Endorsing Naomi Polen

I am endorsing Naomi Polen for Position #3 on the South Kitsap School Board. Naomi has been serving in this position since April of 2008, when the Board voted unanimously to appoint her to fill the vacancy when Chuck Mayhew resigned.

Naomi has been active and involved in our community for 16 years. She and her husband own a construction business in our community. Three of her children have graduated from South Kitsap High School and a fourth child is a student in the district. She is a fiscal conservative, thoughtful in her approach to issues, and has exceptional integrity.

Naomi asks just about as many questions as I do. She does her homework and works to understand the issues before she makes a decision. She listens well to parents, staff, and community stakeholders. She respects differing opinions and works towards win-win without compromising core values. While a strong team player, Naomi is not shy to present reasoned and intelligent positions when she disagrees.

Naomi Polen is the best candidate for South Kitsap School Board, Position #3.


Of course, I will work professionally with any of the candidates that are elected to serve on the South Kitsap School Board. I give my endorsement to Naomi Polen because we share a positive and common vision for the direction and importance of K-12 education in our South Kitsap community.



Regarding Chris Lemke... I stand by what I said when the school board had the opportunity to appoint a replacement for Chuck Mayhew and Chris applied to be appointed back to the seat he decided not to run for at the last election... "As much as I appreciate Chris's former service on the board, I have some serious reservations...we have places on the board we have told the public we want to go. I am afraid Chris doesn't share that vision".

Regarding Gail Porter... She seems like a very nice person. However, she has only lived in South Kitsap for about a year and while she lived in Director District #3 at the time of filing, she told me that she was moving to a new home that is in another director district within the month. I asked the Kitsap County Auditor's office about this and they confirmed that she can still run for election, but she would only be able to serve for two years of the four year term since she has moved out of the Director District. My opinion is that if a candidate finds that they are unable to fulfill the terms of the office (in this case, a four year term) before the election, they have a responsibility to the voters to withdraw. There are two candidates in this race that can fulfil the full term of the office.

To see a video of the candidates when they were interviewed by the Kitsap Sun Editorial Board, please click here.

Regards,
Kathryn Simpson