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Dear Friends:

I am offering myself as candidate for the Michigan State Board of Education.

My experience includes the follows: I have taught/administered schools for about 25 years. I helped organize a successful Detroit charter school (Old Redford Academy), and have served as president of another Public School Academy (Woodward Academy, Detroit). I hold graduate degrees in education from University of Michigan (MA) and Wayne State (Ed.Spec.), an MTS in Church History from Harvard and a Doctor of Ministry from Detroit Ecumenical Theological Seminary (writing on parochial schools in Detroit). My 4 children have attended charter, parochial and Detroit Public schools (including a salutatorian for Detroit School of Fine & Performing Arts, and valedictorian at Detroit Renaissance). My wife is a regional administrator for CMU's Charter School Center. I did some speaking on behalf of ballot proposals and enjoyed this very much. I had the honor of speaking at Mitt Romney's announcement at the Henry Ford in Dearborn last year.

I would welcome the opportunity to articulate an inclusive vision of state education policy that recognizes partnership with, not control of, the private sphere, and the primacy of parental responsibility expressed in meaningful choice. Diversity of educational opportunity is imperative.

Your support is solicited, and your suggestions as to issues that need to be addressed by the State Board are desired.

Candidates for the State Board of Education are usually nominated by the state political parties in a summer convention. I will be soliciting a nomination from the Republican Party and have been in correspondence with Saul Anuzis about this.

Cordially,

Dr. Richard Zeile, Headmaster, St. John's Lutheran School, Taylor, MI

16800 Plainview, Detroit, MI 48219 (313.802.1146)