The run-up to the Durango School District Board of Education election officially began Wednesday, when prospective candidates could start circulating nomination petitions.
Seats in Districts A, C and E – held by Erika Brown, Rick Petersen and Andrea Parmenter, respectively – will be on the ballot in the Nov. 4 election.
Brown, the board’s vice president, confirmed she will not seek reelection. Parmenter and Petersen could not be immediately reached for comment.
Nationally, education has been an increasingly polarized topic, as both K-12 and higher education have faced a whirlwind of funding threats and political scrutiny.
Locally, tensions ran high after the district banned – then later reinstated – both a Black Lives Matter flag and an LGBTQ pride flag displayed in a school. The controversy sparked heated debate and threats of legal action from the Colorado Republican Party.
“Sadly, education has been politicized,” Brown said. “It shouldn't be a political issue, but for whatever reason, it has been.”
School board candidates are not allowed to campaign as members of a political party, because the election is required to be nonpartisan, but regardless, Brown said, it is a possibility.
Still, she said she believes such rhetoric will only enter the race if enough candidates run to generate attention.
The last election was canceled because of a lack of candidates and it’s too early to predict whether a similar situation will occur this year, Brown said.
She urged people to focus on what matters most.
“I would really like to see the focus be on the students,” Brown said. “I would urge both voters and the public stay focused on what education is really about, and it’s about the students and helping our communities thrive ... education is super important regardless of where you are in the political spectrum.”
The five-person board is responsible for establishing and maintaining a system of education in the district while remaining removed from day-to-day management decisions.
Board members are not paid; the position is entirely volunteer.
Eligible school board candidates must live in both the school district and the specific director district they want to represent.
For more information or questions, email schoolboard@durangoschools.org.
jbowman@durangoherald.com
