Alicia Barksdale
Joyce Johnson
Manuel O. Lantigua
Mark D. Levine
Mark T. Otto
Zead Ramadan
David Sasscer-Burgos
Luis Tejada
Ruben Dario Vargas
Party Enrolled In: Democratic
Current Occupation: Assistant Principal: Facing History High School in Manhattan
Previous Occupation(s): Special Education Teacher
Education: MA in Education Leadership at NYU; MA in Special Education at SUNY New Paltz; BA in Elementary Education SUNY New Paltz
Organizational Affiliations: Harlem Pride, Facing History and Ourselves
Prior Public Experience: I have never held prior public office.
1. What is the most important issue in Council District 07 you would address if elected?
Our education system is the foundation of our city, and the greatest issue facing us - the future of our children. We need to invest more in NYC schools to give our children the best chance to succeed. We need to do more than just increase funding for schools - we need to reduce class sizes, provide social services and community resources within schools for students, and provide development for our teachers. As an educator, I will use my experience to improve education - and our city.
2. What other important issues would you address if elected?
New York must create more affordable housing by improving older housing and incentivizing new construction. We must modernize the city's outdated infrastructure to make our utilities and public transit systems truly work for us. We must create jobs by supporting small businesses, and ending the burdens they face. We must protect the most vulnerable among us by providing resources for LGBT youth.
3. What makes you the best candidate for this office?
I want to take my experience as an educator to ensure a better future for our communities. We cannot fix NYC public schools by relying on career politicians; we cannot fix our city's problems by relying on the same old politics and the same old ideas. As a resident of West Harlem, I see everyday how difficulties within the community translate to problems in the classroom; I see every day how all the issues we face interact and feed into each other. We need to foster stronger neighborhoods to help grow stronger students, and together, we can make this city a city for all New Yorkers.
Reprinted as supplied by the candidate. Participating in the NYC Campaign Finance Program.
This Guide lists all candidates who appear to be on the ballot for the primary election based on the latest information obtained from the New York City Board of Elections, even if a candidate did not submit a profile or record a video for the Guide. Profiles and video scripts were submitted to the CFB by the candidates and are reprinted as supplied, except in the case of egregious errors and minor formatting issues, which may be corrected by the CFB. Videos appearing in this Guide were recorded and approved for broadcast by the candidates. All the candidates have affirmed under penalty of perjury that the information in their profiles and videos is true to the best of their knowledge. Website and social media links were supplied by the candidates. The CFB is not responsible for non-working links, although it does correct or remove them to the extent practicable. The CFB removes links that are not campaign-related.
The views expressed in the candidate profiles, videos, and linked materials do not represent those of the New York City Campaign Finance Board.
