wants to provide better mental health resources for students, narrow the achievement gap, and revise the county's social studies curriculum "to more diligently recognize faults in our country's history."

Rhode isn't the only Montgomery County resident vying for Dixon's seat. As of Monday afternoon, Jay Guan and Pavel Sukhobok have filed for the at-large seat.

Guan is board president of the Chinese American Parent Association of Montgomery County, according to the organization's website.

Pavel Sukhobok is the founder of Makuyu Education Initiative, according to LinkedIn.

Patch will be publishing a Q & A with each candidate in the coming weeks.