Letter to the Editor: I-SS board candidates who did not participate in forum deprived voters of opportunity to evaluate their suitability for office

Posted on by Mike Fuhrman

To the Editor:

Four years ago I had the pleasure of running as an unaffiliated candidate for the Iredell-Statesville Schools Board of Education in District 7.

I strongly believe that our Board of Education should be a non-partisan board. When our local elections are non-partisan, voters are motivated to learn about the candidates, they have the opportunity to go meet them, and they can choose who they think would be the best person for the job. Isn’t that what the voting process is all about?

Recently, Our Schools First and the Greater Statesville Chamber of Commerce hosted a School Board Candidate Forum where all Iredell-Statesville School Board candidates were invited to attend. I applaud the following candidates who participated:

♦ District 5: Billie Spevak
♦ District 3: Sarah Pittman
♦ District 1 Max James (Official Write-In Candidate)

Unfortunately, their opponents chose not to participate. As a voter and parent of two children in the school district, I am left to wonder why someone who is willing to run for a public board that serves the children and families of this community would not share their approach to very real issues facing our district and education today. One of the questions was even submitted by a student in our schools. Don’t they deserve a response?

I encourage voters to learn more about their School Board candidates. And I invite you to be okay voting for a candidate not because of their political party affiliation, but because you feel that they are the best person to do the job. Many well-respected leaders of our community are doing just that this election. And I applaud them, too.

Election Day is Tuesday, November 8. Polls are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Jennifer Christian
Mooresville

1 thought on “Letter to the Editor: I-SS board candidates who did not participate in forum deprived voters of opportunity to evaluate their suitability for office”

  1. Mark Myers says:

    In an additional opportunity to voice her views about those important issues: “The Greater Statesville Chamber of Commerce and Iredell Free News invited all candidates in the November 8 election for the District 1, 3 and 5 seats on the Iredell-Statesville Schools Board of Education to answer a few questions about important issues facing the school district. In the District 3 race, candidate Sarah Pittman participated. Her opponent, Abby Trent, did not participate.”

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