During the forum, West Lafayette School Board candidates compete against each other

At a forum Thursday night, six candidates for the West Lafayette Community School Corporation board of trustees battled it out for three seats.

The forum, held in the West Lafayette City Council chambers, was moderated by council member David Sanders – who asked for the candidates’ positions on charter schools and what they would prioritize as council members.

Dacia Mumford, who taught primary school in West Lafayette until 2019, said the council had not been transparent – and she aims to change that.

“They’ve been forced into some recent improvements, but the school board routinely votes on issues without having publicly shared anything beforehand,” she said.

During the search for the superintendent last year, some members of the community questioned the secrecy surrounding candidates for the post – even though school officials maintained it was important to bring in the best person.

Current school board chair Rachel Witt said the company is working to improve how it shares information.

“We are in the process of doing a communications audit to understand how our company communicates,” she said.

When it comes to charter schools, several candidates went to great lengths to offer nuanced views on the issue — while emphasizing that they don’t think such schools would be a good fit for the community.

George Lyle, who works as a member of the IT team at Purdue University, said he was open to the idea of ​​charter schools – but opposed it in West Lafayette.

“It depends on the needs of the community, and it depends on how much oversight the community and the local government are willing to have over whichever organization or business that ends up running these things,” a- he declared. “Now, specifically here, do we need it here – I don’t think so.”

Angie Janes has served on the West Lafayette Parent Council in a variety of roles. She said she understands parents want options.

“But I’m concerned that overall what’s happening is that charter schools are embezzling funds from public schools,” she said.

Other candidates have raised concerns about district finances.

Laurence Wang said he wants to stabilize West Lafayette school budgets, noting the stagnating enrollment in the district is “worrying.”

“With my background in finance, that’s why I decided to run and run for a seat on the school board,” he said.

Karen Springer, currently running for her seventh term after 24 years on the West Lafayette school board, said she is just as passionate about schools now as she has ever been.

“I think my 24 years of experience on a board of directors, my analytical decision-making skills and my leadership abilities will continue to be an asset,” she said.

After the forum, Sanders thanked the contestants for keeping him cordial.

Election day is November 8.