I mentioned this in the Election thread and meant to create a thread earlier. Just didn't get around to it. Partly my hesitation stemmed from the desire to avoid an ego boost similar to the times when I posted in the previous iteration of the forum about my conquests. I've reconciled all this and have realized that posting here about my current journey will both be informative and motivational to others while likely being helpful to me overall. Also, considering the extreme black pilling out there about the Presidential election, for me, this was a way to release my frustration by doing something for the local community, especially children. My point is that you can scream as much as you want regarding the Presidential election but things will not change based on our expectations. So try and do something worthwhile which relate to your own goals and your own expectations. Basically, shit you can control.
What this is...
So here it is. I'm running for local office. Don't get too excited. This is not political office technically speaking. I'm running for a position on our School Board in our Midwestern town. The decisions of the Board, as I have realized, impacts my family more than other elections do, same as it impacts other parents and even non parent homeowners in my local community. That said, the local Republican party is on my tail to join them so we can mutually support each other. I haven't yet taken them up on the offer.
Background on the current Board
Let's just say I am in one of the top ten largest School districts in the state that has tens of thousands of students. There are 7 Board members. These lot are older people that don't have kids in the district any more. A few in education and others whose profession is clearly the result of tenure rather than performance or more importantly, merit. For comparison's sakes, let's just say this is not a private school board whose members are Doctors, lawyers and other professionals who have come up through brutal competition or extreme conditions with conflict. These are, to me, local swamp creatures. Some of them have a long list of community service in school organizations, PTO involvement and committee volunteering. For example, the President of the Board has been in various organizations within the district and has been on the board for multiple terms. Terms are 4 years! This same guy was also in a local article for negligence in some activities before his Board tenure. Another member has a relative within the district.
Now, I see some of this as pure resume padding but otherwise don't understand the motivation to "serve" this much. Maybe it is political aspiration, an ego boost or even something more nefarious. I haven't figured this out completely.
The School District
I never cared about this election. Many parents didn't. In focusing so much on the larger Presidential elections etc, like my fellow parents, I lost sight of the local challenges. Historically, the Board has been elected by a certain group of voters that tend to always vote in the board election. Not a high number or turnout.
In comes THIS past School year and of course COVID-19 rages. From March to June, we decide to go remote like many other districts. No big deal. It was the end of the school year after all. There was some indication at that time that this will be over soon and after summer Schools will reopen. The District Administration in July (before the school year started) sends out a survey that is taken by tens of thousands of parents. An overwhelming majority of them want to either go full time in person or part time in person (hybrid). The remaining wanted to continue remote. No one really knew these results at that time. The results were not made public until much later. Anyways, the Board met to vote on a "Return to School" plan right around this time. This was July again. Keep in mind School opens in August. The Administration presented a plan for Full Remote learning with a re-evaluation within 4 to 6 weeks. This re-evaluation would be based on COVID-19 statistics (cases only) and staffing criteria but with no benchmarks for that criteria. So essentially, it gave subjective carte blanche for the District to use any benchmark to decide when Schools reopened, and only use case statistics while simultaneously avoiding other statistics like mortality, effect on children and other such components. There was no alternate plan presented either, in which a full time return or hybrid option was presented. The Board was split on the vote with one individual abstaining her vote. Her refusal in providing a proxy to vote for her caused this tie. Just ridiculous if you ask me. Essentially the plan didn't pass, which was good. Many of us pro choice parents were happy it did not pass. It felt like Election Night 2020. But similar to that situation, it wasn't over.
Keep in mind School starts in a few weeks in August. So the Administration went back and redrafted the plan to accommodate the comments of the Board members who promoted in person learning. We all watched that following meeting on Zoom with longing for a better plan for our children. This time, they added many mitigation strategies into the plan, such as masks, distancing criteria, dividers etc. However, there was still an "IF" on schools reopening. It gave the false notion that schools will reopen while also simultaneously avoiding any commitment to do so. It was that same plan in sheep's clothing. The evenly split vote turned into a loss because one member that voted against the plan switched his vote with no meaningful reason. Instead of holding the Administration's feet to the fire, his reason to vote was to break the tie. He said so himself. That decision put us where we are today. The Parents were enraged. So School was closed and Remote Learning continued. Fast forward to November it was announced that they are planning on opening in December. However, the state had an increase in "cases" and therefore put a damper on this, taking us back to remote learning. A tease, nothing more. Meanwhile, the District spent millions in PPE for COVID-19 that is seeing zero utilization.
