Emilia Comai
Community and Advocacy Engagement Coordinator
In the upcoming 2016 election, there will be eight State School Board races happening across the state. In those eight races, voters narrowed down the fields to two candidates each in June during the Primary Election. In case you haven’t heard, we’ve partnered with the Hinckley Institute of Politics, Sutherland Institute, KSL NewsRadio, and the Utah Association of Public Charter Schools, to bring you debates between these candidates.
What is discussed during the debates? The candidates are asked a few questions from a moderator, that range from topics including student testing, standards, teacher development, and state education funding. Then, the audience is able to ask their own questions, allowing constituents to have a direct conversation and open dialogue with the candidates. These debates have allowed many voters, parents, and educators to understand the role of the state school board, and get a sense of who is running for the seat in their district.
How can you participate?
- Find out which district you live in here: https://elections.utah.gov/map/district-maps
- Check to see if a debate is happening in your district: uteddebatecoalition.com
- Once you’ve found your district, check out the candidate profiles to learn more about who will be at the debate
- Then, RSVP for the debate, and invite a few friends to join you
- Join the conversation on Twitter: #UTED, #UEDCdebate
Once you’ve learned about the candidates and have heard from them yourself, make sure you vote! You have a chance to make a difference in this year’s election. In some races recently, the candidate has won or lost by a very small margin, showing that every vote DOES matter! State school board members make crucial decisions about the direction of education in our state, and you have a voice!
Find out more by watching the video below!
