Thoughts on School Board Election

Call me old-fashioned, but I like to know people’s full names.  I also despise the invisible souls who feel the courage to pop off in public discourse but don’t have the guts to leave their names.  I’ve seen a few of those over the years, responding to my blog topics.

 

I figure that if I’m brave enough to put my name on any opinions expressed in public, others should do the same.

I grew up in an era where knowledge of people’s real and full names, their background--- education, past places of residence, travels, interests and their specific career experiences---often provided valuable insight into their overall profile.

I think it still does.

When people refuse to divulge information about themselves, I become suspicious, figuring there must be a hidden motive for such reluctance.

 

Furthermore, when these situations involve people, as relative unknowns, entering into the public spotlight and asking the citizenry to put all our trust in their decision-making, I’m just as afraid of them as they are about divulging whatever it is they want to hide.

They ask us to trust them, yet they don’t trust us enough to know anything of substance about them.

We seem to have a lot of that showing up in political campaigns recently, and we’re faced with it once again in our upcoming school board election.

   

In two cases, I know the candidates' names and the position for which they are running. I’ve also seen their signs appearing all over the community.  I’ve read letters in the paper, all providing the same canned, vague information about these candidate but very few specifics. Just this morning, I finally saw pictures of them.

Letters to the editor are one thing---opinion written specifically to support a cause or idea or person.  As a journalist, however, I’m fully aware of the difference between commentary and facts.

Yesterday, while reading the Daily Bee, I was disappointed to see that two individuals for Tuesday’s election refused to provide information for a feature about candidates appearing on Tuesday's ballot. This morning I saw the same tactic used in the Sandpoint Reader.

With all due respect, when candidates bypass such opportunities to unmask themselves, a big, boldface headline appears in my mind:  DO NOT VOTE FOR THE MYSTERY PERSON.

It appears that we, indeed, have two mystery candidates in this school board election who have generally chosen to hold back information about themselves from the electorate (or at least from ALL of the electorate). This decision makes me wonder if they have something to hide.

We, the general public, do now know their names---at least the names that appear on all the campaign signs---but we know virtually nothing else.

 

As a voter, I don’t know where or how these people earned their education or their qualifications to sit on a school board. I don’t know if they have ever had any children enrolled in our local public schools.  I have no idea what they intend to do to support the programs, instructors and students in our public schools.  I also don’t know if they have an axe to grind regarding public education.

   

Nevertheless, I do have my instincts to guide me.  Those are the same instincts that warn us whenever we approach anything unfamiliar or potentially dangerous in life.  In such cases, we must proceed with great caution and often with a healthy dose of skepticism.

Therefore, as a cautious skeptic, I prefer to cast my vote for known entities, especially when it means preserving a proven and widely successful public education system here in our Lake Pend Oreille School District.

This past week I voted at the Bonner County elections office for current School Board member Joel Molander, and I enthusiastically encourage voters in the Zone 4 to vote for Geraldine Lewis on Tuesday.

At least, these two individuals are not afraid to give their names, express their opinions and provide any and all information needed for voters to make a somewhat educated decision.  These candidates also have a proven track record of supporting and caring about our local schools.

As a lifelong resident of this community, local classroom teacher for 33 years, mother of a highly regarded Sandpoint High School instructor (William Love), sister to two successful, longtime local educators (Barbara and Laurie Tibbs) and former colleague, friend or teacher of dozens of our fine local educators,  I encourage voters to select candidates Molander and Lewis.

 

I have no doubt that they will do their best to keep our local schools on the positive track which they have followed for the past several years. Furthermore, I’m sure hundreds of our graduates throughout the world who bring credibility to these efforts because of their own impressive successes would agree.

Thank you for voting for Geraldine Lewis and Joel Molander in Tuesday’s election and for encouraging other voters in Zones 4 and 5 to do the same.