LAPS Dist. 3 School Board candidates, from left, incumbent Christine Bernstein, Lauren Coupland and Sean Standfield at the League of Women Voter’s forum Thursday at UNM-LA. Photo by Kirsten Laskey/ladailypost.com

BY KIRSTEN LASKEY
Los Alamos Daily Post
kirsten@ladailypost.com

Candidates for Los Alamos Public Schools (LAPS) Board made their pitch on why they are best suited for the job Thursday night during the League of Women Voters’ forum at UNM-LA.

Candidates include:

• District 3: Incumbent Christine Bernstein, Lauren Coupland and Sean Stanfield
• District 4: Incumbent Melanie Colgan
• District 5: Incumbent Sondra Wyman

Wyman and Colgan did not attend the forum but provided statements read by League of Women Voters President Felicia Orth.

Wyman touched on her experience as a volunteer and substitute teacher at LAPS, which her children attended. She also worked as an instructional aide and athletic secretary for the Los Alamos High School and has volunteered in different community organizations. She said her work and volunteer experience show that she is an invested member of the community and would be a compassionate, well-rounded and thoughtful school board member, if elected.

In her statement, incumbent board member Colgan wrote that she believes every student deserves access to a high-quality education and she is passionate about student well-being.

The school board candidates for District 3 also made comments on why they are the best suited for the position.

Incumbent school board member Bernstein touched on “light blub” moments, which are when a student finally understands a concept or can finally solve a problem. Experiencing these moments is why she is an educator, she said. Bernstein added that the board is working on a strategic plan to ensure that all students have “light blub” moments, meaning they achieve academic excellence, civic responsibility and wellbeing. She emphasized the need for continuity on the board to see this plan through.

Coupland recalled her first interaction with the school board was when she was 16 years old. An assistant principal made her good friend cry and in response Coupland said she contacted a school board member and it never happened again. She said she learned from this experience that one powerful voice can make meaningful change. Coupland also touched on her experience as a teacher at an alternative school, her work as the Education Director for the Los Alamos Jewish Center and her volunteer work at numerous community organizations and added she would like to take her work to the next level and serve on the school board.

Stanfield said he has numerous reasons why he would like to serve on the school board. He pointed out that two of his children are enrolled in LAPS and one graduated from the local school district. Issues that are important to him are mental health, extracurricular activities and daily interactions between the teachers, students and parents.

Attendees asked questions that ranged from curriculum to parent engagement.

For instance, candidates were asked if they were aware of New Mexico Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights mandated that LAPS intervene and monitor to address the district’s incompliance with Title 6 with management of discrimination. They were further asked if they were aware that this matter was not publicly shared with the broader student and parent community, particularly marginalized students and parents who continue to experience discrimination.

None of the candidates said they were aware of this issue.

“I am aware of that there are things that are going on (and) I am aware of many issues related (to this) … I was not specifically aware of what you just talked about (but) I know there are certain things I cannot talk about,” Bernstein said.

“I was not aware of this before today,” Coupland said. “I am concerned that as a member of the equity committee in the district that this was not brought to our attention. Equity committee meetings have been inconsistent over the last several years and I am hopeful that they will continue on a more regular basis so we can do the important work of addressing these concerns.”

“Obviously it would be concerning and hopefully there is something clearly being done, some specific process in the schools, to deal with those types of issues,” Stanfield said.

Another question dealt with the candidates’ thoughts on teaching critical race theory, religion as well as diversity, equity and inclusion in the schools.

Bernstein said as far as critical race theory, it does not exist in the schools, meaning it isn’t taught and there are no standards attached to it.

“We are a district that follows state standards,” she said. “We teach the curriculum that our students need to be taught and we follow what is supposed to be happening in the schools.”

The same thing goes with diversity, equity and inclusion but it is something that the school district adheres to, Bernstein said, adding “We want all our students to be equally included.”

There also is no religion being taught in the schools, but Bernstein said she supports all religious beliefs of the students and staff.

Coupland echoed Bernstein’s comments.

“I believe we need to make sure all perspectives and voices are heard, preferably by going back to primary sources, that is where we find the most information that is relevant and allows our students to implement critical thinking skills and draw their own conclusions,” she said.

Stanfield also agreed but expanding on diversity, equity and inclusion, “if we work on those aspects … we usually can touch everybody we need, not every time, but if we focus on diversity, equity and including everybody, no matter their background, no matter where they from, then I think we are able to handle a lot of these issues in the school system.”

Responding to a question on to how to engage parents, Bernstein said, “parent engagement is extremely important. I do know we do have very high parent engagement and I also know where the gaps are.”

It’s all about fine tuning, she added, pointing out that the district’s website is being updated for better communication.

Coupland said parental involvement is high, but it did drop off during the pandemic.

“We are working on building up that capacity again because when we are supporting our families and staff, they can have the bandwidth to be engaged,” she said.

Coupland added that barriers and “missing voices” need to be addressed to help get parents involved.

Stanfield said a more diverse approach is needed “and (we need to) reach out to the other parts on the community in a more constructive manner and try to be more proactive in that type of engagement.”

Expanding on parental involvement, candidates were asked about their stance on a recently passed law that prohibits teachers from communicating with parents if a student plans to change genders.

Bernstein said there hasn’t been any policy presented to the board regarding this issue. Speaking for herself, Bernstein said, “I encourage parent involvement and communication between parent and student needs to be fostered in this community. A lot of our students do not feel comfortable talking to their parents about different things … my bottom line is always our students, my bottom line is what is best for our kids and to support our students.”

Coupland said state law needs to be followed but said she wants all students to have a safe home to talk about anything.

“I want to make sure that while I am encouraging and fostering that relationship, helping them find the words to share that information with their families themselves, I don’t want to put any student in a dangerous situation,” she said.

While state law needs to be followed, Standfield said his perspective is “anything that breaks down the communication between the parent and teacher, I don’t think is good … if you are taking away communication lines, specifically between the teacher and parents, I think that starts a lot of distrust in the school system.”

The League encouraged everyone at the forum to vote in the election.

Absentee voting by mail and in-person voting will begin Tuesday, Oct. 10. Early voting will occur through Nov. 4 and election day is Tuesday, Nov. 7. For more information, see the League of Women Voters’ 2023 Election Guide at www.ladailypost.com