Broward school board member Maura McCarthy Bulman submits re-election bid
Broward District 1 school board member Maura McCarthy Bulman has put in her re-election bid for a sophomore run at the position, according to county records.
Her region includes portions of Pembroke Pines, Miramar, Dania Beach, Pembroke Park and Tribal Land, as well as the cities of Hollywood, Hallandale Beach and West Park.
As a representative for the district’s southeast schools, Pines’ easternmost schools — Pasadena Lakes Elementary and Pembroke Pines Elementary — fall under her.
Miramar’s Lake Forest Elementary, Miramar Elementary and the Henry D. Perry Education Center also fall under her district.
“I believe in creating a nurturing, safe learning environment for all students, where they can explore diverse ideas and perspectives,” reads a statement on Bulman’s campaign website.
“Our schools must be places where students thrive, and teachers are valued and supported. Our teachers deserve competitive pay and the resources they need to succeed. They are the backbone of our schools, and I will fight for them.”
Bulman was first elected to the board in 2024 under a partial term alongside first-timer Rebecca Thompson, Broward’s District 2 representative who oversees southwest schools in Pembroke Pines, Miramar, Davie, Cooper City and Southwest Ranches.
Both ousted their predecessors — Gov. Ron DeSantis-appointed Torey Alston and Daniel Penha Foganholi Sr. — in the 2024 election cycle by a landslide, with Bulman receiving 51% of votes to Foganholi’s 20% for the District 1 spot, WSVN, Channel 7 reported in 2024.
Records show she’s running unopposed as of Jan. 13 for the same seat this cycle, having filed her candidacy paperwork with the Broward Supervisor of Elections on Jan. 12.
Bulman’s last campaign was underscored by the rocky beginnings of BCPS’ Redefining Our Schools initiative, the district’s plan to close, repurpose or consolidate underenrolled schools to mitigate a drop in funding.
She’s previously criticized the district’s failure to develop strategies to retain and attract students to public schools, adding that BCPS “tends to focus on bemoaning financial shortfalls” instead of properly advertising its unique educational offerings.
“(The) School District should move forward with identifying schools that are struggling with enrollment and use the 2025-2026 school year to look at the leadership in those schools to determine whether a change may move the school in a positive direction,” she told the Sun Sentinel in July 2024.
“Additionally, the School District should implement programming that is working in schools that are not struggling with enrollment and engage in an active media campaign focusing on citizen engagement with our public schools to promote the wide array of programming that only our public schools can offer.”
Though no schools in her region made BCPS Superintendent Howard Hepburn’s December 2025 closure recommendations in, proposed boundary shifts and changes could affect District 1’s Hallandale High School.
Bulman is a mother of four sons who attend District 1 public schools in Broward and resides in Hollywood with her family.
Before serving as a school board member, she worked as a solo practitioner housing litigation attorney focusing on business and real estate transactions and an instructor at Broward College, according to her website.
Her volunteer work includes the Broward Healthy Start Coalition, leadership positions on Hollywood Central Elementary’s Parent Teacher Association and School Advisory Forum as well as Attucks Middle School’s School Advisory Forum.
“I know firsthand how vital strong public education is to our community,” reads her website’s homepage. “That’s why I’m running for the Broward County School Board.”
