OAK HARBOR SCHOOL DISTRICT: Sound Off: Oak Harbor school projects should be separate bond measures (WNT)

Whidbey News-Times
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Jessica Thompson, former candidate for Oak Harbor School District director
Jessica Thompson, former candidate for Oak Harbor School District Director.

Jessica Thompson, who ran unsuccessfully for a director position in the Oak Harbor School District in 2021, wrote a Sound Off column for the Whidbey News-Times about the district’s February 2023 bond measure. Thompson’s column appeared in the paper’s Feb. 1, 2023 edition.

They Said It

In these times of high inflation and economic uncertainty, is the Oak Harbor School bond too big to pass?

Are Oak Harbor residents being asked to pay for more school construction than is really needed immediately?

With so much at stake, doesn’t it make better sense to take a more cautious approach to fixing our schools? Separating the construction projects into two separate ballot propositions would give voters of Oak Harbor the option to say “no” to the new school at Fort Nugent, for example, while approving the construction of Home Connection and Crescent Harbor.

Why the omnibus bond? Why not do one specific project at a time?

On the Ballot in November 2023

OAK HARBOR SCHOOL DISTRICT (NO. 201)
Directors: Three of the five director positions are scheduled to be on the ballot. In addition, due to resignations, the other two positions will also be on the ballot.
Position 1: Lynn Goebel
Director Goebel filed for re-election.

Position 2: Jessica Aws
Director Aws filed for re-election; Karen Lesetmoe also filed for this position.

Position 3: Robert J. Hallahan
Director Hallahan did not file for re-election. Fred Wilmot and Josh MacLean filed for this position.

Position 4: Nicole Tesch.
Director Tesch was appointed in May 2022 after the resignation of John Diamond. The position will be on the ballot in 2023 to fill the remainder of Diamond’s term, which expires on Dec. 31, 2025.
Director Tesch filed to retain her seat; she will be opposed by Jessica Thompson

Position 5: Sharon Jensen
Director Jensen was appointed in Jan. 2023 after the resignation of Erik Mann. The position will be on the ballot in 2023 to fill the remainder of Mann’s term, which expires on Dec. 31, 2025.
Director Jensen filed to retain her seat; she will be opposed by Will Smith and Aisha Mayfield.
  • February 1, 2023