UPDATE – KKTV has posted a story about this here with more information. 15,000 incorrect ballots were mailed (the total number of registered voters in Teller County is 21,957, but not all of those are in the school district).

So many people – on both sides I’m sure – were looking forward to voting on this school board race and being done with this. Ballots were mailed Monday, and started being received today. What greeted people opening their envelopes though, was this:

Not what people expected…where was the school board race? Calls to the county clerk revealed there has been a printing mistake, due to switching to a new printing service. We’re expecting a press release and/or other public announcement from the county soon to set the record straight, just know that replacement ballots should be mailed out later this week. The county’s website has an example of a sample ballot, and shows that it SHOULD look like this:

Be patient…theyr’e fixing this!

What happened to what was going to be our fifth school board candidate forum, the one hosted by Woodland Park High School students? Massive rejection, that’s what. First, their attempts to hold a joint Merit/WPHS forum, where students from both schools would organize and moderate the forum, was quickly rejected by Merit Headmaster Gwynn Pekron. Then, WPHS students’ own administration rejected them, when Ken Witt and Kim Moore shut down this effort.

But Woodland Park Panthers are tough. They don’t just back down.

I’m proud of the students of the Woodland Park High School…they are proceeding with their school board candidate forum, in defiance of the wishes of Ken Witt and the board members that support him. Since their school won’t support them, they’ll be holding their forum at the Woodland Park Public Library on Saturday, October 21st, at 10:00AM. I’m told that invitations have gone out to all six candidates; I do not know how many have replied. But a forum being hosted by the very students our board is responsible for, and hosted in our public library? This seems like our best chance yet to get all six candidates in the same room at the same time.

If you missed the WP School Board Candidates Forum hosted by the Chamber of Commerce, you can watch the video here. The district has not yet posted the video of the incumbents’ separate forum; I’ll post a link if they do so.
— Read on myemail.constantcontact.com/WP-School-Board-Candidates-Forum.html

Tonight was the night of the forum battle! The school district scheduled their own school board candidate forum for the same date and time as the already-scheduled candidate forum being hosted by the Chamber of Commerce. We were all curious how it would go down…who did the voters want to hear from the most?

The Chamber’s forum, featuring challengers Seth Bryant, Mike Knott, and Keegan Barkley, drew an impressive crowd, as this picture shows:

The same cannot be said for the forum hosted by the school district, featuring incumbents Mick Bates, Cassie Kimbrell, and David Illingworth:

Meanwhile, our superintendent Ken Witt, who repeatedly talks about prioritizing academic success. The High School was holding their Academic Awards ceremony at the same time. Witt decided to go to the district forum for the incumbents instead of actually prioritizing academic success and celebrating the accomplishments of those high school students.

As you’ve probably heard, instead of the one traditional school board candidate forum, there are currently FOUR scheduled, and a FIFTH was in the works until shut down by the school district. They are:

1. Chamber of Commerce Forum (10/9)
2. Victory Life Forum (10/2)
3. Merit Academy Forum (10/17)
4. Woodland Park school district forum (10/9)
5. Woodland Park student-led forum (CANCELLED)

I’ve had some help from community members piecing together a timeline of events, and am summarizing it below:

• September 5th: Chamber Forum invitation sent to incumbents and candidates.
• September 12th: District Forum Invitation sent to incumbents and candidates.
• September 13: Email to District by candidates requesting alternative moderators with neutral suggestions. 
• September 13th: Receipt of email from candidates confirmed by District.
• September 18th:  Invitation sent from Merit for a Merit community exclusive forum to incumbents and candidates.
• September 19th: After no response, candidates decline District’s competing forum.
• September 19th: WPSD HS students invite incumbents and candidates to the student led forum. 
• September 21st: Candidates respond requesting that WPHS students include Merit students on their moderation team
• September 22nd: HS students email Gwynn Pekron (Headmaster), Mrs Hanson (Head of Upper School), and Mrs White (secretary) asking if 3-5 Merit students would moderate with them.  
• September 22nd: Mrs Hanson responds favorably but Ms Perkron politely declines as they are doing their own forum. 
• September 26: David Illingworth posts a joint statement that the incumbents will attend the District forum, the Church forum and the Merit forum. 
• September 26: Kevin Burr (HS Principal) informs incumbents and candidates that the HS Student forum has been canceled by the District. 

At this point in time, there is no forum scheduled with all six school board candidates present.

Also scheduled for October 9th, is the WPHS Academics Night at the high school, awarding students for academic excellence (which, it seems is actually not the priority the board claims it is as they scheduled their forum for that evening).

The candidate forum chaos continues, but with a little clarification. Yesterday, the Woodland Park School District sent this email out to parents:

Dear WPSD Families,

We want to inform you of an upcoming event – the School Board Candidate Forum on Monday, October 9, moderated by Peter Hilts. Mr. Hilts currently serves as Superintendent of District 49 in Falcon, CO, and provides consultation to education leaders around the state. This event offers a valuable opportunity to engage with the candidates running for our school board and gain insights into their visions for our schools.

