Election 2021: St. Paul school board candidates
Oct. 22—ST. PAUL SCHOOL BOARD, FOUR-YEAR TERM (THREE SEATS)
James Farnsworth
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Age: 23
— What qualifies you to hold this position? I'm a graduate of Saint Paul Public Schools, son of two public school teachers, and have extensive governance and community engagement experience which uniquely prepares me to serve. I've stayed actively involved in district issues and policymaking which coupled with my background, makes me ready to get to work.
— What would your top priorities be if elected? Immediately addressing the crisis of declining enrollment. Ensuring robust, ongoing community engagement is happening surrounding the Envision SPPS initiative. Actively participating alongside colleagues from across the state in advocacy for fully funded public schools.
— What do you think is the primary role of government? I believe the primary role of government is to protect basic human rights, provide critical services and support to residents, and to serve as a catalyst for thought-leadership and innovation to improve lives.
— How would you rate Minnesota's response to the coronavirus? What would you do differently? I strongly commend Governor Walz for his public health based approach to managing the COVID-19 crisis. Especially when it comes to our schools, I'm incredibly grateful to have a former teacher at the helm making decisions with the health and safety of students, families, educators, and staff front of mind.
— Website or contact: jamesforspps.com
Halla Henderson
— Age: 27
— What qualifies you to hold this position? I work directly with young people as the Policy Director of a statewide youth advisory council, the Minnesota Youth Council, where we assist and empower students to advocate for their community This allows me to understand the importance of working directly with our community on board issues and it brings a fresh perspective to board governance.
— What would your top priorities be if elected? Throughout this campaign, Saint Paul's young people have been clear that they need additional mental health supports, restorative practices in place of as many punitive measures as possible, and curriculum and educators that reflect the diversity of district.
— What do you think is the primary role of government? The primary role of local government, or in this case the school board, is to hold responsibility for the care and outcomes of the district. Additionally, I believe a fundamental role of holding office is to establish strong bonds and connections within community and ensure that we are governing with people as opposed to for them.
— How would you rate Minnesota's response to the coronavirus? What would you do differently? COVID-19 has shown what is possible when we pull together. However, it also showed how trust can erode with poor communication. For the past 18 months, our educators and families have worked to provide a stable environment for our students. However, the way that information was rolled out to families was inconsistent and, at times, was unclear.
— Website or contact: hallaforspps.com; @hallaforspps (IG, Twitter, and Facebook); team@hallaforspps.com (email)
Jennifer McPherson
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Age: 39
— What qualifies you to hold this position? I listen to families, educators, and community members, I am a planner, thinker, and problem solver. I put children first and make common sense decisions.
— What would your top priorities be if elected? Rebuild the district, school choice, and special education.
— What do you think is the primary role of government? The primary role of the government is to provide leadership, maintain order, and provide public services.
— How would you rate Minnesota's response to the coronavirus? What would you do differently? 5. We started good and gave up. I would have expanded online learning, kept stores closed a little longer, and never said mask optional, elementary schools would be closed until the vaccine was ready for 11 and under.
— Website or contact: votejenmcpherson.org; jennifermcpherson.org.
Jim Vue
— Age: 41
— What qualifies you to hold this position? I'm a Hmong father of 4 children who attend SPPS. My two sons who are 14 and 12 years old are diagnosed with Autism and I'm committed to ensuring they receive a quality education. This is my initiation into the school system and advocating for all my children has afforded me the ability to bring clarity, focus and alignment into my work.
— What would your top priorities be if elected? My top priorities are creating opportunities for parents and students to impact the governance of the school board, increasing language support for English learner families, aligning strategic focus areas with sound fiscal stewardship and holding leadership in administration accountable for demonstrating progress towards clear and measurable goals.
— What do you think is the primary role of government? Government must increase participation in its systems to adapt to the changing needs of its people, align priorities with essential resources to complete goals, carry forward the work through policy and resolutions, and have the vision to serve all its people by learning from its past, act on opportunities in the present and secure a better future.
— How would you rate Minnesota's response to the coronavirus? What would you do differently? Covid-19 is a moving target and continues to survive and spread. For the most part, Minnesotans have been resilient, checked on its neighbors and grieved together when called upon. Going forward, I recommend we understand the disproportionate impact of Covid-19 and use data to target support for those who need it most.
— Website or contact: jimvueforspps.org.
Uriah Ward
— Age: 30
— What qualifies you to hold this position? I'm a financial aid administrator, former classroom teacher, and labor union organizer with a Master of Arts in Education and experience supporting student development. Our schools should meet the individual needs of all of our students. I know what it looks like when we fall short so I'm running to help build the schools our students deserve.
— What would your top priorities be if elected? I'm running to make sure we put our students first in every decision we make. To meet their needs, I want to see us reduce class sizes, invest in mental health supports, support the arts, and make certain we have a nurse in every school. We need a curriculum that reflects the diversity of our district and we need to work to build our enrollment.
— What do you think is the primary role of government? Government is where the community comes together to achieve great things that we cannot achieve on our own. It's where we address the needs of the community and help the people who need help the most. It's where we make important investments — like public education — that make everyone's lives better.
— How would you rate Minnesota's response to the coronavirus? What would you do differently? Minnesota has done a much better job responding to the pandemic than many of our neighboring states. That being said, I would like to see us push harder to institute mask and vaccine mandates. If we're going to keep our schools open, we need to take every step we can to mitigate the spread of the virus.
— Website or contact: uriahward.com
Ryan Williams
Candidate information not available.
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ST. PAUL SCHOOL BOARD, TWO-YEAR TERM
Clayton Howatt
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Age: 46
— What qualifies you to hold this position? I have extensive service history within SPPS. I helped create and served as president for three years, our school's PTO. I served on the SPPS Budget Finance Advisory Committee. I served on the SPPS/SPFE Integration Task Force, where we made specific recommendations to address increased segregation, and more. Day 1 I will be ready.
— What would your top priorities be if elected? My three top priorities are addressing the lack of progress in various areas related to equity. Treat the enrollment losses as the emergency they are. Lastly, to work to put SPPS in a firm financial footing, perennial cuts to our budget need to end.
— What do you think is the primary role of government? To provide high quality service with democratically elected and transparent oversight.
— How would you rate Minnesota's response to the coronavirus? What would you do differently? I would rate the response to COVID as OK. COVID is still raging and we need to treat it as it will not go away. That means investing in healthier indoor environments, especially in our schools. It also means greatly expanding our testing capabilities.
— Website or contact: claytonforschoolboard.com.
Jeannie Foster
Candidate information not available.
