Kate Thomas
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Katharine "Kate" Thomas is the Area 7 representative on the Rapid City Area Board of Education in South Dakota. She won the seat in the general election on June 2, 2015.
Biography
Thomas is a home educator and CEO of Thomas Productions. She had not held any public service position prior to being elected to the school board.[1]
Elections
2015
Opposition
Three of the seven seats on the Rapid City Area Board of Education were up for election on June 2, 2015. Area 1 incumbent Matthew Stephens, Area 2 incumbent Sheryl Kirkeby and Area 7 incumbent Laura Schad sought re-election. Stephens defeated challenger Richard Kriebel, and Schad lost to her challenger, Katharine Thomas. Kirkeby won re-election unopposed.[2]
Results
| Rapid City Area School District, Area 7 General Election, 3-year term, 2015 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan |  Katharine Thomas |
52.1% | 625 | |
| Nonpartisan | Laura Schad Incumbent | 47.9% | 575 | |
| Total Votes | 1,200 | |||
| Source: Pennington County Election and Voting Information, "June 2, 2015 Combined City/School Election (Rapid City/Hill City): Unofficial Final Results," June 2, 2015 These election results are not official and will be updated when certified results are available. You can submit certified results by contacting us. | ||||
Funding
Thomas reported $961.00 in contributions and $665.57 in expenditures to the Rapid City Area School District, which left her campaign with $295.43 on hand in this election.[3]
Endorsements
Thomas received no official endorsements in this election.
Campaign themes
2015
Thomas provided the following responses to questions from the Rapid City Journal. The paper's questions are in bold.
| “ | Why are you running for this office? The parent/teacher, teacher/principal relationship is broken. Parents, like myself, have tried to get help for their child only to have this district's policies fail them. Teachers and parents alike need to have their confidence returned, to speak their mind on issues of Common Core, testing, dyslexia, etc., without fear of losing their job or, in the parents' case, fear of their child dealing with the repercussions. I'd like to be the voice for those that feel they haven't been heard. I would like the public to know I will hear them and do my best for them and the kids.
What strengths do you possess that qualify you to serve on a governing body? I have seven kids, all very different. They have taught me to be patient, compassionate, understanding, firm, trusting, honest, and to hear, not just listen. Because they are so precious to me, I have learned to be an advocate for them, and I know I can be for all kids.[4] |
” |
| —Katharine Thomas (2015)[1] | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Katharine Thomas Rapid City Area School District. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Rapid City Area School District, South Dakota
- Rapid City Area School District elections (2015)
- Incumbent & opt-out defeated; Rapid City school district's funding uncertain (June 3, 2015)
- What's on your ballot? (June 2, 2015)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Rapid City Journal, "Rapid City Area Schools Area 7 candidate Kate Thomas," May 29, 2015
- ↑ Margaret Koenig, "Phone conversation with Kathy Lewis, Rapid City Area Schools Business Office," April 1, 2015
- ↑ Margaret Koenig, "Email correspondence with Kathy Lewis, Rapid City Area Schools Business Office," June 2, 2015
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| 2015 Rapid City Area School District Elections | |
| Pennington County, South Dakota | |
| Election date: | June 2, 2015 |
| Candidates: | Area 1: Incumbent, Matthew Stephens • Richard Kriebel
Area 2: Incumbent, Sheryl Kirkeby Area 7: Incumbent, Laura Schad • Katharine Thomas |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