Event Details:

Date: Monday,  October 9

Time: 6-8 p.m.

Location: Columbine Elementary Gymnasium

During this forum, candidates will address your questions, share their perspectives, and discuss their plans for our school district.

Forum Format:

Questions solicited from the community will be reviewed to identify common themes, and a selection will be made by the moderator, ensuring their appropriateness for a 90-minute forum. The forum will be conducted in three 30-minute segments. Ballot opponents will be asked the same questions during their allotted 30-minute segment. The remaining 30 minutes are reserved for opening and closing statements.

How to Participate:

Your active participation is essential in making this event a success. To submit your questions for the candidates, click here or visit the homepage of our district website at wpsdk12.org. 

We look forward to your presence at the School Board Candidate Forum on  Monday,  October 9 , from 6-8 p.m . 

Thank you!

We learned the moderator selecting questions is Peter Hilts, the CEO of District 49 and a consultant the WPSD board hired to lead their retreat in Black Forest in the spring of last year. He helped Ken Witt and Brad Miller start up Colorado Digital BOCES (later becoming ERBOCES), and has worked with Brad Miller quite a bit apart from that, including in his current role at D49 where Brad Miller is the attorney (if you’re new to all this, Ken Witt is the Woodland Park superintendent, and Brad Miller was brought in by our current board to be our attorney).

Of course, it’s worth noting that this district candidate forum is at the same date and time as the one organized by the Chamber of Commerce (to be held in the Ute Pass Cultural Center). The district has not answered questions about why they chose this date/time, though it seems clear from their supporters on social media that they did not approve of the moderator of the Chamber event. Questions for the chamber event are drafted by a non-partisan group of Chamber members, and the audience is allowed to submit questions (direct attacks will not be allowed), so the moderator seems to have less influence here than at the district event (the moderator will not edit any questions).

The three challengers all posted statements about this to their Facebook pages today:

I am confirming my attendance at The Greater Woodland Park Chamber of Commerce candidate forum on October 9, 2023.

All candidates were asked to save the date of this forum back in June.

Two days after we received our official invite we were informed the district scheduled their own forum with a hand picked moderator on the same day and time.

Keegan Barkley, Seth Bryant and I reached out to the district in good faith to see if we could agree on a moderator for their forum but did not receive even a courtesy response. Total crickets from the incumbents.

I hope they will reconsider and attend this important event for our community.

Mike Knott

…

Disappointed but not surprised.

Disappointed in the decision to intentionally schedule a conflicting candidate forum with a moderator who is not a stakeholder in our community, but not surprised with the track record the district leadership has placing politics and personal agendas above the best interests of students and families in Woodland Park School District. Deliberately creating conflict instead of trying to negotiate or collaborate in the best interest of the community is not good leadership, it is not good public service.

In an effort to try and give the community a forum that would have all six candidates I requested a date change, I was met with silence. In an effort to get a moderator who understood the complexities of our community, I asked for an impartial local conservative and provided names for consideration, again silence. It was only after officially declining did the district publicize the event. I think it is shameful to use a position of power to deprive the community of the opportunity to compare and contrast the candidates.

I look forward to participating in a long-standing Chamber of Commerce forum for the elected officials of our community. My campaign was, as was the district and other candidates, notified in June to reserve the date. We confirmed upon receipt of my invitation and I will be honoring my commitment. I look forward to seeing you there.

Seth Bryant

…

I am excited to announce that I will be participating in the upcoming Chamber candidates forum! This is an incredible opportunity for the community to hear our plan for the future and have your remaining questions answered.

It is disheartening that the incumbents decided to hold their own forum at the same date and time, despite knowing about the Chamber event since this summer.

We reached out to the incumbents in an attempt to create one event where all 6 candidates could come together, but they were unwilling to even respond.

This is just another example of this board not listening to the will of the people and catering to their own personal agenda. We deserve better from our elected officials and it is time for a change!

True leadership and public service involves open and respectful dialogue. It is about working together for the betterment of our schools and community.

I am committed to being a school board member who listens, engages, and works tirelessly to represent YOUR interests. Together we can bring about the change Woodland Park actually needs!

Keegan Barkley

This is yet another example of how this current school board has fostered division in this community rather than unity and healing. If even one of those three gets reelected this November, we can see exactly what we’ll get…more of the same. Voters have a choice.

Traditionally, the Woodland Park Chamber of Commerce would organize a candidate forum with a moderator directing the event. They’ve been doing this since around 2006, and report that they typically have 99-100% attendance at the forums they organize. They started the work on this one back in June…but just like the past twenty months have been out of the ordinary for this town, so shall this forum. The Chamber is telling members that the district is scheduling a competing forum for the same date and time as the Chamber’s forum. An additional (third) candidate forum has been scheduled by a local church with connections to Charis! So it’s shaking up to be a messy forum situation for a messy campaign season for a messy school board situation. Naturally.

