Northern Colorado Gazette

Reese clarifies candidates' positions

By Brett Reese     –

This commentary is mine as an individual and does not reflect the perspective of any business or organization I am associated with, including the D6 board of education.

 While it’s clear to me that the city council candidates will pose no threat to the incumbents, the school board has four open seats with 15 candidates competing, and the disparities between the candidates are great. 

The activist liberals and business-as-usual retreads are donning their best disguises for mostly-conservative Greeley/Evans.  I know, and apparently so do ALL the candidates, that Greeley and Evans residents are very unhappy with their schools.  They should be. Parents, teachers and students are disregarded with determination by those in authority.

 In spite of this, two members of the current board, Mark Hinz and Julia Richard, are running again and are equipped with dozens of defenses for this district not performing well, i.e. -D6 is ranked among the last in the state for per pupil funding and …there are dozens of languages in our schools. But are kids really dumb just because their parents are poor?  Are non-english speakers dumb?  Of course not! Study after study has shown innovation and teacher freedom are the keys to student success; not more money. These are excuses — and they are dishonest.

 Samuel Casey Carter’s book ‘No Excuses’, profiles over 20 high-performing, high-poverty schools. Greeley/Evans District 6 is failing because of staggering incompetence.

 Voter, you need to talk one-on-one with each candidate.  But, if you don’t get the opportunity, here’s my perspective as an insider with first-hand knowledge:  there are at least a couple candidates who have served on this board previously.  Democrats, Valerie Leal-Whitehead and Marlene Schuman, who served during the time the State Board placed D6 on academic suspension.  Schuman is endorsed by current board activist-liberal Bob Stack.  Valerie Leal-Whitehead, who’s dad was also on the board years ago, has also served on the board before, but she is not as venomous (and anti-innovation) as Schuman.  Some candidates have recently held signs in public protests at Republican events (Bator), and there is one who has been involved with all things Democrat for years, Ed Spindler.   Spindler also hates allowing parents to choose where their kids attend school.  Doug Lidiak is a re-run from my election two years ago where he was soundly defeated when the voters, at his first sentence, could tell he was only a “toadie”  to the establishment liberals.

 This leaves seven:  Broughton, Elliott, Richardson, Rankin, Daviet, Doerner and Pike. You have only four votes.  I will comment on this field as I listen to them further.  Give me two weeks.

 Brett Reese

Board Member, D6

Real Estate Investor

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