Mental health, teacher diversity and more topics at school board candidate forum
Bemidji PioneerOct 17, 2018
Those were some of a handful of questions candidates for school board here tackled on Tuesday night at the first in a series of forums organized by Citizens for an Informed Electorate, a nonpartisan citizen group that aims to help the public learn more about candidates for local elected offices.
At the school board forum, candidates generally agreed that the district needs more counseling support for its students but several wondered aloud where the funding for it would come from. Incumbent board member
"They're doing student schedules, they're doing stuff for MCA testing, and all of these other things that are taking them away from their skills that they have as counselors," Whiting said. "Certainly, we need more supportive services and counseling and therapeutic services as part of the package, but also allowing our guidance counselors to do some of the counseling that they've been trained to do."
Candidates also generally agreed that the district needs more American Indian teachers.
"I think we really need to concentrate on the individuals that we have in our schools, working with them as students and getting them to graduate, working with them in getting into colleges and graduating, and then bringing them back to our community," Lind said. "I think a lot of the kids that go to school here want to give back."
"We can encourage people that are of Native American descent to be going into teaching, lining it up with student teaching opportunities within the high school area and then giving them job opportunities within the community as well," Young said.
Incumbent board chair
"Now we're lucky if we have 10," Johnson said. "There are just fewer and fewer individuals who are going into teaching, for whatever reason. But with the Native American population that we do have, we would welcome to have more Native American teachers."
And candidates either pointed to graduation rates or racial disparities, especially when it comes to student discipline, as the school district's greatest challenge. (
"Why are they being disciplined more than others?" said Wenona Kingbird, a child abuse prevention coordinator for the
But more than one candidate tied graduation rates to distinct-but-related issues such as attendance rates or mental health services. Beyond those concerns, candidate
Candidate field
This is the first time in years where
The candidates are, in alphabetical order by last name:
Wenona Kingbird, 43, child abuse prevention coordinator for
Future forums
Tuesday's forum was the first of several hosted by Citizens for an Informed Electorate. Here are the remaining forums:
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The forums will be televised live on First City cable TV
Moderators will be
The CIE was formed in 2008 and seeks to provide an outlet for the public to gain more knowledge about candidates in order to make an informed decision at the polls, the release said.
The forums will allow candidates to make opening and closing statements. CIE volunteers will collect written questions on index cards from the audience, screen them for duplication or pertinence and direct them to candidates, rotating who answers first. Questions should cover the gamut of issues, as forums are open to the public.
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