The Aftermath
Many parents are pissed, especially those with children that have mental conditions that make remote learning impossible. Then there are those that are extroverted children that descend into nefarious activities due to isolation. Don't forget High School seniors who likely can kiss a good college goodbye. Of course, being in the midwest it deserves mention that Sports here are huge! Schools were a support system for the sports infrastructure and due to the Remote learning plan, they have essentially shut down.
The Parents' Group and Recall
I was not overly involved with the community. I work in the city and generally do not socialize much with neighbors. That said, I was very vocal on Social Media about my views. I started joining certain groups with parents that are pro school choice. As I got to know them, I got invited to a more active group that wanted to get the Board recalled. Many of them were stay at home moms, and fierce in their resolve. So I decided to help. We collectively filed an affidavit with our counties for a recall petition with those 5 Board members. I spruced up some documentation on why we thought so as well. We are in the process of collecting over a thousand signatures to support this recall. We currently have about half already!
The Board's response to the Recall
In our State there is no specific law for recalling elected officials, except for the Governor. However, there is precedent in other states which may help us. Anyways, we got a response from the Board and we were even addressed at the Board meeting. Essentially, the Board said that we can't do this because it can only be done to the Governor. There was also a suggestion that instead of writing to them, we should set better examples as leaders, etc. etc. etc. TLDR was that "hey our egos are hurt, so please stop bothering us." We have sent another response to this letter where we cited further examples of their actions. I know, "strongly worded" letters in National Politics don't mean anything. In our case, however, it has served to get the current Board's attention and maybe has given us some legitimacy.
My candidacy
Eventually someone asked me to run for the Board. I was nervous about the whole idea. For shit's sake I barely knew these people or the community. There were also some others in the group that decided to run (one woman two guys). I support them and would like to run as a team. Anyways, those of us that decided to run collectively support each other 100%. The philosophy is that we are hoping that at least one of us gets in. We are of course all pro-choice and anti-swamp.
My Petition (pre-campaign)
I needed 50 signatures from district voters to get on the Ballot. I was struggling a month ago wondering where the next signatures will come from. I knocked on many doors. At least one guy shut the door on me. I also met many teachers that didn't want to hear it. The most memorable one was a liberal toolbox telling me that without the government we wouldn't have nice things etc. I walked away patiently wishing him a nice day. A month later, I'm well over 100 signatures. The parents in the group have helped me. Many are stay at home moms that have taken this up as their primary goal. You go after a woman's children, this is what you get. A lot of them are fiery and 100% behind me. The petitions are to be filed next week and it's a painful process. I've heard they can object to the signatures etc.
Resistance from the "other" side
There are some nefarious parents out there that have banded together with a somewhat singular leader who is against our values of choice and returning to school. The reason just comes down to COVID-19 fear as expected. This leader is someone who works within the PTA organizations in the district. She is totally in support of the district and supports their "stay at home" plan. She has been in the swamp for years and has a voice with the Board. It may be that she has some dirt on them. So they let her roam free. For example, one Board member has been in the news for nefarious acts and he is still supported.
Stemming from this are many narratives being pushed, such as "we hate teachers," "we want children to die," etc. etc. We will need some ways to fight this more directly soon.
The events
The Parents group has been doing certain signing events around town and I've gone to them to meet people and get myself out there. Our turnouts are increasing and we seem to be getting the word out. I have gotten very comfortable around this setting.
A few days ago I went to an event and was given the floor. So I was speaking directly into the audience of a small group of people regarding my views on choice and what I want to do for our District. I was only slightly nervous and it was an awesome Rush! It turns out I spoke clearly and passionately based on later feedback. I tend to do well when I walk in knowing full well that I am a lot more prepared for this and maybe even more qualified than my opponents (incumbents and otherwise). That said, I also don't underestimate their abilities.
What's Next?
*I have over 130 signatures. I will file to get on the Ballot tomorrow!
*I need campaign ideas (I'll post more about my own later). Campaigning will likely start in January and I'll likely start getting attacked etc.
