It's not an immediate stop. You don't have to shut your mouth, but you know, it's it's a 10-second grace period. So, thank you, Miss Christine, for being our timekeeper this evening. And I'm sorry, Mr. Jason Silva. Thank you everybody. Thanks for everyone for being here. Um I'll start out by saying a little bit about myself for those who have not heard. Uh my name is Jason Silva. Um I am a former Marine served in OF1 in the infantry. After that I served uh my community city of Richmond, California where I served as a police officer for a little over 10 years. I moved to Colorado Springs by uh in 2017. I was done with law enforcement and decided to move my family uh to the next mountain range over since I grew up in the Sierra Neadas. I wanted to see what the Colorado Rockies were about and I chose Colorado Springs.
it was very well done and they they were getting a lot done and then i also visited uh oxford's vapa program to see what was going on there and say hello to some people and i want to say also i am so proud to see the ambassadors all over the district at all of our activities they're there they're working they were at the open houses the back to schools and you know and it's just makes me proud you know they are a really good group and we have an exceptional young man he's very well prepared and very well speaking and it's just i know he'll remind me about voting next time okay i don't want to slide you okay and i think that was about it as much as i could get from my calendar right now madam president yes i uh just want to say on behalf of the board that we congratulate uh karen orr and patty neely [Applause] and i know uh we all want to wish um articelli chavez the the best um in in her future and we hope that she'll come back in a year we've given her a year or so um okay so we we wish her the best we love her we're gonna have a very difficult time replacing her and we wish her the best all right thank you anna one thing i did forget to say um mike matsuda our superintendent joined dr janice billings and myself at oxford academy and the purpose was to meet with the faculty and to explain to younger faculty members how the school started and how it was imp the pro process was implemented and i thought it was very informational for people that teach there and dr billings was saying the difficulties of getting the school started and so forth and to convince the community that it would be a worthwhile project and i mentioned uh property values too because they went up so i want to thank all of you at the oxford academy no i mean would that uh when was that i mean dan billings was there yeah about two weeks ago a couple weeks ago during the day the morning oh okay we missed her you kept her from us that's right also also happy administrators day to everybody we've received in recognition of happy administrators today i think that's a good idea i wasn't sure that's what you said okay all right we will close the meeting in honor of our administrators and administrator day at 8 44.
And my reason for running for the board is I my values are based on Judeo-Christian values. I'm a Bible Bible believing Christian and I'm not ashamed about that. Uh what really piqued my interest was the introduction of a worldview that I did not agree with. That is what piqued my interest to run for the board. As I started exploring and talking to people more, I found that the environment my kids were going to school in within the district, it wasn't wasn't the environment that I expected. And there was teachers and faculty that were coming up to me, seeking me out, coming showing up to my house, wanting to sign my petition to get on. They were explaining to me that they were concerned about uh what was going on. they felt that they could not speak out uh to or their their views uh would not be heard and would not be accepted.
And that was a pretty big issue for me. That actually turned into one of the biggest issues why I ran. If teachers are unable to speak out about what is going on in with certain curriculum or the type of environment that is in the schools, what are the things are they not speaking out about? And that really concerns me. I have four daughters. uh three right now are currently going uh or go attend school and it just it really I couldn't look at myself in the mirror and not try to make a difference. So that was my main reason for wanting to run is I wanted to be part of the solution and I want to hopefully make the district schools better for everybody and um that's exactly why I'm here. Thank you very much Mr. Aaron Salt.
Good evening everyone. Thank you so much for being here. My name is Aaron Salt and I've lived in District 20 for over eight years. I've been married to my beautiful bride for 11 years and we have four kids. I have a bachelor's degree in psychology and a master's degree in social work. Most of my counseling experience was working in adolescent drug rehabs and it was incredibly rewarding work. One of the key things I learned and continue to use to this day is unconditional respect. As a chair of a charter school for three and a half years, it was my pleasure to deal with the frustrated parents. In other volunteer efforts, I have been met with people of very different views than what I hold. But I treat every one of these individuals the exact same. I give them respect. I give them space to be comfortable.
And I listen intently by addressing critics directly, utilizing my social working skills to be present and listen. Those who were opponents a few months ago are some of my biggest advocates today. This is who I am. Everyone is met with dignity and respect. Because of this, I stand for parental rights and authority. I don't pretend to know your situation. I've heard it said that if parents don't agree with universal masking, they have the choice to enroll in a charter school or homeschool their students. How does that work for the single mother working two jobs, relying on the district bus to ensure a safe commute to school for her children? What choice does she have? We can't assume that we know the best. We can't assume that our mandate will solve problems without creating new ones. I've helped navigate these turbulent waters at our charter school.
