Tom Egan: Investing in matters of trust

Deirdre Newman

Tom Egan said his analytical background and team-building skills

will serve him well as a school board trustee.

In his extensive experience working as an engineer, Egan has had

to manage diverse projects and deal with a wide range of

personalities.

“I have quite a reputation working as a bridge builder,” Egan

said. “[In one consulting job], there were two teams that didn’t like

each other, but I was trusted by both sides and wasn’t even an

employee.”

As a 16-year Costa Mesa resident, Egan has also immersed himself

in a wide range of community activities, including the library

foundation and the community redevelopment action committee.

He took a hands-on approach to contributing to the Newport-Mesa

Unified School District, installing an interactive sundial on the

playground of Killybrooke Elementary School to help students improve

their understanding of numbers.

Egan originally considered running for Costa Mesa City Council but

didn’t think he could win. So at the urging of friends, he decided to

run for the school board.

“It’s more of an intellectual position than City Council, so I

feel quite comfortable,” Egan said.

Egan said his perspective on education has been honed since he

spent a lot of time in school, racking up a bachelor’s and two

master’s degrees as well as a certificate of urban planning from UCI.

There are two underlying issues that the district needs to focus

on -- trust and resources, Egan said.

While trust has been eroded in most areas of government, it is an

especially important issue for parents, Egan said.

“I don’t like the absence of trust we have,” Egan said. “It’s like

driving with the brakes on. You can get somewhere, but it’s very

inefficient.”

Dealing with a limited budget also puts more emphasis on

stretching resources, Egan said. He supports increasing technology in

the classroom, to make teachers more productive, and continuing the

district’s efforts to create partnerships with business and academic

entities.

Egan said focusing on critical thinking skills in the classroom is

also imperative.

“It’s clear to me that this is vital,” Egan said. “Here we are in

the information age in the global economy and a person really needs a

lot of savvy. It’s a special kind of savvy.”

Egan would like to see the district not teach with only the

numerous standardized tests in mind. One way to avoid that is to

align the curriculum with the tests, which is already happening.

He also doesn’t buy into the notion that you get quality by

testing. He believes you should build quality into instruction

instead.

“I’d like to see everything the district does starting in

kindergarten be high quality and monitor it,” Egan said. “I’m not

saying the district is delinquent ....All the things the district is

doing -- I would just amp it up.”