MONROE — Incumbent Debra Kolrud admits she is the director most likely to dissent at the Monroe School Board meetings.
“I am the minority director,” Kolrud said.
Kolrud is running in her first re-election campaign for the seat of Director District No. 2 for the Monroe School District.
Her attempt to have four more years representing the northeast part of the district will be challenging because she has three opponents, which includes a married couple.
The $4,800 a year position is in charge of administering school policies for the district of 7,847 students and 400 teachers.
Her main goal is for Monroe School District be able to compete academically with neighboring school districts and increase transparency.
For that, she started a Facebook page in September where she discusses school issues.
The information she provides is mostly accurate, but out of context, opponent Nancy Truitt Pierce said.
Wanting to unseat Kolrud is one main reason why Truitt Pierce and her husband, Joel Selling, filed to run.
Truitt Pierce has also concerns of the declining enrollment in schools.
“Population is not declining, so I am assuming parents are leaving the schools,” she said.
To solve that she wants to get more in contact with parents and increase the pride people have on local schools.
Her campaign is similar to her husband’s, but it is not a joint campaign. There are some slight differences, Selling said.
Selling is focusing on ensuring that the student and parent needs are met, while keeping a tight budget, he said.
When their campaign started, both Selling and Truitt Pierce said Monroe schools would win with either one of them.
“I would vote for her but I won’t,” Selling said. “I only have one vote.”
The three candidates are using more the social media to get their messages across. The fourth candidate, Scott Furrer, instead takes a more person-to-person approach.
He’s using email and counting on friends to spread the world that he is running, but has no website for his campaign.
One of the main reasons he decided to run was a concern the board spent too much time arguing. He can change that, he said.
“I am just a reasonable person thinking to help with the school board,” Furrer said. “The board needs to take care of business at hand.”
Alejandro Dominguez: 425-339-3422; adominguez@heraldnet.com.
Community forum
The Monroe library is scheduled to host a community forum where the six candidates for the two school board positions will speak about their campaign platforms. Each candidate is scheduled to answer questions from a moderator and the public at the two-hour event.
The forum is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Aug. 3 at the Monroe library, 1070 Village Way. For more information, call 360-794-7851.
Monroe School Board
Scott Furrer
Age: 54
Occupation: Electrical contractor
Education: High school
Website: none
In their words: “I want to serve because I believe school board members are stewards of our educational system, balancing responsibility and academic accountability.”
Priorities: Ensure kids are successful at schools at a cost the community can afford; Balance today’s demands meanwhile preparing for the future; Make sure the money goes to the classrooms without being delayed by political rhetoric.
Debra Kolrud
Age: 53
Occupation: Retired business owner
Education: High school
Website: www.debrakolrudmonroeschooldirector.com
In their words: “Show accountability and show we represent the interests of our community.”
Priorities: Make schools academically competitive with neighboring districts; Ensure spending brings better resources and results; Express what the community wants.
Joel Selling
Age: 60
Occupation: Fundraiser for nonprofits
Education: MBA from University of Puget Sound in 1983.
Website: joelselling4betterschools.com
In their words: “Working with a shared vision of an excellent learning environment, our community and school board can build a path for great student outcomes.”
Priorities: Getting the community engaged to help with the schools, find people with the resources and vision to improve the school system, and improve the board’s governance and guidance.
Nancy Truitt Pierce
Age: 60
Occupation: Management consultant for her own company, with clients such as Alaska Airlines and Expedia.
Education: Bachelors from Evergreen State College in 1979; graduated from Bellevue Community College in 1977.
Website: nancy4schools.com
In their words: “I want to increase pride in our schools.”
Priorities: Wants to improve student achievement; Have more parent involvement; Bring more support from business and the community.
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