And believe me, we haven't made a 100% of people happy. But what we did was we listened intently. We developed creative solutions and we created a learning environment suitable for all students. I have fought and I will continue to fight for you, our parents, our students, and our teachers. I will continue to fight for our American freedoms and will do so upholding dignity and respect. I ask for your support and your vote to represent you on the District 20 school board. Thank you, Mr. Michael Riffle. Even everybody. So, there's a choice to be made this November. You need to ask yourself, do I want schoolboard members who are willingly accepting socialistic ideology to be taught in our classrooms and favors enacting irrational mandates on students and teachers without regard to parents choice or personal liberties because they know better than you? Or do you want schoolboard member who values parent and community input, is moral, conservative, honest, and utterly against Marxism and its evil tenants?
My slogan for this campaign has been education, not politics. Our students and our staff are struggling from the lasting effects of the CO 19 pandemic response. We need to get back to the basics of education and get rid of the Marxist and political garbage being brought into our schools that is negatively consuming the valuable time of our students and the administrators. What makes me qualified? As a 25-y year special forces combat veteran and officer, I've ran current operations for the special operation forces throughout the entire North American continent. I'm proficient in reading, writing, and implementing policy from a strategic and operational level. I understand the need for clear and concise guidance both verbally and in writing. Arguably, this is one of the most important qualifications for a member of the board as any unclear verbal or written guidance or mission statements to the district superintendent are one employee opens the door for either deliberate or unintentional misinterpretation.
This gives leeway to enact policy against the intended will of the elected board members. Why am I doing this? I will not give another inch to the immoral socialistic ideology being pushed on my children, our children. That stops now. I'm Mike Riffle. You can leave me at mike riffle.org. And I hope to earn your vote. Miss Lindseay Moore. Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Lindseay Moore. I'm a native Colorado and I'm a mom, a military wife, and I'm a fierce advocate for our kids. I've spent the last 18 months advocating for our kids and de I apologize. There's a bug and he just went in my eye. Um, did you get him? Okay. Sorry, guys. Restart. Do I get a restart? 10 seconds. Okay. I've spent the last 18 months advocating for our kids in D20 and across the front range. On Monday of this week, the D20 board received a letter from my lawyer and from me in their inbox stating this notice.
Answer the parents now and remove this mask mandate. I've worked with Dr. Gregory in December of 2020 to achieve a goal of getting 100 substitute teachers in order to get our kids back in the classroom in January of 2021 and avoiding another shutdown. Our goal was met. I'm a leader in our community by bringing together parents and developing community groups across the front range. I'm a leader in our community with our military as I'm a family readiness group leader with my husband's unit. And I volunteered in our kids' classrooms with the PTO. And in the spring of 2021, I volunteer coached your third and fourth graders in land sharks. And I want you to know that their biggest request of me was this. Coach Lindsay, please run with me. And I was there because I knew how much trauma those kids had been through. I knew that they were isolated and I knew that this is their first opportunity to get back into sports.
And so, Miss, what did Miss Lindsay do? She ran with your third graders and your fourth graders. And I want you to know that if you need to be challenged after the age of 30, I suggest you get on a field and run with your third graders and your fourth graders because they're fast. So, our kids are our greatest resource and they should be protected as such. And that's exactly why I'm here. I'm here because of these little guys in this room because they deserve more. So, vote the same, get the same, or vote more and get more. Thank you, Miss Jackie Leash. Good evening, everyone. Thank you so much to those who came tonight in person and thanks to everyone who's logging in tonight online. I really appreciate your valuable time and it shows you want to be an engaged and informed community member.
So, thank you. I currently live in district 20 and I have for the last 14 years. My husband and I have three kids in district 20 schools. We currently have a ninth, sixth, and third grader. So, yes, we get to hit all the schools this year. Um when we moved to district 20 14 years ago, we didn't really know what schools were like. So this is when we decided we are going to get involved. I joined the PTAs. I joined the school accountability committee, the district accountability committee, the budget subcommittee. I even used my masters in education to be a licensed guest staff. I've taught their preschool summer school programs. I even did my student teaching in district 20. We really love the schools. One thing that I really wanted to talk about is I actually work in Head Start with special needs preschoolers and it's such a joy to see their little faces learning new things every day.
