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Lauren Nelson (Colorado)
From Ballotpedia
This page was current at the end of the official's last term in office covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.
Lauren Nelson was an at-large member of the Colorado Springs School District 11 school board. She assumed office on December 1, 2021. She left office on August 7, 2025.
Nelson ran for election for an at-large seat of the Colorado Springs School District 11 school board. She won in the general election on November 2, 2021.
Nelson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2021. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Lauren Nelson was born in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She earned a bachelor's degree from Colorado State University in 2007. Nelson's professional experience includes working as a stay-at-home mom and as a food scientist in product development for major food corporations.[1]
Elections
2021
See also: Colorado Springs School District 11, Colorado, elections (2021)
General election
General election for Colorado Springs School District 11 Board of Education At-large (3 seats)
The following candidates ran in the general election for Colorado Springs School District 11 Board of Education At-large on November 2, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Sandra Bankes (Nonpartisan)  | 20.2 | 24,059 |
| ✔ |  | Lauren Nelson (Nonpartisan) | 20.0 | 23,763 |
| ✔ |  | Julie Ott (Nonpartisan) | 15.1 | 17,987 |
 | Chris Wallis (Nonpartisan) | 14.7 | 17,515 | |
 | Jennifer Williamson (Nonpartisan) | 13.1 | 15,541 | |
 | John Gustafson (Nonpartisan) | 11.3 | 13,449 | |
| Rebecca Acevedo Kenderdine (Nonpartisan) | 5.5 | 6,501 | ||
| Total votes: 118,815 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Joseph Shelton (Nonpartisan)
Campaign themes
2021
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Lauren Nelson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2021. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Nelson's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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I am a proud graduate of District 11. The education I received allowed me to succeed in a highly competitive industry until I decided to be a stay-at-home mom. My goal is to ensure our students have the best possible education. Student achievement and staff well-being are not being prioritized by District 11, despite students needing to be the primary focus of our School Board. As a parent of two D11 students, I am actively engaged with D11 staff, students, parents, and administrators. I have researched the communications and policies implemented by the district in the name of equity. I strongly believe that recent district decisions do not reflect our community’s needs, interests, and values. I will prioritize academic growth. Currently less than 20% of D11 students are grade level proficient in math in grades 3-8. Less than 35% in English. I will fight the application of Critical Race Theory occurring in District 11 like: the research company hired to perform an “equity audit” and articles recommended such as “What White Children Need to Know About Race” and “Your 5-year-old is already racially biased…”. We, as a district, must focus ALL our resources to improve student learning and achievement.
- Student Achievement: Teachers bear the responsibility to teach the children academics so that they are equipped to become productive citizens. Reading and Math scores have been abysmal in K-12 schools with less than 20% proficiency in math grades 3-8 and less than 35% proficiency in English Language Arts, this is why D11 must focus on improving these outcomes. While test scores can help indicate an issue, ultimately the focus is educating kids and preparing them for what their future holds. Let’s use curriculum that is well researched and proven to deliver learning growth in students.
- Fiscal Responsibility & Accountability: Stewarding the funding of taxpayers is the job of the D11 School Board. Prioritizing excellence in education for all students and budget accordingly. D11 must establish a budget that ends the cycle of asking for more money without justifying why it is needed. D11 must also acknowledge improvements and mistakes of the past that clearly account for why our budgets are growing, yet our student achievement is shrinking. D11 is entrusted with the responsibility of educating students and managing large amounts of taxpayer funding to do so. There must be accountability that students are given an excellent education and the resources are being spent wisely.
- Ending Critical Race Theory in D11: CRT is a worldview that sees society through a lens of oppressor versus oppressed. It’s rooted in Marxism and is a philosophy that MUST NOT be taught in ANY public school. Identity politics based on the color of your skin, you are either oppressed or an oppressor, is NOT the education I received when going through D11 schools. This concept was introduced decades ago in Universities and is now being introduced in K-12 schools across the U.S. CRT MUST NOT BE ALLOWED TO GRAB HOLD IN THE K-12 SCHOOLS. Teaching this ideology will bring about the destruction of our country, driving us towards socialism and away from personal liberty, free thinking, and personal responsibility.
I am passionate about K-12 education, currently District 11 is failing our students and staff. I will prioritize excellence in education for the Colorado Springs community. Students must master subjects for life-long success: reading, writing, math, civics and critical thinking. Parents are to be empowered as they are a child’s first teacher and must be trusted to make the best choice for their student’s education. Teachers must be equipped and resourced to provide top-quality education for their students. Engage students by providing opportunities to explore and thrive in Arts, Sports, STEM, and Career & Technical Education (CTE). Ending the application of Critical Race Theory in K-12 education in District 11 is a priority. Critical Race Theory (CRT) is a worldview that MUST NOT be taught in ANY public school as it teaches children they are either oppressed or an oppressor based upon the color of their skin. K-12 education must focus on teaching the fundamentals, not political or social ideologies. Let’s provide students a solid foundation in the basics to prepare them for adulthood which will in turn ensure a positive future for our country. We owe it to our children to do better. We must do better.
Strong work ethic, critical thinker, humble and grace filled. Current leadership is not focused on academic excellence for its students and instead focuses on social and political ideologies such as CRT. Time, funding and resources are being spent in areas that are not helping kids learn how to read, write and understand math. Student’s education from District 11 is in a state of emergency but very little communication or efforts are being spent on this issue. The district must refocus on the crisis of our student’s education. As a board member I will ask the hard questions. I will determine where time and money are being spent. I don’t have all the answers but am committed to researching solutions that will help students learn. It is important to recognize that changes are needed and accountability is required while giving grace to each other in the community.
I believe it is important to intentionally recruit quality candidates that qualify as the best person for the job. The district must be open to hiring candidates of all shapes, sizes, colors and beliefs – welcoming of diversity and not limiting anyone from seeking employment. Students receiving a quality education in the fundamentals must be the priority and teachers that are focused on this goal are to be hired.
9/11 is the first historical event that I remember. I was in 11th grade in gym class at Palmer Highschool when I heard the news.
Take My Hand by Shawn McDonald.
The constituents of a school board director are stakeholders (tax payers and parents), customers (parents), and consumers (students). The school board must focus on delivering a quality product – excellence in education for all students. Every taxpayer dollar must be spent wisely and with fiscal transparency. Parent’s know what is best for their children and must have full access to curriculum and information regarding the education of their students. The school and teachers must understand that they work for the parents, not the unions or administration when it comes to curriculum. They are here to support education in the fundamentals and leave belief systems and values to the parents to teach. Students must master subjects for life-long success: reading, writing, math, civics, and critical thinking skills. Increasing academic learning must be the priority of the school district.
The district is to provide excellence in education in reading, writing, math, civics, and critical thinking to all students. Diversity is a beautiful trait within the District 11 community and the goal of quality education for our students unites us. Additional support to equip students must be based upon individual need. Whether a child has special needs, is gifted, an English language learner, on an IEP or learning at the pace expected it is up to the district to encourage growth where the child is at, to reach their highest potential. The district must provide the resources and training for its teachers to promote academic growth for its students. Staff members and community members can also be addressed on an individual basis to determine how they can best encourage academic learning through their support.
I believe it is important to intentionally recruit quality candidates that qualify as the best person for the job. The district must be open to hiring candidates of all shapes, sizes, colors and beliefs – welcoming of diversity and not limiting anyone from seeking employment. Students receiving a quality education in the fundamentals must be the priority and teachers that are focused on this goal are to be hired.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
See also
2021 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on October 4, 2021
