Andre Baker

Andre Baker was born in New Rochelle, New York and, as of September 2019, lives in Bridgeport, Connecticut. He earned an Associate of Applied Science Degree in Mortuary Science from the State University of N.Y. at Farmingdale in 1986. Baker is the owner and CEO of Baker-Isaac Funeral Services and Baker Funeral Services. In 2005 he was elected to the Common Council for the City of Bridgeport 139th East End District where he served for eight years. In 2013 he was elected to serve on the Bridgeport Board of Education where he served for two years. [1]

Andre Baker has not yet completed [the profile publisher]'s 2026 Candidate Connection survey.

If you are Andre Baker, click here to fill out [the profile publisher]'s 2026 Candidate Connection survey.

Who fills out the candidate survey?

Any candidate running for elected office, at any level, can complete [the profile publisher]'s Candidate Survey. Completing the survey will update the candidate's [the profile publisher] profile, letting voters know who they are and what they stand for.  More than 32,000 candidates have taken [the profile publisher]'s candidate survey since we launched it in 2015. Learn more about the survey here.

Help improve [the profile publisher] - send us candidate contact info.

Andre Baker did not complete [the profile publisher]'s 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

Andre Baker did not complete [the profile publisher]'s 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

Andre Baker did not complete [the profile publisher]'s 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

In a letter to Only in Bridgeport, Baker and his fellow Democratic candidates discussed their campaign themes for 2013:[13]

"What can the B.E.S.T. team do? How can the B.E.S.T. team help to give all children the quality public school education they deserve? We were asked these questions repeatedly during our walks around the various neighborhoods in our city. We replied that we are candidates who will demonstrate a commitment to shared governance. We will actively seek input from parents, teachers, administrators, students, and the community. Our team will not handle this participation in a perfunctory way. We will not be beholden to the city administration, the teachers association, any particular interest group, or overly influential parents. We will ask questions and demand answers on any, and all, matters regarding the education deserved by all students. The B.E.S.T. team will support administrators, but challenge them when it is appropriate. The position of the teachers association is to be respected, but will not control the Board’s agenda. Active and vociferous parents must be heard, but not permitted to sway the Board’s objective of doing what’s best for all children in our district.

What happens if the B.E.S.T. team is elected in November? Some of the problems in our schools have been occurring for an extended period of time. It will take an equally long time to rectify those particular issues. A long range plan, implemented by a balanced Board of Education concerned with long term progress of all of our students, will address those. There are some problems, however, that are a direct result of an unqualified leader using a “rubber stamp” Board of Education to do what’s politically expedient, not what’s in the best interests of our children.

These immediate issues facing the Board of Education at its first meeting are many, but are not limited to the following. They are in no particular order.

• Reduction of guidance counselors and subsequent extreme burden for our needy students;

• Loss of vital paraprofessionals for our youngest students;

• Elimination of Math and Reading coaches and tutors;

• Lack of enough nursing/healthcare coverage;

• Expansion of Early Childhood education;

• Overcrowding in many schools;

• Implementation of further testing, which takes away MORE valuable instruction time;

• Continued hiring of inexperienced “teachers” (5 weeks of training) as opposed to teachers with 4 years of training, despite the fact that these inexperienced “teachers” cost more than $3,000 additional dollars per year to employ;

• Inordinate hours by principals working on teacher evaluations, which inhibit them from being the instructional leaders of their schools.

What are the B.E.S.T slate’s solutions? Dave, Howard and Andre will be dedicated to the basic premise that ALL of Bridgeport’s children deserve the same quality public school education that our parents and grandparents received. We will demand of our legislators that the State of Connecticut adopt and implement legislation that fully funds the Education Cost Sharing formula over the next 5 years. It’s currently under-funded by over than $763 million. We will ensure that civility is the norm on the Board of Education, and that all voices are heard and valued."

[14]