And District 20 has some amazing preschool classrooms. And I think it's such a valuable thing to help those children start off on the right foot, showing excellence at an early age and providing the tools they need to be successful and as they grow up through our district. It really helps when we meet each child where their educational needs are and really help them build on their own individual strengths. So that is definitely one thing that I'd love to see us continue our awesome preschools and expanding those programs. District 20 has a longstanding of academic excellence and I will continue to be a champion for these educational initiatives um as I get on the board and really fight for our kids, our teachers and our schools. Thank you Mr. Thomas Lavali. Thank you. My name is Tom Lavali and I'm running for reelection. Four years ago at this very forum, I said the following quote, "What will I bring to the board?
Excellence and accountability. I will expect excellence from the superintendent on down. And the board is accountable to you, the voters, taxpayers, and parents of D20. I will ask the tough questions that need to be asked and hold our district to the highest standards. We are an excellent district, and I want that excellence to continue. I want parents to continue to be able to tailor their child's education to meet their unique learning styles and passions. I will be a board member who can stay within a budget and spend your tax dollars wisely." End quote. I have done what I have promised. I have asked the hard questions. I have held the district accountable, but also complimented them when when deserved. I take my role as an elected official very seriously. I ask you to let me continue to serve this great district for another four years.
A little bit of my background. I've been married to my wife who is by the way her birthday is today. She's she's 39 years old. Um um she uh we have been actually that's not really true. Um because we've been married for 39 years. Um but uh we have four adult children. Uh I graduated from the US Air Force Academy in 1982 and I also have a master's degree in mechanical engineering. I'm a retired Air Force reservist and I've been a pilot with the United Airlines for 30 years and I've lived in the same house for 29 years. Before being elected to the D20 board, I served on the board of the Classical Academy Charter School, the last two, as the board chairman. Co has disrupted everything. Sadly, our district is more divided than I can ever remember. Passions are running very high, and I understand we're talking about our children.
I have strong opinions about mass, vaccination, CRT, and the other pressing issues of the day. And I know they've been asked, and they'll probably be asked again tonight. But please know that I have not lost sight of your child's education. The goal of our district is to have all of our children graduate with the knowledge, skills, and character to be productive, successful citizens in this great country. We must not lose sight of the vital importance of math, history, science, music, and other disciplines. If reelected, I promise those will stay my top priorities. Thank you, Miss Nicole KS. Every single person in here has unique life experiences, different backgrounds, and their own deeply ingrained value systems. To expect any one of us can govern on a school board without ascribing to our values and worldview is ignorant and impossible. Simply because someone is on one side or the other of the political aisle, which we all are, does not mean that we don't care about other people.
It's extremely presumptuous and incorrect to claim say that conservatives don't speak for all children. I speak for historically agreed upon American values of freedom and equality for all. When we don't repair the foundation first, any of our band-aids will break and the whole thing will crumble. An annotation of article 9, section 15 of the Colorado Constitution states, "It is legitimate for the curriculum of the school district to reflect the value system and educational emphasis, which are the collective will of those whose children are being educated and who are paying the costs. Conservative values mean we want to act conservatively. We choose to be thoughtful, conscientious and virtuebased in our actions and discussions. It means we want to have less government, less politics precisely because we have hope in the human spirit when it is free. We want every single child and adult to harness their individual power and gifts to create the best life possible for themselves, which in turn creates the best experience for the community.
I want the very best for all of our children. That's why I'm opposed to anything distracting from their well-being. Mask and quarantine mandates, fractioning them into groups of victims and special interests so they lose focus on their job, of obtaining a robust education. I want the very best for our students. A pervasive attitude of hope in their abilities, a focus on learning how to be a hardworking citizen and a critical thinker. I look forward to expanding all the opportunities our district can to facilitate academic and extracurricular excellence and training for being responsible and wise American adults. Mr. Nathan Johnson. Hello everybody. I'm Nathan Johnson and I start off by telling you a little bit about myself. I was a teacher for eight years, six years in D20, two years in Cherry Creek schools, and coached here in um at Pine Creek High School for 13 years up until this year.
So, I've been very involved in the district, and I want my reason for running for school board is to try and help the students, try and get the students the best education possible. Part of that is what's been said these last few forums. um keeping inappropriate curriculum out, giving parents choice regarding to mask vaccines, um quarantines, things like that. But there's got to be another well, I guess another way to make it better for students is make it better for teachers. And that's a big thing. So, we need to work on retaining good teachers, which I know we're doing the best we can with what we're given, but there's always ways to improve. And we want to attract. So, when teachers leave or retire, we want to attract the best teachers possible. And I know a lot of that has to do with budget with the district which once again we need to work on and figure out the best way to use that money.