“Viewpoints” is a place on Chapelboro where local people are encouraged to share their unique perspectives on issues affecting our community. If you’d like to contribute a column on an issue you’re concerned about, interesting happenings around town, reflections on local life — or anything else — send a submission to viewpoints@wchl.com.
Choose Hauser for Schools
A perspective from Susan Walser
As a lifelong democrat, I strongly support Bonnie Hauser. We have a decades long friendship. I’ve attended almost every Orange County school board forum and reviewed nearly all the candidate material for the school board race. It makes me sad to see so much misinformation come from party extremists around this non-partisan school board race.
I became involved with community service in 2008 when I co-founded Orange County Voice with Bonnie Hauser. Our successes united a diverse, underserved rural community. We fought UNCs airport and a misplaced waste transfer station, helped close the landfill, and many other initiatives that made us proud and our community better. We relied on respectful collaborations among neighbors and with elected officials. Never partisan or divisive.
This year I volunteered to help Bonnie in her re-election campaign for school board. At first it was exciting to help with Bonnie’s platform and meet so many friends and supporters who already know and trust Bonnie to get the facts, and to advocate passionately and in an informed manner. It’s a much-needed quality that she brings to the school board, and one of the many reasons she deserves re-election. I am moved by the diversity of her supporters.
I was wholly unprepared for the ugly, divisive rhetoric and misinformation that has surrounded this race. I was shocked when groups like the INDy and others endorsed with little vetting, without interviewing candidates, or receiving questionnaires. I remain confused by endorsements of candidates who demonstrate little understanding of their role or the challenges facing the school district.
If you know anything about Bonnie (a Democrat), it’s her ability to work across diverse communities regardless of race, orientation, or political preference. Consider that she holds leadership roles with the Efland-Cheeks Community Center, Schley Grange, and a small charter school that serves at risk kids. That’s in addition to her work to reach into our schools and communities to assure that their voices are heard.
I’m voting for Ms. Hauser. If you don’t agree, please research the candidates on your own. You’ll find helpful interviews on WHUP and WCHL.
“Viewpoints” on Chapelboro is a recurring series of community-submitted opinion columns. All thoughts, ideas, opinions and expressions in this series are those of the author, and do not reflect the work or reporting of 97.9 The Hill and Chapelboro.com.
