Kalifornsky school board candidates discuss funding, curriculum and school closings at election forum
Patti Truesdell, incumbent for the Kalifornsky seat on the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District’s Board of Education, as well as challengers Donna Anderson and Shelby Oden, discussed school funding, curriculum and communications at a forum moderated by the Clarion and KDLL 91.9 FM at the Soldotna Public Library on Monday.
Truesdell, who has held her seat since 2019, said during the forum that she’d decided to run for reelection after two other current members of the board, Zen Kelly and Virginia Morgan, decided not to run for another term. The school board, she said, has done good work and has good initiatives in development — Truesdell said she “wasn’t ready to walk away.”
Anderson introduced herself as a retired KPBSD teacher who’s seen her own children and grandchildren grow up and graduate from a variety of local schools — some homeschooled, some in neighborhood schools. She said she wanted to see schools be more accountable by providing more input on curriculum, return to “basics” by teaching “more cursive and less computers,” and provide more choice in homeschool, charter school and neighborhood school.
Oden said she’s a parent of two students who’s “seen a lot of concerning things.” She said she was running for a seat on the board to be a part of decisions that impact students. She said she would bring “a parent’s perspective and also a commitment to fiscal responsibility” as the district faces continuing challenges with funding and education policy.
https://www.peninsulaclarion.com/news/kalifornsky-school-board-candidates-discuss-funding-curriculum-and-school-closings-at-election-forum/