How long, and where have you lived in Gilpin County?

Dory Lakes, March will be 13 years.

What schools have you attended throughout life?

Bear Creek High School, Red Rocks Community College, University of Colorado, Denver

What additional training or education have you received relevant to the Gilpin County School Board Commission?

Nothing formal. In my career, I am a Principal Operations Engineer at a cybersecurity company. In this role, I listen, engage, and facilitate solving problems, both minor and large-scale. I am calm, practical, and honest with an analytical mind, so I like to look at both traditional and out of box situations when making decisions.

List the Gilpin County boards, civic or volunteer activities in which you have been involved and the dates of service.

I do not have any other than volunteering at the school for carnivals, etc.

What is your position on teacher salaries and what will you do to help them be competitive so that it attracts quality talent to educate our children intellectually, physically, and socially to be resilient citizens in the 21st century?

I believe we have fantastic teachers, and unfortunately many have left us. We need to do what we can so that we can both retain and bring in talent. I’d like to propose increasing salaries for our teachers to closer to the average of surrounding school districts. There is roughly a $15,000-$25,000 difference for Gilpin salaries versus Boulder and Jefferson counties. I understand that we are a more rural community traditionally, but we are growing rapidly, as is the cost of living.

How would you improve the way that emergencies like the swatting event are handled by the school and the administration?

My biggest concern is communication. We learned about the event when my husband went to the rec center and learned it was closed. Parents need to know what is happening at the time, and afterward, need to have clear communication with the school and law enforcement and a plan to move forward. There should be a line that we can call for more information and for updates.

Do you support following Public Health guidelines for child safety like vaccinations? If you don’t then what are your reasons and alternatives?

My educational background and former career revolved around immunology research, which included vaccine research. One part of me wholeheartedly believes in the traditional childhood vaccines such as polio, measles, mumps, rubella, tetanus, diphtheria, and whooping cough. I personally believe, based off my research and specialization, that every healthy child should be vaccinated.

At the same time my answer is not this simple, because the question then lies, what exactly is a healthy child, and who determines this? In my time in research, I learned that up to 17% of people could have adverse effects in the event we had to mass vaccinate to protect against a biological threat. Understanding that 17% and the potential grave side effects gives me pause to answer this question with a hard yes or no and makes me believe that it should be up to one’s medical care provider.

Do you support banning books in the school library and if so which books?

No. I do not believe in any banning of books.

Did you support or oppose the RE-1 mill levy increase ballot initiative in 20xx and give reasons for your position?

I support it. I know that no one likes giving out extra money, and that homeowners may not have children in the school at all, however the education of our youth affects us all as a community, and not just local.

Gilpin County government pays half of the School Resource Officers (SRO) salary from the general fund account. Do you think this is a fair arrangement? How do taxpayers in RE-2 who pay into the general fund benefit from this expenditure?

I honestly do not know enough about this question to give an educated answer. I would have to learn more to fully understand it.

Why do you want to hold the office for which you are running?

I want to be an advocate for our teachers, administration, my children, my friend’s children, and your children. I also believe that our educational system is faltering a bit overall, and I want better for our kids. It saddens me that I have met high school graduates that can barely read and write.

Will you be able to meet the time requirements of the office?

Yes.

How would you promote diversity in the school?

I believe in everyone being treated equal and feeling safe regardless of race, sex/gender, religious beliefs, creed, socio-economical status, and any other factor that could cause people to see one another as different.

My exposure to diversity in school was mainly through reading. Having required reading in school allowed me to see something from another culture’s viewpoint. I attended elementary school in Oklahoma, and our area had a huge Native American population. We had various Native American assemblies and celebrations at school, but reading a book and then being tested so you were forced to read, has made those lessons and stories stick more in my mind.

I believe in immersion to learn about other traditions and holidays. In my house, my children and I took COVID “vacations” learning about other countries, cultures, holidays, and then we’d cook a traditional meal or dessert from that culture.

Are you committed to a secular approach to education, supporting education based on science, not religion, and on a progressive reading of history, i.e. that the story of our past is both glorious and horrible with neither left out?

For both parts of the question, yes. I am religious but believe that religion is something taught at home and does not have a place in a public school. There are too many viewpoints regarding religion as it is.

I’d like to add that I really like that the question surmises that our history has both glorious and horrible periods, and I do not believe anything should be left out when teaching history. I firmly believe that those that do not want to study history are doomed to repeat it.

To your knowledge, what is the role of the Board and school administration in terms of setting curriculum standards for our students?

I believe that we set standards and hold students and their teachers accountable to those standards. I don’t feel like there is much of a grey area, here.

For additional information email Laura Mayer at mayerhaus.laura@gmail.com