Four candidates square offfor open Jeffco schools seats

By Vic Vela

Regardless of what happens during an upcoming recall of the conservative Jefferson County school board majority, the board is certain to have new members.

Four candidates are vying for two open board seats this fall in races that will have just as much of an impact on the direction of the board as the results of the recall itself.

“I feel like this election in Jeffco will define education, not just in Colorado,” said board candidate Ali Lasell. “Nationally, eyes are on Colorado. This is a very important election for Jeffco public schools.”

Board President Ken Witt, Vice President Julie Williams and Secretary John Newkirk all face ouster after thousands of Jeffco residents signed petitions to force a recall, scheduled for Nov. 3.

The board majority —swept into power by an overwhelming share of voters in November 2013 — has been at the center of several controversies, including ones related to transparency issues, financial dealings and proposed changes to curriculum that made national headlines.

The three conservatives stand by their record, arguing they were elected because Jeffco voters wanted reform. They point to increased choices for students and better accountability standards for teachers among the work they’ve accomplished. They also contend that charges made by their opponents are overblown or inaccurate.

Witt, Williams and Newkirk each face at least one opponent in their recall races. And two candidates will square off in each of the two contests for open seats.

Lasell vs. Johnson

Lasell, a teacher, will face Kim Johnson, a former commercial property manager, in a race to represent District 3 — one that includes the northwest part of the county, including Arvada. The seat is currently held by Jill Fellman, who will not be seeking another term — a decision she acknowledges was made, in part, due to the board majority’s policy decisions.

Lasell, a parent of two Jeffco children, has taught math and science in Adams County for the last 25 years. There, she has taught at schools with high rates of poverty and schools that are among top performers.

Lasell’s campaign website lists endorsements from several key players in Jeffco politics, including Democratic U.S. Reps. Ed Perlmutter and Jared Polis, as well as state Sen. Andy Kerr of Lakewood and Tracy Kraft-Tharp of Arvada, also Democrats.

Former Jeffco schools Superintendent Cindy Stevenson is also backing Lasell’s bid and former Arvada Mayor Ken Fellman – Jill Fellman’s husband – is serving as her campaign co-chairman.

Lasell is a critic of the current board majority.

“I’ve been to every board meeting for the past 17 months and at each board meeting my concerns grow about the lack of accountability and transparency,” she said.

Lasell said when she talks to voters, their biggest concern is over “the hemorrhaging of teachers and district leaders.”

The district has moved to a controversial pay-for-performance model that has rankled many teachers. And a temporary teachers union-district contract set to expire next summer could bring about more policy changes if the majority retains control.

Lasell said she hopes a new-look board will invite all voices to be heard, not just the ones who agree.

“The most important thing right now is trying to restore some sense of sanity to this situation,” she said. “And the only way to do that is to include all stakeholders again whose voices have basically been muted the past two years.”

For the last 12 years, Johnson has been an active Jeffco volunteer inside classrooms and has served on various district committees. Like Lasell, she is raising two children who attend Jeffco schools.

Johnson’s endorsements include Libby Szabo, a Jeffco county commissioner and former state lawmaker. She is also backed by Arvada Councilman John Marriott and John Bodnar, chairman of the Arvada Chamber of Commerce, according to information on Johnson’s campaign website.

Although Lasell claims Johnson is a backer of the current board majority, Johnson insists she is “very much an independent voice.”

“I am neither a supporter nor opponent of any current board member,” she said.

Johnson said community members have expressed concerns over the current tone on the board. She aims to change that.

“I believe that reasonable people can disagree and have rich conversations, find common ground and really make some rich, innovative decisions that way,” she said.

Johnson would like to see more classroom time being spent on instruction rather than test-taking. But she’s taking a wait-and-see approach to changes put in place by the State Legislature this year that reduced standardized testing hours for students.

Johnson also supports giving parents more choices over where they send their kids to school — an issue she doesn’t think should be a hot-button one.

“Choice isn’t just about charter schools,” she said. “My kids go to my neighborhood elementary school and that was a choice.”

Merritts vs. Stevens

The District 4 match-up pits a would-be board newcomer and a rival who has extensive board experience. The winner will replace Lesley Dahlkemper representing a district that includes most of Lakewood. Dahlkemper has chosen not to run for another term.

Tori Merritts served on the Jeffco school board from 1994-2003. She has worked in various education capacities in Jeffco for much of the last 40 years and claims to have more education policy-making training “than just about anybody else in the state of Colorado.”

Merritts said she jumped in the race when she found out about the recall. She’s concerned that there may be too many fresh faces serving on the board next year, a task she said requires a “very steep learning curve.”

“We have the possibility of electing five brand new people who have no board of education experience,” she said.

Merritts differs from other candidates when it comes to opinions of the perceived discord on the current board.

“There’s always a certain amount of that on a school board and … people come from different places,” she said. “And there should be (dissent). There’s always a certain tension there. If everyone gets along and everyone is pointed in the same direction. How do make changes? How do we get better?”

Merritts worked on boards that approved charter schools in Jeffco. And she is a supporter of Jeffco’s teacher pay-for-performance model.

And Merritts is no fan of the recall.

“The question in my mind is — when does it stop? Are we gong to be doing recall every two years,” she said.

Merritts will face Amanda Stevens, a Jeffco native. Stevens felt “disconnected” in high school and dropped out during a time of family crisis. She earned her high school equivalency diploma and ultimately obtained a master’s degree in education.

Stevens’ endorsements include Dahlkemper, Jill Fellman and several prominent Democrats, including Perlmutter. She is also receiving the backing of Tina Gurdikian, the Jeffco parent who helped launch the recall effort.

Stevens is critical of many of the board’s decisions, including those involving 3rd-grade reading-readiness testing, decisions she said have harmed valuable student data collection and cost the district money.

“I think sometimes when you make decisions quickly, without listening to all of the stakeholders, costs that you haven’t anticipated come and those cost the kids,” Stevens said.

Stevens supports teacher pay increases and backs a teacher-accountability system that “supports continuous improvement, not when it punishes and shames.”

Like other candidates, Stevens hopes to bring harmony to the board.

“For me, education isn’t one’s political football,” she said. “I’m not interested in seeing our district swing from one political side to another.”

“I believe cooperation at the school board table means debate; it means disagreement, but it also means purposeful listening.”

— Twitter: @VicVela1