Andrews focused on No. 1 priority

In the upcoming Everett School Board elections, district teachers and staff are overwhelmingly supporting incumbent school board member, Carol Andrews, over her opponent, Kim Guymon. We support Carol because she is a board member focused on the most important business of any school system: The education of our children.

Right now, our schools are undergoing sweeping changes. School staff are working overtime to implement the new Common Core curriculum, new technologies, and new state testing mandates. At the same time, teachers and administrators are adapting to a more comprehensive evaluation system, and additional training requirements from the state. To successfully navigate these changes, we need the support of well-informed board members like Carol, who have proven their commitment to public education, and the district’s well being.

Issues like “transparency” — widely touted by Guymon and her supporter, Jessica Olson — are farther down the list of priorities, given current challenges. Her concerns over the district’s “fiscal responsibility” is misleading, since it is well documented that the Everett district is one of the most fiscally efficient and well-managed districts in the state. Annual audits confirm this, as do other independent evaluators. Just in the past two weeks, the district saved our taxpayers almost $2 million when re-financing construction bonds.

What we do not need is more petty squabbling, insulting behavior, grandstanding in the local media over broken fingernails, and board members who don’t show up for meetings when others disagree with them. Given the challenges we are facing, we must have leaders who can work together, and stay focused on what’s most important for our students, their families, and the taxpayers who support us: The education of our children. Carol Andrews has proven her ability to do this well over the past six years. We ask for your support by re-electing her.

Ann Morgan

Everett