Harlem’s Congressional Candidates: ‘Charter Schools Help Boost STEM’

Thursday’s Silicon Harlem debate among seven candidates was a revealing dialogue about how the debaters each would represent the 13th congressional district as Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.) retires. The conversation centered on tech and innovation policy and how government can work in tandem with the private sector to spur innovation.Bold and Opportunity Lives were co-sponsors of the event, which I was honored to co-moderate with my colleague Izzy Ortega, along with lead moderator Richard Lui of MSNBC and Jamil Smith of MTV. The candidates were fixtures in the Harlem community: New York Assemblyman Keith “LT” Wright, Assemblyman Guillermo Linares, state Sen. Adriano Espaillat, former Assemblyman Adam Clayton Powell IV, former Amb. Suzan Johnson Cook, Clyde Williams, former domestic policy advisor for President Bill Clinton, and Michael Gallagher, a former business executive.Candidates spoke on how to improve access to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education, lower taxes for small businesses and ensure a level playing field for technology competition and innovation.Izzy’s question on charter schools was one of the most important of the debate; he asked it during the “lightning round” question session, when candidates were required to respond in one word. Izzy pointed out that since candidates expressed a desire to…
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