*I need debate ideas, another words how to shut down dissent from those that are deep in education or the schools and/or community
*Any other advice anyone can offer or feel like helping in any way, I would be grateful.
I'll keep updating this thread. It will be a good motivational boost and great way to obtain constructive criticism. If you help me win this, you know that you will make a legitimate change in a local community and help secure the future for our children.
****** COBRA 2021 ********
What this is...
So here it is. I'm running for local office. Don't get too excited. This is not political office technically speaking. I'm running for a position on our School Board in our Midwestern town. The decisions of the Board, as I have realized, impacts my family more than other elections do, same as it impacts other parents and even non parent homeowners in my local community. That said, the local Republican party is on my tail to join them so we can mutually support each other. I haven't yet taken them up on the offer.
Background on the current Board
Let's just say I am in one of the top ten largest School districts in the state that has tens of thousands of students. There are 7 Board members. These lot are older people that don't have kids in the district any more. A few in education and others whose profession is clearly the result of tenure rather than performance or more importantly, merit. For comparison's sakes, let's just say this is not a private school board whose members are Doctors, lawyers and other professionals who have come up through brutal competition or extreme conditions with conflict. These are, to me, local swamp creatures. Some of them have a long list of community service in school organizations, PTO involvement and committee volunteering. For example, the President of the Board has been in various organizations within the district and has been on the board for multiple terms. Terms are 4 years! This same guy was also in a local article for negligence in some activities before his Board tenure. Another member has a relative within the district.
Now, I see some of this as pure resume padding but otherwise don't understand the motivation to "serve" this much. Maybe it is political aspiration, an ego boost or even something more nefarious. I haven't figured this out completely.
The School District
I never cared about this election. Many parents didn't. In focusing so much on the larger Presidential elections etc, like my fellow parents, I lost sight of the local challenges. Historically, the Board has been elected by a certain group of voters that tend to always vote in the board election. Not a high number or turnout.
In comes THIS past School year and of course COVID-19 rages. From March to June, we decide to go remote like many other districts. No big deal. It was the end of the school year after all. There was some indication at that time that this will be over soon and after summer Schools will reopen. The District Administration in July (before the school year started) sends out a survey that is taken by tens of thousands of parents. An overwhelming majority of them want to either go full time in person or part time in person (hybrid). The remaining wanted to continue remote. No one really knew these results at that time. The results were not made public until much later. Anyways, the Board met to vote on a "Return to School" plan right around this time. This was July again. Keep in mind School opens in August. The Administration presented a plan for Full Remote learning with a re-evaluation within 4 to 6 weeks. This re-evaluation would be based on COVID-19 statistics (cases only) and staffing criteria but with no benchmarks for that criteria. So essentially, it gave subjective carte blanche for the District to use any benchmark to decide when Schools reopened, and only use case statistics while simultaneously avoiding other statistics like mortality, effect on children and other such components. There was no alternate plan presented either, in which a full time return or hybrid option was presented. The Board was split on the vote with one individual abstaining her vote. Her refusal in providing a proxy to vote for her caused this tie. Just ridiculous if you ask me. Essentially the plan didn't pass, which was good. Many of us pro choice parents were happy it did not pass. It felt like Election Night 2020. But similar to that situation, it wasn't over.
Keep in mind School starts in a few weeks in August. So the Administration went back and redrafted the plan to accommodate the comments of the Board members who promoted in person learning. We all watched that following meeting on Zoom with longing for a better plan for our children. This time, they added many mitigation strategies into the plan, such as masks, distancing criteria, dividers etc. However, there was still an "IF" on schools reopening. It gave the false notion that schools will reopen while also simultaneously avoiding any commitment to do so. It was that same plan in sheep's clothing. The evenly split vote turned into a loss because one member that voted against the plan switched his vote with no meaningful reason. Instead of holding the Administration's feet to the fire, his reason to vote was to break the tie. He said so himself. That decision put us where we are today. The Parents were enraged. So School was closed and Remote Learning continued. Fast forward to November it was announced that they are planning on opening in December. However, the state had an increase in "cases" and therefore put a damper on this, taking us back to remote learning. A tease, nothing more. Meanwhile, the District spent millions in PPE for COVID-19 that is seeing zero utilization.