Details are still sparse, but with lots of rumors floating around, I thought I’d summarize what we know about the forums:

October 2nd, Victory Life Community Impact Team (associated with Victory Life church) candidate forum. 6PM, High School auditorium. The moderator is state Senator Mark Baisley, who recently had a guest column published in the Courier praising the current board, and teaches the Practical Government class at Charis. Duane Sheriff is the founder of Victory Life church and a member of the Andrew Wommack Ministries Board of Directors.

October 9th, WP Chamber of Commerce candidate forum. 5:30-7:30PM, Ute Pass Cultural Center. I have not seen any announcement about who the moderator is, though there are rumors floating around social media.

October 9th, WPSD candidate forum. There is no public information for this one, though the WP Chamber of Commerce sent this email to members regarding that event…this is all the information we’ve found about this alternate event:

As President of the Greater Woodland Park Chamber of Commerce, it’s impossible not to reflect on the remarkable journey we’ve undertaken together. From the depths of the Great Recession of 2007 to 2009 to the unexpected turbulence of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, our community has demonstrated remarkable fortitude and adaptability.

At the heart of our Chamber mission lies a simple yet profound commitment: to advocate for businesses. We understand that businesses flourish when they can operate in an environment conducive to earning profits through the provision of goods and services. To uphold this commitment, we vigilantly monitor local, state, and federal legislation, taking clear and informed positions in support of, or opposition to, legislation that impacts businesses. We also recognize the value of neutrality on certain issues, respecting the diversity of opinions within our vibrant business community.

A pivotal decision made in 2006 was to begin hosting Candidate Forums, a decision firmly rooted in our unwavering commitment to impartiality. Unlike many organizations, we deliberately refrain from endorsing or opposing candidates, thus allowing us to provide a neutral platform for informed discourse. Over the past 17 years, we have organized forums spanning Federal, State, County, and Local elections, covering both partisan and non-partisan contests. In our region, non-partisan elections include but are not limited to those for the City of Woodland Park, Cripple Creek, Victor, as well as the Woodland Park RE-2 and Cripple Creek RE-1 school districts.

The objective of these forums is crystal clear: to educate voters on where each candidate stands on the key “issues” relevant to the office they seek. We prioritize insightful, issue-based questions that equip attendees or viewers to be informed before casting their ballot. Additionally, we’ve assisted in providing a local Blue Book on proposed Charter Amendments, collaborating closely with Charter review committee members and legal experts. These two initiatives—the Candidate Forums and the Blue Book—empowered voters with essential information, although we do acknowledge we are just one source among many.

In anticipation of our upcoming RE-2 School Board Candidates Forum, we followed our tried-and-true process, meticulously aligning with the election calendar’s intricate dance of petition deadlines, ratifications, and more. Moreover, thorough planning approximately nine months prior to the election date encompasses various crucial elements, including selecting an appropriate venue, appointing a skilled moderator, and ensuring a proficient timekeeper, among other key considerations. The Chamber has had the privilege of collaborating with a dedicated team of volunteers, individuals renowned for their unwavering integrity and extensive experience, who have expertly moderated our forums. These moderators have consistently garnered accolades from all participating candidates, who have expressed their heartfelt appreciation for the unwavering professionalism and seasoned expertise demonstrated throughout each forum.

We selected the RE-2 School Candidate Forum date, October 9, 2023 and promptly secured the venue. The announcement was disseminated through our Chamber and Community Calendar and shared with those active in the local School District in June of 2023. Invitations to candidates, however, were extended only once we received official confirmation of their candidacy. We received the official word from the School District on September 5th that the petitions had been ratified. The School District then informed us of the six candidates vying for three open positions, prompting us to send out email invitations on September 5^th to each candidate via their campaign email addresses, followed by physical letters sent via postal mail.

These invitations conveyed the date, time, location, moderator and the rules of engagement for the forum, with an RSVP deadline of October 2, 2023. We have received three affirmative responses, with the remaining candidates having until October 2nd to respond. Remarkably, throughout our history of hosting Candidate Forums, we have consistently achieved a 99 – 100% attendance from invited candidates. Even in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, with the world teetering on the brink of lockdowns, we managed to uphold this record. This near perfect attendance reflects the integrity and commitment of the Chamber in conducting these forums, and it is gratifying to have candidates express their appreciation for our efforts in providing a platform that informs voters about critical issues before they cast their ballots.

In a world where information overload often leads to missed notifications or forgotten dates, we believe that the RE-2 School District’s recent invitation on September 12^th to the six candidates inviting them to a School District Candidates Forum on the same date as the Chamber event, October 9^th, was simply an inadvertent oversight or misunderstanding about the date.

In closing, we wish to assure our members and the Candidates that the Chamber will proceed with our planned event on October 9, 2023. Our primary goal remains unwavering—to provide a neutral and respectful forum where all candidates can confidently engage in a meaningful dialogue. We will pose questions that delve into the substantive issues facing our school, equipping voters with factual insights that will guide their decisions at the ballot box. We firmly believe that informed and engaged citizens are the bedrock of a vibrant democracy, and we are honored to play a part in this vital process.

This post will be updated as more details are learned about each event