I have been a resident of Spokane since moving here to go to Gonzaga at the age of 18. I graduated from Gonzaga University, from Gonzaga University School of Law, and from the University of Florida. My wife, Jane, and my four children are the centers of my universe. I served on the Spokane City Council for four years before becoming Mayor. In 2004 I was elected City Council President after serving as a Council Member.

I am currently engaged in the practice of law in Spokane, specializing in business, transaction and municipal law, and I teach at Gonzaga Law School.

Relevant Work and Volunteer Experience

- Before law school I worked as the Director of Social Services at Headstart in Salt Lake City, helping low income families with children
- As my children grew up I coached all four of them and their friends until they went to high school in baseball, softball basketball and football
- I have been on the Board at Excelsior Youth Center in Spokane for many years. This is a residential treatment facility for adolescents who are troubled, addicted and abused
- I organized the Mayor’s After School Initiative to coordinate all the efforts in our community to provide safe and constructive afterschool opportunities for our children
- I organized the Task Force on Low Income Housing to create solutions for individuals and families who had lost their housing
- I served as a volunteer on the Spokane Park Board for 11 years, including 2 years as President

Youth Issues

- The national conversation is full of references to the state of education, its funding, the quality of teachers and their compensation and benefits, appropriate curriculum, standardized testing, advancement testing and the like. The youth of our country are those affected by it all yet they are left out of the conversation. That isn’t right!
- Many of your peers are victims of a society that isn’t taking care of those less fortunate. What responsibility will you accept to be a part of the solution?
- There is a lot of pressure on students to go to college yet only 30% of the U.S. population is college educated and only slightly increasing. How do we fairly provide alternatives to kids that allow them to pursue career alternatives to college?
- Traditional high school isn’t for everyone. How do we create more flexibility and alternatives, like Running Start, for those who don’t relate to a four-year high school model?