The Aftermath
Many parents are pissed, especially those with children that have mental conditions that make remote learning impossible. Then there are those that are extroverted children that descend into nefarious activities due to isolation. Don't forget High School seniors who likely can kiss a good college goodbye. Of course, being in the midwest it deserves mention that Sports here are huge! Schools were a support system for the sports infrastructure and due to the Remote learning plan, they have essentially shut down.
The Parents' Group and Recall
I was not overly involved with the community. I work in the city and generally do not socialize much with neighbors. That said, I was very vocal on Social Media about my views. I started joining certain groups with parents that are pro school choice. As I got to know them, I got invited to a more active group that wanted to get the Board recalled. Many of them were stay at home moms, and fierce in their resolve. So I decided to help. We collectively filed an affidavit with our counties for a recall petition with those 5 Board members. I spruced up some documentation on why we thought so as well. We are in the process of collecting over a thousand signatures to support this recall. We currently have about half already!
The Board's response to the Recall
In our State there is no specific law for recalling elected officials, except for the Governor. However, there is precedent in other states which may help us. Anyways, we got a response from the Board and we were even addressed at the Board meeting. Essentially, the Board said that we can't do this because it can only be done to the Governor. There was also a suggestion that instead of writing to them, we should set better examples as leaders, etc. etc. etc. TLDR was that "hey our egos are hurt, so please stop bothering us." We have sent another response to this letter where we cited further examples of their actions. I know, "strongly worded" letters in National Politics don't mean anything. In our case, however, it has served to get the current Board's attention and maybe has given us some legitimacy.
My candidacy
Eventually someone asked me to run for the Board. I was nervous about the whole idea. For shit's sake I barely knew these people or the community. There were also some others in the group that decided to run (one woman two guys). I support them and would like to run as a team. Anyways, those of us that decided to run collectively support each other 100%. The philosophy is that we are hoping that at least one of us gets in. We are of course all pro-choice and anti-swamp.
My Petition (pre-campaign)
I needed 50 signatures from district voters to get on the Ballot. I was struggling a month ago wondering where the next signatures will come from. I knocked on many doors. At least one guy shut the door on me. I also met many teachers that didn't want to hear it. The most memorable one was a liberal toolbox telling me that without the government we wouldn't have nice things etc. I walked away patiently wishing him a nice day. A month later, I'm well over 100 signatures. The parents in the group have helped me. Many are stay at home moms that have taken this up as their primary goal. You go after a woman's children, this is what you get. A lot of them are fiery and 100% behind me. The petitions are to be filed next week and it's a painful process. I've heard they can object to the signatures etc.
Resistance from the "other" side
There are some nefarious parents out there that have banded together with a somewhat singular leader who is against our values of choice and returning to school. The reason just comes down to COVID-19 fear as expected. This leader is someone who works within the PTA organizations in the district. She is totally in support of the district and supports their "stay at home" plan. She has been in the swamp for years and has a voice with the Board. It may be that she has some dirt on them. So they let her roam free. For example, one Board member has been in the news for nefarious acts and he is still supported.
Stemming from this are many narratives being pushed, such as "we hate teachers," "we want children to die," etc. etc. We will need some ways to fight this more directly soon.
The events
The Parents group has been doing certain signing events around town and I've gone to them to meet people and get myself out there. Our turnouts are increasing and we seem to be getting the word out. I have gotten very comfortable around this setting.
A few days ago I went to an event and was given the floor. So I was speaking directly into the audience of a small group of people regarding my views on choice and what I want to do for our District. I was only slightly nervous and it was an awesome Rush! It turns out I spoke clearly and passionately based on later feedback. I tend to do well when I walk in knowing full well that I am a lot more prepared for this and maybe even more qualified than my opponents (incumbents and otherwise). That said, I also don't underestimate their abilities.
What's Next?
*I have over 130 signatures. I will file to get on the Ballot tomorrow!
*I need campaign ideas (I'll post more about my own later). Campaigning will likely start in January and I'll likely start getting attacked etc.
*I need debate ideas, another words how to shut down dissent from those that are deep in education or the schools and/or community
*Any other advice anyone can offer or feel like helping in any way, I would be grateful.
I'll keep updating this thread. It will be a good motivational boost and great way to obtain constructive criticism. If you help me win this, you know that you will make a legitimate change in a local community and help secure the future for our children.
****** COBRA 2021 ********
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