Frank Burns

Frank Burns was born in Chicago, Illinois. Burns' career experience includes working as a scientist. He earned a bachelor's degree from Villanova University in 1981 and a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1986.[1]

Burns has been affiliated with the following organizations:[1]

Sierra Club

Mom's Demand Action

People for Offshore Wind Energy Resources

RespondDE

American Society for Microbiology

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

- I am a father, an accomplished scientist and community activist who will fight for the future of Delaware.

- Giving back to my community is a passion. During the COVID pandemic I volunteered with RespondDE (the Delaware reserve medical corps) to staff testing and vaccination sites so we could keep our essential services running. A longtime volunteer with the Food Bank of Delaware, I regularly organize mobile food pantry distributions in our community. I also serve on the Board of Directors at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Mill Creek.

- I grew up in a working poor household and was the first generation in my family to attend college which I was able to do when Villanova University offered to fund the National Merit Scholarship I had been awarded. That with working, loans, a Basic Educational Opportunity Grant (now renamed Pell Grants) allowed me to attend college. The National Institutes of Health then awarded me a pre-doctoral fellowship that enabled me to obtain my PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Pennsylvania Medical School.

- I was a medical school professor for over a decade and then in 2003 I joined a small Biotech company (Qualicon) in Wilmington that was subsequently acquired by DuPont. In 2019 I formed a biotech company focused on beneficial microbes with the mission to "Unblock the potential of the microbial universe to benefit humanity". We work on novel probiotics and microbes that can break down chemical pollutants.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Delaware's future depends on a well-functioning educational system. We have to do better. We need to provide adequate and equitable funding so all Delaware students can thrive, provide universal Pre-K education, and address student behavior issues by providing increased professional and paraprofessionals staffing adequate to help students who have difficulty controlling their behavior. Classroom success is intimately tied to a student's physical, and emotional well-being. Breakfast and lunch should be provided without means testing. Feeling stigma for being poor is no fun, I've lived it. Situations at home can also change quickly and not all with the means provide well for their children. Let's set our students up for success!Delaware deserves a future built on industries that won't destroy our environment. Green energy generation and storage as well as biologically based business are two such industries that I have worked for over a decade promoting here in Delaware.Affordable housing is key to keeping and attracting workers. We face workforce shortages across a wide variety of essential positions, (teachers, police, nurses etc.) The lack of affordable housing drives people out of state and drives up the costs of filling those positions. No one should work for less than a livable wage, and as our housing costs skyrocket, what constitutes a livable wage in Delaware also rises. Trying to cover the shortages with overtime and/or constantly increasing their workload drives workers out of their profession or out of state. Housing is a key underlying issue impacting multiple aspects of life here in Delaware.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Pro-future, building a future for Delaware that promotes the health, safety and well-being of all Delawareans.

Pro-choice, we own our own bodies, reproductive, end of life choices, who we choose to marry and how we identify ourselves should be only our business. Currently we have rights protected by state law that need to be raised to state constitutional levels of protection. Ohio wasn't always a red state, and we need to safeguard these rights so they cannot be easily stripped away from Delawareans in the future.

Pro-worker, we should reset and then index the minimum wage for inflation and extend Delaware's worker protection laws to cover domestic and agricultural employees

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

R. Buckminster Fuller. In his early life he was living in poverty and his three-year-old daughter had died from complications of polio. He was considering suicide so that his family could have his life insurance payment. Instead, he chose to pursue "an experiment, to find what a single individual could contribute to changing the world and benefiting all humanity". He contributed a lot, and we are still benefitting from his contributions.

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

I am a scientist; I make my decisions based on the best information available. I am not an adherent of a particular political philosophy. We need to make decisions serve the best interest of our community and that are not short sighted.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Honesty and a commitment to helping those the official serves.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

I am swayed by information, not rhetoric and I focus on the long-term impacts of decisions. I will not waste time on short-term feel-good band aides but will work for real and enduring solutions to the problems we face.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

To represent the interests of those who elected them, maintain communications with the community and to communicate to the residents of the district the laws that are being considered and their potential impact on those in the community.

What legacy would you like to leave?

I would like to be known for having done what I could to make the future brighter.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

Paper boy, two years.

What is your favorite book? Why?

I love the Lord of the Rings trilogy. I remember when I first read it and being enthralled, but the memory of reading the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings trilogy to my son when he was young endear those books to me in a way others cannot match.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

George Bailey (from Its a Wonderful Life).

