This year’s (Northwest Allen County Schools) school board race is important. We have serious issues facing this district and need serious candidates to lead our schools. Four of the eight candidates running for our school board are connected to extremist groups. They think your tax dollars should be taken away from public schools and moved to private schools. They propose refusing federal funding for our schools. These are real threats as they already have two sitting board members installed. They only need to win one seat to implement their extreme views, with our children suffering the consequences.

Perhaps you think this isn’t a big deal, federal funding doesn’t pay for much. But federal funding pays 100% of the Free and Reduced Lunch Program at NACS. Federal funding makes up 39% of the Special Education budget at NACS. Just because the district refuses federal money does not mean that the district can avoid providing all of the services. The federal money is in addition to money NACS receives from the state of Indiana, to assist students who need more financial resources to meet their educational needs. By refusing the federal dollars, the district would have to raise those funds itself, requiring you to pay higher local taxes to provide services that you already paid for in federal taxes. You could get taxed twice to pay for these services depending on who’s elected on November 8th. The lack of common sense here is quite disturbing.

Do you think economically disadvantaged kids will perform well on standardized tests if they’re hungry? Remember, the state uses these test scores to determine school funding. When test scores are low, all of our kids lose. We are already the least funded school in Allen County. This won’t help.

Who benefits when we take away funding from disabled children? As a parent of a child in the special education program at NACS, I am disappointed in any school board candidate that feels it’s OK to deny these children an appropriate education to satisfy a personal political agenda. School board races are nonpartisan. Instead, we have candidates saying they’re “conservative” but their positions do not resemble the conservative, Christian values in which I was raised.

You might know one or more of the eight candidates from work, church or school activities. They may seem like a nice person for whom you might vote. Do your research! Some candidates have been publicly endorsed by hate groups. Ask specific questions about their positions and see if their answers align with your values. “What is the role of a school board member?” “What are the biggest challenges facing our district and how will you address them?” You might be surprised at the answers you receive.

I encourage you to vote in this year’s election, especially for our school board. I’ve done my research and I’m voting for the three candidates that we need to continue the excellence at Northwest Allen County Schools; Kristi Schlatter, Liz Hathaway and Eric Ellingson.

Susan Crowell,

NACS parent and disability advocate