Trustee elections today

SANDPOINT — There is one fewer seat up for election in the Lake Pend Oreille School Board races today.

With the decision last week of Dexter Vogel to drop out of the Zone 4 race, Mindy Cameron is the lone candidate for the seat.

As a result, LPOSD officials have declared that no election will be held in the zone since there is only one candidate.

Zone 4 is generally described as downtown Sagle, south to Dufort Road, west to Algoma Spur, north along Highway 95 over the Long Bridge to Meadowlark Road, east to Shady Acres Road and south to Highway 200 just past Delta View.

Elections remain in trustees zones 1 and 3, with Melanie Snider and Lois Mcleod running for the Zone 1 seat, a three-year term; and Joan Fish and Lynnett Rands running for the Zone 3 post, a one-year term.

Zone 1 includes almost the entire area east of Highway 95 from Shoshone to Boundary counties. It includes Hope and Clark Fork.

Zone 3 borders Boundary County and the Priest River School District.

The polls are open from noon until 8 p.m. at Hope and Northside elementaries and Clark Fork Junior/Senior High School in Zone 1 and Farmin Stidwell Elementary in Zone 3.

Candidates had a last-minute chance to speak to voters at an informal forum Monday.

McLeod, an educator for 39 years in various districts, said a need to give back to the community and a desire to improve education are why she opted to run for the school board.

"If our children are going to compete for jobs on a global market, it's imperative our children be given those kind of opportunities that allow maximum opportunity for them to reach their full potential," she said.

Snider was unable to attend the forum, but has said she's running for the board because she values involvement with education.

"I really want to be part of the process and I to be with a group of people who want to be part of the process," she said in a previous interview.

Fish, who has a background in both business and education, said she decided to run to help make a difference and because she believes it is important for the board to have a teacher.

"Giving our children the best we can is essential," she added.

With a background in law, mediation, church youth leader and as a mother, Rands said she has the passion and skills to devote to the board.

"The quality of a community is found in the quality of its schools," she said.

In Zone 4, Vogel said his decision came because of opposition to the proposed district split made the effort of being a trustee "not worth my free time."

Vogel said he made the decision to not run last week and intended to turn in a notice to that. Also, Vogel said he didn't feel support for his ideas on improving the educational process.

The Clark Fork resident said he hopes the schools get a good representative for the area.

"Right now, I'm just not willing to do that," he said.

Vogel, who was on the school board when the district split with Priest River in 1999, said he put "a lot of effort" into the proposal to split Hope and Clark Fork from the Lake Pend Oreille School District. The Idaho Board of Education decided recently the matter should not go before voters.