Fairbanks North Star Borough School District elections (2016)
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Three of the seven seats on the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District school board were up for general election on October 4, 2016. Seat A Incumbent Tom Bartels defeated newcomer Ashley Strauch for a two-year term. Candidates Larry Morris, Jodi Rhoades, and Sharon McConnell competed for Seat C. McConnell won the seat. Seat D incumbent Allyson Lambert faced Blake Burley and won re-election.[1]
Seat A was left vacant in June 2016, when Lisa Gentry resigned as a result of an out-of-state move. Bartels was selected to fill the seat until the October election. Bartels and Strauch competed for the seat for the remainder of Gentry's term.[2]
Three candidates participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 survey of school board candidates. Click here to read their responses.
Elections
Voter and candidate information
The Fairbanks North Star Borough School District school board consists of seven members elected to three-year terms. All members are elected at large. Two seats were up for election on October 6, 2015, three seats were up for election in 2016, and three seats were available in 2017.
School board candidates had to file for this election with the Fairbanks North Star Borough elections department by August 5, 2016. To vote in the election, residents had to register by September 4, 2016.[3]
Candidates and results
Seat A
Results
| Fairbanks North Star Borough School District, Seat A General Election, 2-year term, 2016 |
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Tom Bartels Incumbent |
56.40% | 5,862 |
| Ashley Strauch | 42.35% | 4,402 |
| Write-in votes | 1.25% | 130 |
| Total Votes | 10,394 | |
| Source: Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska, "Election Summary Report," accessed August 5, 2017 | ||
Candidates
| Tom Bartels
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Ashley Strauch | ||
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Seat C
Results
| Fairbanks North Star Borough School District, Seat C General Election, 3-year term, 2016 |
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Sharon McConnell |
45.95% | 4,579 |
| Larry Morris | 27.13% | 2,704 |
| Jodi Rhoades | 25.50% | 2,541 |
| Write-in votes | 1.42% | 142 |
| Total Votes | 9,966 | |
| Source: Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska, "Election Summary Report," accessed August 5, 2017 | ||
Candidates
| Larry Morris | Jodi Rhoades | Sharon McConnell
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Seat D
Results
| Fairbanks North Star Borough School District, Seat D General Election, 3-year term, 2016 |
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Allyson Lambert Incumbent |
65.14% | 6,317 |
| Blake Burley | 33.25% | 3,224 |
| Write-in votes | 1.61% | 156 |
| Total Votes | 9,697 | |
| Source: Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska, "Election Summary Report," accessed August 5, 2017 | ||
Candidates
| Allyson Lambert
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Blake Burley | ||
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Additional elections
- See also: Alaska elections, 2016
The Fairbanks North Star Borough school board election shared the ballot with elections for seats on the borough assembly and six borough ordinances.[4]
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for the Fairbanks North Star Borough school board elections in 2016:[5]
| Deadline | Event |
|---|---|
| August 5, 2016 | Candidate filing deadline |
| September 4, 2016 | Last day to register to vote |
| September 6, 2016 | First campaign finance deadline |
| September 25, 2016 | Second campaign finance deadline |
| October 4, 2016 | Election Day |
| January 17, 2017 | Final campaign finance deadline |
Endorsements
Do you know of an official or organization that endorsed a candidate in this race? Let Ballotpedia know by email at editor@ballotpedia.org.
Campaign finance
Candidates received a total of $9,780.00 and spent a total of $8,256.07 in the election, according to the Alaska Public Office Commission.[6]
| Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seat A | |||
| Tom Bartels | $7,800.00 | $6,496.99 | $1,303.01 |
| Ashley Strauch | $1,980.00 | $1,759.08 | $221.31 |
| Seat C | |||
| Larry Morris | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Jodi Rhoades | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Sharon McConnell | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Seat D | |||
| Allyson Lambert | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Blake Burley | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Past elections
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What was at stake?
Candidate survey
Survey responses
Three candidates in this race participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 survey of school board candidates. The following sections display the responses to the survey questions from Blake Burley, Larry Morris, and Ashley Strauch.
