ABOUT ME
Hi, I'm LaToya
WHERE I COME FROM
LaToya is a young woman who grew up in Southfield (a neighborhood in Columbus, Ohio). This is where she learned to work hard, become innovative and learned there are NO EXCUSES!
A THRIVING CAREER & FAMILY
An eleven-year United States Army Veteran with over sixteen years of experience in Human Resources, Workforce Development, Health Administration, Business Development and Media/Public Affairs. She has attended several military schools, US Government Leadership Academies and attended the Ohio Christian University Leadership/Ministry. LaToya has served as the Marketing Director for several churches, nonprofits and currently serves as the Marketing Director for the Columbus Gospel Fest since 2018. She is a sought-after mastermind behind any business venture or event. Her clients have affectionately given her the hashtag "#turnitovertotoya".
LaToya is the owner and operator of two winning businesses in Groveport, Ohio: La Ti Do Music Co. LLC, a full-service marketing firm where she has had great success with her first client Men of God’s Heart. Her firm assisted them reaching the Gospel Billboard Charts for seven weeks, earning them a 2018 Stellar Award Nomination for the self-entitled album where her she has studio credit and songwriter credit (Lay It All Down). She has worked the Stellar Awards red-carpet and several press rooms interviewing some of the music industry greats and currently hosts her own show entitled “Talks with Toya” on the four-time Stellar Award Nominated Internet Radio station via Facebook Live & YouTube. She also has the pleasure of running Butterfly Journey LLC, a full-service political campaign management firm which successfully ran the campaign for Judge Stephanie Mingo in 2019. She is a proud member of the National Veteran Business Association and the National Association of Women Business Owners for the past five years.
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To make a difference for her children, she applied to a vacant seat on the Groveport Madison Local School District’s Board of Education in 2020 and was unanimously voted in by her peers. Within six months, her peers nominated and voted her in as the Groveport Madison Local Schools Board Vice President. LaToya is a strong advocate for education, youth, diversity and inclusion. She currently serves on the Groveport Madison’s schools Code RRED (Race Relations, Equity & Diversity) Committee. LaToya is currently running as Dowdell-Burger for Groveport Madison Schools for a full term and will be on the November 2021 ballot.
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LaToya enjoys singing, writing music, and “anything artsy.” She and her husband have a blended family with seven children ranging in age from 3 to 24.
CANDIDATE STATEMENT
LATOYA DOWDELL-BURGER
Immediately after serving her Operation Iraqi Freedom tour, LaToya chose to settle in Groveport with her family, and has been a resident for over fourteen years. As a Business owner, Human Resources professional, wife, mother of four, Veteran and Minister with eleven years in the military and fifteen years of Federal Government service, it has been her life’s mission to serve others. In this role, she can bring her servant attitude and leadership skills to the team.
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She has created cultivated, managed, and reformed several projects, departments, and processes with great success. The key to her success is teamwork; building a solid team to effectively accomplish the mission and tasks with identifiable key performance indicators. In addition to building teams, effective communication and emotional intelligence are a priority in connecting with your customer (community/district) and developing strategic business partnerships. All these factors must be of great importance to providing all children of our district a quality education.
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After a review of our Ohio Department of Education District Report Card, we have some room for improvement; however, we have made great strides as well. One area that caught her eye the most was the Prepared for Success metric. This metric is very important as you all are aware, and her network, skills, and ideas can assist with improving our overall grade.
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LaToya comes to the position open-minded, ready to serve, and with the drive to perform the duties of a Groveport Madison School Board member. She is excited and would love to serve our district alongside you.