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

My family and I purchased our residence at 1000 Saddle Peak Drive in May 2011.

What schools have you attended throughout life?

I have attended: St. Therese’s Elementary School in Succasunna, NJ; Morris Catholic High School in Denville, NJ; Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA; Boston College Law School in Newton, MA

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

Since 2020, I have been the Chair of the District Accountability Committee of the Gilpin County School District. Since 2021 to present, I have been a Board Member of the Gilpin County Education Foundation. Both of these groups work closely with the Gilpin County School Board Commission to ensure the needs of the school’s teachers and children are met.

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

2016-2017 Volunteer, Ms. Katie’s class (preschool teacher for Gilpin County Montessori Program), I volunteered to coordinate the annual Halloween party and ran the annual Holiday Party for the class.

2016-2019, 2021, I was a Volunteer Soccer Coach for Gilpin County Parks and Recreation.

2017 to 2020, I was a Parent Member of the District Accountability Committee of the Gilpin County School District.

2018-2019, Volunteer, Ms. Monica’s class (1st through 3rd grade teacher for Gilpin County Montessori Program), I assisted Ms. Monica with proctoring weekly spelling tests and reading with children.

2020-present, I am the current Chair of the District Accountability Committee of the Gilpin County School District.

2021 to present, I am a Board Member of the Gilpin County Education Foundation.

2022, I was a Volunteer for the Ice Cream Social, Elementary, Gilpin County School District.

2022, I was a Volunteer for the Halloween Carnival, Gilpin County School District.

2022-2023, I was a Volunteer for Ms. Fuller, Sixth Grade Math Teacher, Gilpin County School District.

2023, I am a Member of Gilpin County School District Strategic Purpose Design Team, which is focused on refreshing the district’s mission, vision, and core beliefs, and building a Gilpin County “Graduate Profile” and “Educator Profile”, identifying the knowledge, skills, and dispositions that we want all of our graduate students and educators to have.

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?

Teacher salaries are too low in general in Colorado and particularly low at Gilpin County School, especially considering the housing costs in Gilpin County. If elected, I will continue to promote the tiered pay increases already being provided to our teachers, due to the great work of the current Board. I would also look into providing incentive bonuses for teachers who achieve measurable results in line with Colorado’s academic standards.

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

Last year’s swatting event was very scary for all involved. There is a lot that we can take from that event, but the most important takeaway I believe is ensuring a solid communication plan is in place for a future potential school emergencies. If I become a Board member, I will explore better ways to ensure open lines of communication between staff and the school during an emergency. I will also explore how the school can set up a communication plan with parents, so that parents know what to expect in case of an emergency and how to keep informed in real time. I also think setting up simulated emergency events for parent participation might also help parents to better understand the process, in the event there is a break in communication.

We know based on the great turnout of first responders at one of the school’s latest safety drills, that everyone is on board with improving the process. With more communication and coordination between OEM and the School Board, I am confident we can improve the communication process greatly.

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

I would first like to state my personal beliefs on vaccines should not and cannot play into the decisions I would be responsible for making on the Board. That being said, I support following Public Health guidelines for vaccinations, if such guidelines are supported by tried and true data for vaccines that have been vetted through the proper channels. As an attorney, I must conduct due diligence on every one of my cases before I bring a lawsuit and represent to the court that my client’s claims are valid and not frivolous. If I became a Board member, I believe my constituents would expect me to do the same when it came to supporting Public Health guidelines for the community.

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

I do not believe in banning any school-focused books, as long as they are deemed educational and go to curricula topics that promote Colorado’s academic learning standards.

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

I support the RE-1 mill levy increase because the county could lose funding from the casinos at any time. Moreover, supporting the mill levy ensures the long-term viability of the Gilpin County Recreation Center, which is necessary not only for the health and well-being of our elders in the community, but also for our youth, who need a place to socialize and make positive use of their time. The Recreation Center also provides licensed child care to many of our hard-working families.

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 believe it is fair that Gilpin County pay for part of our SRO’s salary. I believe taxpayers in RE-2 who pay into the general fund benefit from this arrangement, in that our officers if needed somewhere else in the county could be called to help with an emergency situation.

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

I am passionate about education and ensuring I do all that I can to secure the best public school education possible for my daughter (now in 7th grade at Gilpin County School District) and her peers. I have spent the last seven years volunteering my time and energy to Gilpin County School teachers and students. I believe it is now time for me to focus my energies on the School Board, where I can best advocate for the students and teachers of Gilpin County School.

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

Yes.

How would you promote diversity in the school?

I would promote diversity by calling upon our diverse school members to speak about their experiences. As a Board member I would also look for diversity in the school’s hiring processes, and bring in guest speakers to talk on topics important to all students and faculty, such as the School Board did with Bobby Jones. He is having a great impact on the children in the short time school has been back in session.

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?

I believe the best approach to education is one that includes all sides of the story. By choosing a secular-only approach, one would need to leave out important parts of history, which does a disservice to our students. I also believe our students should know as much about our history as possible. Failing to teach all parts of our history makes us susceptible to repeating the not-so-nice- parts of our past as a human race.

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

I believe the role of the Board and school administration is to ensure the Colorado state requirements for learning are met. The school has testing goals, to ensure that kids are taught what is needed to meet state requirements. The Board’s mission should be to support teachers and students in meeting these goals.

For additional information email Victoria at victoriaelenaedwards@gmail.com.