Tacoma school election draws cash, controversy

The Tacoma School Board has navigated a storm of controversy this year: budget cuts, school closures and a teachers strike.

Most recently, it drew criticism for its decision to hire Deputy Superintendent Carla Santorno on an interim basis to replace Superintendent Art Jarvis, who retires at the end of the 2011-12 school year.

While School Board elections can sometimes be sleepy, low-budget affairs, this year’s races for a pair of at-large, six-year terms have generated waves of public interest and cash.

Four newcomers are in the hunt. The only incumbent who ran for re-election, Kim Golding, lost in the August primary.

In the race for Position 3, University of Puget Sound professor Dexter Gordon faces Scott Heinze, a small-business owner who heads the board for a local chapter of the nonprofit Communities in Schools.

In the Position 5 race, former Tacoma mayor and substitute teacher Karen Vialle faces Kim Washington, an administrative employee at Clover Park Technical College.

All four candidates take issue with the way the eight-day teachers strike was handled.

All four find fault with the fast-track decision to hire Santorno before next year, when the newly elected board members would have had a vote.

And all four say they’re ready to step into a growing budget crisis in the next few years that one candidate described as a “tsunami.”

CAMPAIGN CASH

Gordon has raised more than $32,000 – an amount approaching what some Tacoma City Council candidates spend. He is the top campaign cash collector among Tacoma school candidates, according to records filed with the state Public Disclosure Commission.

Vialle has raised more than $17,000, while Heinze has collected nearly $13,000.

At the other end of the spectrum, Washington is doing no fundraising and said she has spent less than $100 on a few campaign signs.

“I find it insulting to ask for money during these economic times,” said Washington.

She’s spending energy instead at candidate forums, where she casts herself as an outsider.

“There is such a lack of trust in the school system,” Washington said.

Gordon said he wanted cash on hand so he could spread the word about his candidacy beyond “the usual suspects.” He said he wanted to reach out to “people who believe their votes don’t count” and have withdrawn from the electoral process.

He said he has pointed some people who have lost the right to vote because of a criminal record to community resources where they can get help having their voting rights restored.

Gordon’s contributors include some big names in city circles, including former mayors Brian Ebersole, Bill Baarsma, and Harold Moss.

Vialle, who served as mayor from 1990 to 1994, counts among her contributors attorney and state Senate candidate Jack Connelly. She also has contributions from two education union political arms: the Washington Education Association Poltical Action Committee and the American Federation of Teachers Committee on Political Education.

Among Heinze’s contributors are his old boss, U.S. Rep. Adam Smith, D-Tacoma, and the Tacoma Federation of Paraeducators.

ENDORSEMENTS

The Washington Education Association teachers union is often at odds with education reform group Stand for Children on matters of policy.

But both groups’ Tacoma affiliates have endorsed Gordon and Vialle – the two top vote-getters in the August primary.

A statement from Stand for Children praised both candidates’ ideas on hiring a new superintendent, improving the district’s communications with “underrepresented communities,” and plans for improving student achievement.

The teachers union liked Gordon’s and Vialle’s promises to improve student learning and to step up oversight of district administration. The union also praised their support for labor and the collective bargaining process.

Gordon and Vialle have also been endorsed by state Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn.

Heinze has been endorsed by several Democratic Party organizations and public officials, including state lawmakers Debbie Regala and Connie Ladenburg.

Washington hasn’t listed endorsements.

Debbie Cafazzo: 253-597-8635
debbie.cafazzo@thenewstribune.com

POSITION 3

Age: 56.

Family and residence: Married, 4 children; lives in West End.

Job: Distinguished professor of communication and director of African American Studies, University of Puget Sound.

Community experience: Director of Race & Pedagogy National Conference; Achievement Gap Summit; American Leadership Forum.

Age: 39.

Family and residence: Married, 3 children; lives in North End.

Job: Small-business owner

Community experience: Board chairman for Communities in Schools; state advocacy chairman for American Diabetes Association; Tacoma Human Rights Commission.

POSITION 5

Kim Washington

Age: 51.

Family and residence: Married, 3 children, one deceased; lives on Hilltop.

Job: Clover Park Technical College administrative employee.

Community experience: Works with homebound families, with individuals who require one-on-one support and with adults seeking education alternatives.

Karen Vialle

Age: 68.

Family and residence: Married, 3 children; lives in West End.

Job: Substitute teacher in Tacoma (says she will resign from job if elected).

Community experience: Former mayor and City Council member; Al Davies Boys & Girls Club board; Tacoma Youth Symphony board; Children’s Home Society of Washington board.