The Congressional District 2 Colorado State Board of Education contest between two Democrats, former Boulder Valley School Board president Kathy Gebhardt and charter school consultant Marisol Rodriguez, is a perfect experiment in election politics. Here’s the test question: will money do all the talking or will experience and sound decision-making hold water?

It’s astounding how much money Progressives Supporting Teachers and Students, an independent expenditure committee (IEC), has put into Marisol Rodriguez for the seat currently held by Angelika Schroeder, a reliable charter school voter on the State Board of Education. Rodriguez has raised $33,000 for her campaign. As of June 18, the “Progressives” committee, a front for the Colorado League of Charter Schools, has spent $1.13 million on mail, TV ads and social media in support of Rodriguez or against Gebhardt to buy this seat.

What other purpose does more than $1 million paid out for a usually obscure elected office have? Even so, the people of Colorado don’t know who is putting up the money in support of Rodriguez because “Progressives’” IEC doesn’t disclose donors. One inference is most likely: only the richest of the rich have put in their dollars for this campaign.

Stay up to speed: Sign up for daily opinion in your inbox Monday-Friday

Gebhardt has raised $71,000 for her campaign. Of that, she’s received about $9,000 from the local unions in the CD2 district. Her remaining contributors are the many individuals who know her work as president of the Boulder Valley School Board and as a public school finance attorney who argued the case that set the stage for the state’s BEST funds to build, equalize and improve school facilities. The result of the case ensures all kids have a fair shot at decent physical infrastructure for their education.

Let’s examine the facts to compare the two candidates. Gebhardt’s mother was an elementary school teacher who guided her daughter into her interest in public education. Gebhardt was educated entirely in Boulder’s K-12 public schools, graduating from Boulder High School. Her five children attended and graduated from Boulder public schools. Two of her children currently teach in Boulder schools. She served on the Boulder Valley school board from 2015 to 2023, recently leaving because of term limits, with two years as president.

During Gebhardt’s term, she weathered the COVID epidemic, negotiated constructive contracts with teachers and classified staff, oversaw successful charter school renewals and joined a majority of the board in opposition to a charter application by Ascent Classical Academy. Ascent uses the conservative curriculum of the Christian Hillsdale College and refused to implement Boulder Valley district’s anti-discrimination policies. The board also turned down the charter because of its poor record of accepting and educating special education students. There were concerns regarding the school’s governance by an unelected board. Ascent appealed the district’s decision to the State Board of Education. This event set up the controversial intersection of Gebhardt with the Colorado League of Charter Schools.

The state board agreed to Ascent’s appeal and sent the application back to the Boulder board to negotiate an agreement. Ascent continued to refuse to administer the district’s anti-discrimination policies, so the district continued to deny its application. Ascent ultimately headed north to Fort Collins where the Poudre Valley School District has been stripped of its chartering authority. The Charter School Institute, the state’s chartering authority, granted the Ascent charter.

Recently, Ascent Classical Academies in Colorado severed its relationship with Ascent Classical Academies management in the middle of the school year, creating disruption across the system. Its board also sold $77.5 million in BB bonds through Ascent Colorado Building Association to expand its “classical” movement. The bonds will be paid off by growth of its student body, which means state, per-student public money will be diverted to this debt.

It’s a complicated financial interrelationship between the Ascent charters, the Ascent board of directors and the real estate transactions. Given the complexity of the transactions and the murkiness of who is managing and receiving this bond money, it was no doubt a wise Boulder Valley district decision to stay away from Ascent Academy schools.

Gov. Jared Polis, a committed charter school supporter, is backing Marisol Rodriguez. He also vigorously gets behind the Colorado League of Charter Schools and charters’ lack of adherence to regulations applied to every traditional school district. Apparently, it doesn’t bother him these “classical” academies do not want to comply with school district anti-discrimination policies. He goes with the flow on charter schools’ special education practices.

Many prominent elected officials and citizens disagree with the governor in their CD2 State Board of Education endorsements. Congressman Joe Neguse of CD2 has endorsed Gebhardt along with most elected state House and Senate legislators whose districts are contained within or overlap CD2. Most CD2 county commissioners have endorsed the candidate as have the largest education organizations such as the Colorado Association of School Executives.

Rodriguez’s main claim to the CD2 State Board seat is she has children in the school district. The League of Charter Schools cites her work as a consultant in the charter school industry, most of which occurs in Missouri. It’s unclear how much work or interaction she has with traditional public schools that educate 85% of Colorado’s children. She’s against vouchers, an easy call in Colorado. She supports choice, as does Gebhardt. The question for voters is whether she supports school choice no matter how out-of-line some schools may be with the state’s principles related to discrimination and whether she supports all schools educating all students, including special education students with specific challenges and needs.

People with money do what people with money often do: they throw their weight around and try to get what they want by spreading around the Franklins. Rodriguez is on the receiving end of more than $1 million of expenditures supporting her candidacy. She has apparently made enough claims and statements to garner that support.

Gebhardt has centered her campaign on her belief in the integrity and brilliance of the state’s founders in placing their faith in the public value of public schools. She has spent her intellectual assets and passions on furthering the public education cause. Will Gebhardt’s commitments and demonstrated actions hold up in the face of a million-plus dollars? Only CD2 voters can answer that question.

Paula Noonan owns Colorado Capitol Watch, the state’s premier legislature tracking platform.