COLUMBIA — The five candidates vying for two three-year term spots on the Columbia School Board addressed racial issues, school funding and other issues Tuesday night at a forum hosted by the Columbia NAACP chapter.
The candidates for the open school board seats are:
• Board member Jan Mees, who was elected to the board in 2007 and worked as a school librarian in Columbia Public Schools before retiring in 2006.
• Board President James Whitt, who emphasized the schools' role in addressing the needs of kids living in poverty and racial and ethnic minority students in his opening remarks.
• Paul Rainsberger, retired director of MU's Labor Education Program, who said he wants to focus on recruiting and retaining quality and diverse teachers in his opening statement.
• Sarah Dubbert, vice president and treasury services manager for the Central Missouri Region at Commerce Bank, who worked as a high school math teacher in Jefferson City and then in South Chicago before moving to Columbia.
• Retired military serviceman Joseph Toepke, who is on the school board's finance committee and serves on the district superintendent's advisory committee for diversity.
Fifty people sat in a basement room at Second Missionary Baptist Church, and a few listeners submitted questions to moderator Virginia Law, who added questions of her own.
On school diversity
Each candidate supported incorporating more black studies courses.
"If a teacher wants to create a new class, we welcome it," Mees said.
Dubbert said it's important to hire more diverse teachers in addition to creating a curriculum that reflects diverse backgrounds.
Whitt said his son was frustrated that his classes only taught about the same black historical figures like Martin Luther King Jr. when there are many other examples of black people who made history that the curriculum ignores.
Reaching out to the community to find mentors for struggling students would be one of Toepke's priorities, he said.
"We cannot change the narrative without recognizing the important value of black studies," Rainsberger said.
Rainsberger also said that it's important for schools to take diversity and socioeconomic status into consideration when redistricting schools.
Whitt and Mees said it's hard to draw school boundaries based on creating a diverse population because they have to keep transportation costs low.
On school funding
Every candidate said they support the upcoming 65-cent tax increase, which will be up for vote on April 5. Toepke expressed frustration with the foundation formula, saying the formula places the burden of school funding on local communities.
Missouri uses the foundation formula to determine how much money each district receives. The formula acts as a funding equalizer where school districts with strong tax bases receive less from the state and rely on local community support for revenue.
Mees also expressed frustration with a gradual decrease in state funding. The cost to educate a student in the school district has increased by almost $3,500 over the past 15 years, while state funding has increased by $500 per student,
according to previous Missourian reporting.
Whitt said that a key way to generate revenue and grow Columbia's economy is to have quality schools, which would encourage people to move to Columbia.
Mees said the school board already has strong communication with city officials. She and Whitt emphasized that the city and school district should plan ahead to keep up with city growth and build schools where they are needed.
Dubbert and Rainsberger said that increased collaboration between the school district and city officials would help ensure the schools have the resources they need. Dubbert added that creating more jobs in Columbia would bolster revenue.
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