Hope to achieve
When asked what he hoped to achieve if elected to the school board, Burley stated:
| “ | I want to ensure student safety by making certain bathrooms are used appropriately (in accordance with the student's sex) and allowing teachers to carry firearms. I want a valuable education experience that trains students to become responsible community members, not just one that prepares them for college. I want to see a balanced budget that doesn't rely on funding from the federal government.[7] | ” |
| —Blake Burley (September 20, 2016)[8] | ||
When asked what he hoped to achieve if elected to the school board, Morris stated:
| “ | Provide a good quality education utilizing resources in classrooms that will make tomorrows adults ready for the next phase of their lives.[7] | ” |
| —Larry Morris (September 8, 2016)[9] | ||
When asked what she hoped to achieve if elected to the school board, Strauch stated:
| “ | I am running because I am passionate about this borough, the schools that we have here, and the amazing educational opportunities that the district offers. I believe that we can navigate the fiscal crises and come out on top, I believe that we need to and can improve teacher and support staff morale and confidence in their positions, and I believe that we can make our district the best place for all of our employees to work in this community. If elected, I want to work on these goals and serve tirelessly as a community servant.[7] | ” |
| —Ashley Strauch (September 12, 2016)[10] | ||
Ranking the issues
The candidates were asked to rank the following issues by importance in the school district, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. This table displays their rankings:
| Issue importance ranking | ||||
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| Issue | Burley's ranking | Morris' ranking | Strauch's ranking | |
| Expanding arts education | ||||
| Improving relations with teachers | ||||
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | ||||
| Improving post-secondary readiness | ||||
| Closing the achievement gap | ||||
| Improving education for special needs students | ||||
| Expanding school choice options | ||||
Positions on the issues
The candidates were asked to answer nine multiple choice and short answer questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. A link to their responses can be found below.
About the district
Fairbanks North Star Borough School District is located in eastern Alaska in Fairbanks North Star Borough. The borough seat is Fairbanks. The borough was home to 99,631 residents in 2015, according to the United States Census Bureau.[11] The district was the third-largest school district in the state in the 2013–2014 school year and served 14,105 students.[12]
Demographics
Fairbanks North Star Borough outperformed Alaska as a whole in terms of higher education achievement from 2010 to 2014. The United States Census Bureau found that 30.5 percent of borough residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 27.7 percent of state residents. The median household income in the borough was $70,408, compared to $71,829 for the state. The poverty rate in the borough was 9.5 percent, while it was 11.2 percent for the entire state.[11]
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Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Fairbanks North Star Borough School District' 'Alaska'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Fairbanks North Star Borough School District | Alaska | School Boards |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Fairbanks North Star Borough, "Official Candidate List," accessed September 6, 2016
- ↑ News Miner, "School board appoints new member to open seat," June 1, 2016
- ↑ Fairbanks North Star Borough, "Notice of Voter Registration," accessed September 6, 2016
- ↑ Fairbanks North Star Borough,"Sample Ballot," accessed September 6, 2016
- ↑ Alaska Public Offices Commission, "2016 Reporting Dates," accessed September 7, 2016
- ↑ Alaska Public Office Commission, "Campaign Disclosure:Forms," accessed September 29, 2016
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Ballotpedia's school board candidate survey, "Blake Burley's responses," September 18, 2016
- ↑ Ballotpedia's school board candidate survey, "Larry Morris' responses," September 8, 2016
- ↑ Ballotpedia's school board candidate survey, "Ashley Strauch's responses," September 12, 2016
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 United States Census Bureau, "Quickfacts: Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska," accessed September 6, 2016
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed November 16, 2015
- ↑ State of Alaska Division of Elections, "Voter Registration Statistics," accessed September 6, 2016
| 2016 Fairbanks North Star Borough School District Elections | |
| Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska | |
| Election date: | October 4, 2016 |
| Candidates: | Seat A: Incumbent, Tom Bartels • Ashley Strauch Seat C: Larry Morris • Jodi Rhoades • Sharon McConnell |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional measures on the ballot |
