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Rachel Terry (Nebraska)
Rachel Terry was a candidate for the District 2 seat on the Lincoln Board of Education in Nebraska. The seat was up for primary election on April 7, 2015, and the general election was held on May 5, 2015. Terry was defeated in the 2015 general election.
Terry is affiliated with the Republican Party, but the Lincoln Board of Education and the election were officially nonpartisan.[1]
Terry participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 survey of school board candidates. To read her responses, check out her 2015 campaign themes.
Biography
Rachel Terry is a resident of Lincoln, Nebraska. Terry earned a B.A. degree in English from Brigham Young University in 1996. Since 1998, she has worked as a freelance writer and editor.[2]
Elections
2015
- See also: Lincoln Public Schools elections (2015)
The election in Lincoln featured three of the seven seats on the board up for primary election on April 7, 2015, and the general election was held on May 5, 2015. Newcomers Connie Duncan and Rachel Terry competed for the District 2 seat, while John Cartier and Annie Mumgaard campaigned for the District 4 seat. Challenger Matt Schulte faced incumbent Katie McLeese Stephenson for her District 6 seat. Duncan, Mumgaard and Schulte won the three seats.
The top two vote recipients in each district in the primary election proceeded to the general election. District 2 candidate Norman Dority and District 4 candidate Jesse Wyrrick were eliminated from contention in the primary election.
Results
General election
| Lincoln Public Schools, District 2 General Election, 4-year term, 2015 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan |  Connie Duncan |
70.1% | 5,920 | |
| Nonpartisan | Rachel Terry | 29.6% | 2,501 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.3% | 29 | |
| Total Votes | 8,450 | |||
| Source: Lancaster County Election Commissioner, "Lincoln City General Election Results," accessed June 9, 2015 | ||||
Primary election
| Lincoln Public Schools, District 2 Primary Election, 4-year term, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan | Connie Duncan |
70.9% | 4,729 | |
| Nonpartisan | Rachel Terry |
20.6% | 1,371 | |
| Nonpartisan | Norman Dority | 8.2% | 544 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.4% | 27 | |
| Total Votes | 6,671 | |||
| Source: Lancaster County Election Commissioner, "Lincoln City Primary Results," accessed June 9, 2015 | ||||
Funding
Terry reported $5,898.00 in contributions and $1,000.00 in expenditures to the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission, which left her campaign with $4,898.00 on hand during the election.[3]
Endorsements
Terry received an endorsement from the Nebraska Right to Life PAC.[4]
Campaign themes
2015
Ballotpedia survey responses
Terry participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 survey of school board candidates. The following sections display her responses to the survey questions. When asked what her top priority would be if elected, the candidate made the following statement:
| “ | I would focus on making sure our tax dollars are spent wisely in keeping with the district's overall mission of academically preparing children for the future and that the emphasis of all decisions is the academic success of students.[5] | ” |
| —Rachel Terry (2015)[6] | ||
Ranking the issues
Terry was 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 this candidate's rankings from most to least important:
| Education policy |
|---|
 |
Click here to learn more about education policy in Nebraska. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Improving college readiness | |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Expanding career-technical education | |
Positions on the issues
Terry was asked to answer 10 questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. The questions are in the left column, and the candidate's responses are in the right column of the following table:
| Question | Response |
|---|---|
| "Curriculum should not be dictated from the federal level. It's too far away from the students." | |
| "The legalization of charter schools is not a district issue. It's a matter for the state legislature." | |
| "Vouchers could be an effective way to reduce the overall cost of spending in Nebraska." | |
| "Standardized tests capture certain achievement metrics, but they don't offer a complete picture." | |
| "Some students may need extra help to be able to take advantage of educational opportunities. For example, a student who comes from a family in which no one has ever been to college is going to need more help navigating the path to college than a student whose parents and grandparents went to college. Teachers, guidance counselors, and principals can be instrumental in seeing that all students have access to educational opportunities." | |
| "Expulsion cases must be viewed on a case-by-case basis rather than the district having an overarching policy." | |
| "A school that is failing should not be allowed to operate year after year because each student just has one shot at their K-12 education. The school board should give the students at the failing school the option to attend a school that has proven itself." | |
| "Yes" | |
| "Terminate their contract before any damage is done to students." | |
| "I would improve transparency by posting more information online: monthly budget expenditures (Millard Public Schools already does this), changes in curriculum, and answers to concerns raised by community members." |
Campaign website
Terry published a list of her campaign themes on her website:
| “ | Innovation
The judicious and innovative use of technology can help educators and parents to craft a world-class education for each student in Lincoln Public Schools. To best meet my own children's educational needs, I have taken advantage of innovative educational tools including online courses, part-time homeschooling, full-time public schooling, and online and brick-and-mortar public charter schools. The more options parents have, the closer we can get to providing all of the children in the community with educations that will prepare them for the future. Lower Taxes As technology advances and parents and educators use these technologies in innovative ways, costs decrease. Computers that used to cost thousands of dollars now cost merely hundreds. Classroom sets of Shakespeare plays are now available digitally for free in the public domain. Instead of continuing to ask taxpayers for more and more money, the school district should return the money it's saving through technology to its rightful owners: members of the community. Transparency Only through full transparency can democratically run governments thrive. Without full transparency, citizens can't hold their representatives accountable for the use of their tax dollars and the paramount task of educating the community's youth. Additionally, transparency makes it possible for educators and teachers to work together to educate the children of LPS. As legal guardians, parents have the ultimate say on whether or not course content is appropriate and acceptable for their children. Without full transparency, parental rights are disregarded.[5] |
” |
| —Rachel Terry's campaign website (2015)[7] | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Rachel Terry Lincoln Public Schools. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
- Lincoln Public Schools
- Campaign website
- Campaign Facebook page
- Personal website
- Twitter page
- LinkedIn page
Footnotes
- ↑ Lincoln Journal Star, "LPS board race falling along ideological more than party lines," February 23, 2015
- ↑ Rachel Terry School Board, "Experience," accessed May 4, 2015
- ↑ Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission, "Campaign Statements Search," accessed March 26, 2015
- ↑ Facebook, "Rachel Terry for LPS School Board," accessed April 2, 2015
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2015, "Rachel Terry responses," March 30, 2015
- ↑ Rachel Terry School Board, "Home," accessed May 4, 2015
| 2015 Lincoln Public Schools Elections | |
| Lancaster County, Nebraska | |
| Election date: | Primary election: April 7, 2015 General election: May 5, 2015 |
| Candidates: | District 2: • Norman Dority • Connie Duncan • Rachel Terry District 4: • John Cartier • Annie Mumgaard • Jesse Wyrrick |
| Important information: | Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
