UPDATE [6/6/17]: SPFT is excited to endorse Melvin Carter for mayor and John Brodrick, Jeannie Foster, and Marny Xiong for Board of Education!
This year, Saint Paul will be electing a new mayor and three members of the school board. SPFT will host a forum for school board candidates the evening of Thursday, April 13th at the SPFT office. Our open screening for candidates for both school board and mayor will take place on Saturday, June 3rd. School board candidates will be screened in the morning. Mayoral candidates will be screened in the afternoon. All are welcome to attend both the forum and the screening.
Criteria for Endorsement
All candidates endorsed by SPFT must:
- Support for Public Education: Our public schools belong to all of us, and our endorsed candidates must be committed to strengthening our publicly-owned schools. Candidates must advocate for providing proper staffing and supports for students and parents and rejecting the high-stakes standardized testing model that jeopardizes our children’s ability to become fully informed and critical thinkers.
- Advocate for Racial Equity: Our endorsed candidates must be willing to join with us as we advocate for all of our students and work diligently to end racial disparities. Together, we must ensure a climate where real learning takes place so that all students are provided an excellent education.
- Uphold the SPPS Gender Inclusion Policy: Our endorsed candidates must work to create a safe and nurturing environment for all our students, including those who identify as LGBTQ. This includes referring to students by their preferred name and gender and protecting students’ privacy.
- Fully Fund Our Public Schools: Public education is the heart of our democracy, and it is our collective responsibility to keep the system healthy. Our endorsed candidates will support advocating, bargaining, and organizing for increased funding in public education. They will elevate the reality of where public education funding has gone and push corporations and elected representatives at all levels to increase public funds for public education.
- Reject Market-Based Reforms: We believe that the people who live here should make decisions regarding our public schools, not wealthy donors with no connection to our community. Our endorsed candidates must commit to rejecting contributions from supporters of market-based education reforms that do not represent the best interests of the students of Saint Paul Public Schools.
- Commit to Community Engagement: We believe that parents, students, community members, and educators must come together to create the schools our children deserve. Our endorsed candidates must be willing to engage in a dialogue with communities across the city in order to bring renewed engagement to our education system.
- Walk a Day With SPFT Members: Only candidates who have shadowed an educator for one full school day will be considered for endorsement.
- Support SPFT and Our Values: We will continue to support candidates that have supported us in the past.