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

I grew up on a working poor household. The anxiety when there simply wasn't enough money to make ends meet was palpable, even though our parents tried their best to hide the situation from us. We were moving again; the word eviction wasn't ever used by my parents in our presence.

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between the governor and state legislature?

The state legislature needs to stand as an independent branch of the government. The relationship should be one of mutual respect for the role that each play.

What do you perceive to be your state's greatest challenges over the next decade?

Fixing our educational system. Providing adequate housing to meet our needs. Transitioning our economy to industries that don't ruin the environment and dealing with the legacy of chemical contamination that haunts Delaware.

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for state legislators to have previous experience in government or politics?

No, in Delaware we have part time legislators for a reason, we want people with a wide range of different experiences involved in the legislative process.

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other legislators? Please explain your answer.

Yes, you need to work together, no one has a monopoly on good ideas. Every legislator also brings to the table what they have heard from their constituents. It is only through an interactive and deliberative process that the best legislation can be put forward.

Is there a particular legislator, past or present, whom you want to model yourself after?

No

Are you interested in running for a different political office (for example, the U.S. Congress or governor) in the future?

No

Both sitting legislators and candidates for office hear many personal stories from the residents of their district. Is there a story that you’ve heard that you found particularly touching, memorable, or impactful?

Yes. Linda, in her mid 70's was living in an apartment complex where she had resided for over a decade. When she moved there, she was employed, had a car and was carrying on with life. She worked as a dry wall installer but at one point was "retired" by her employer. With the drop in income, she could no longer afford insurance and gave up her car. Public transit on the route 18 bus, the closest to her home, was too infrequent and stopped too early for her to use. She often walked two miles both ways along Polly Drummond Hill Road to Capital Trail, where she could get the route 6 bus that had a more reliable schedule. She was doing this for everything from medical appointments to shopping. She called me when she wanted to participate in one of the drive through mobile food pantries we organize but couldn't because she had no car. I took her to the Food Bank to help her get the groceries she needed. We often think of this district as fairly well off, but we have many people struggling. In addition to helping with her immediate needs, there were resources available that I was able to bring to her attention. We need to better share information on the resources that are available to those in need and must always be mindful that poverty can happen to anyone, and is present, sometimes unseen, in our community.

Tell us your favorite joke.

Should the legislature oversee or grant the use of emergency powers?

Yes, there should be timely legislative review of any emergency powers invoked by the governor.

What is the first bill you would introduce if elected?

If not already re-introduced by others, it would be to create an independent office of state inspector general to root out corruption.

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

Sierra club, Stonewall PAC, Progressive Democrats for Delaware, 3.14Action, Working Families Party,

What committees interest you?

Education, Natural Resources and Energy, Economic Development/Banking/Insurance & Commerce, Health and Human Development.

What are your views on financial transparency and government accountability?

We need to have greater financial transparency in government, and we need to enact the independent Inspector General legislation that was introduced by Senator Sturgeon last year.

Would a state ballot initiative process be good or bad for your state?

I support initiative and referendum. The initiative process is allowed in 24 states and can should be available to Delawareans.

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am passionate about creating a better world. I have a strong track record of professional accomplishment as a former medical school professor, scientist, inventor and bio-tech entrepreneur. Although this is my first time seeking elected office, I am a long-time political activist with need to address climate change a central area of my activities. I have also served as a volunteer organizer on political campaigns for candidates I believe in ranging from national to local. I am also a father and have a long record of volunteer activism with both professional and humanitarian organizations.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

I am Pro-Choice. I believe ownership of one's own body is the most fundamental right.I am Pro-Worker. I believe that a living wage and corresponding benefits are the right of every full time worker. I support strong unions as a primary means of strengthening the middle class and achieving a fairer distribution of wealth in our society.I am Pro-future. We need to look beyond our immediate horizon. Everything from climate change to emerging diseases presents us with challenges and opportunities. We need to be drivers, not road kill, on the road to the future.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I am passionate about environmental issues and our tendency to sell out our future for immediate gain.

I am passionate about self ownership and bodily autonomy.

I am passionate about all workers being treated with dignity and receiving wages and benefits that allow them a decent standard of living.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My first jobs were delivering newspapers and gardening and dog walking for neighbors. My first job with a paycheck was working the grill at McDonald's between my sophomore and Junior year in high school.

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between the governor and state legislature?

I believe the state legislature should act as a co-equal and independent branch of government.

Are you interested in running for a different political office (for example, the U.S. Congress or governor) in the future?

No

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

I believe that compromise can be necessary, often the things we need to achieve are achieved in frustratingly small increments, but small steps lead places.