Election 2025: 3 questions for Olympia School Board candidates
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Olympian Election 2025 Coverage
There are 31 ballot drop boxes located across the county. Ballots are due Nov. 4, 2025.
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The Olympian reached out to candidates in contested races in the Nov. 4 General Election for Thurston County to ask about pressing issues facing our community.
You’ll find the answers we received from candidates for the Olympia School District’s Board of Directors below. You can also learn more about candidates through the county’s official Voters’ Pamphlet.
The Olympian also will publish similar stories on the Olympia City Council, Port of Olympia, Tumwater City Council, Lacey City Council, and Tumwater School Board elections over the next week or so. Ballots should be arriving in the mail in about a week.
Ballot drop boxes are the most efficient way to return your ballot. There are 31 ballot drop boxes located across the county.
Olympia School Board District No. 3
Are there options for solving the district’s budget shortfall without consolidating schools?
Renee Fullerton: This year, Olympia School District passed another annual budget with reductions. The projections for the next few years continue to show our expenses exceeding our anticipated revenues. There are more ways to proceed than closing schools, but all choices will involve trade-offs.
There are examples of thriving small schools elsewhere. These schools have been actively designed, and staffing looks different than traditional models. Creating innovative small schools can be an option, but maintaining under-enrolled, traditionally organized schools will not be viable forever.
It is my sense that everyone wants a resolution to the uncertainty. No one wants to close schools, but the waiting and worrying over each year’s budget takes a toll. The district must lean into actively re-envisioning our schools. As a school board director, I will support the implementation of ideas that will help our district address the needs of our changing community.
Rhyan Smith: As a candidate for Olympia School Board, I believe we can address the district’s budget challenges without resorting to school closures. Our focus should be on protecting students and classrooms first. Olympia can pursue more state and federal grants, improve energy and transportation efficiency, and reduce administrative overhead before cutting vital programs.
We should also advocate for fair state funding — especially for special education, which remains underfunded —and ensure every dollar directly supports learning. Other districts across Washington have successfully used similar strategies: modestly increasing class sizes to match enrollment, trimming non-instructional administrative staff, consolidating bus routes, and implementing energy-saving facility upgrades.
By prioritizing transparency, fiscal responsibility, and community input, we can balance the budget while keeping our neighborhood schools strong and focused on student success.
What can be done to make sure students and faculty feel safe in schools?
Fullerton: When I’ve talked with parents, students, and educators, both physical and psychological safety have emerged as key concerns. I believe that the school district must address both through strong prevention efforts.
Beginning in the earliest grades, students need evidence-based violence prevention programs that create a culture of respect, empathy, and conflict resolution. I’m proud that Olympia has adopted restorative practices within schools. Restorative practices focus on building stronger communities in schools through dialogue, collaboration, and focusing on repairing harm.
OSD must appropriately train all staff on concerning behavior and how to take action so students receive help early. We need to ensure that we are helping connect students to counseling and other needed mental health resources. The school board of directors and district leadership must ensure that the staff at every school has the appropriate resources and training needed to keep the children in their care safe.
Smith: As a candidate for the Olympia School Board, I believe ensuring the safety of students and staff is non-negotiable. The 2023 school safety reports showed that the majority of parents and staff want School Resource Officers (SROs) back in our high schools to help protect campuses and build positive relationships with students.
Safety also means emotional security — students must feel supported, respected, and connected. We can strengthen that by expanding mental health resources, improving communication between schools, families, and law enforcement, and ensuring clear emergency plans and training are in place.
If elected, I’ll work to create safe, welcoming schools where both physical safety and student well-being are top priorities.
How can the school board ensure students have access to a diverse array of programming while facing budget constraints?
Fullerton: An amazing thing about Olympia is that there are many resources from the community that help supplement programming in the schools.
Examples of these partnerships include Inspire Olympia, a voter-approved sales tax. These funds support local nonprofits offering arts, sciences, heritage, and cultural programs and experiences for the Olympia School District. The Green Congress, a long standing program hosted by South Sound GREEN, the Nisqually River Education Project, and the Chehalis Basin Education Consortium, invites students from across the area to discuss what they have learned by monitoring local river water quality at an annual event at The Evergreen State College;
Besides partnerships, the district itself prioritizes key experiences for students in the budget process. Despite the loss of outdoor education grants from the state, OSD remains committed to offering Cispus to fifth graders across the district.
Creative partnering and community collaborations have long allowed OSD to offer many tremendous opportunities beyond the traditional classroom setting. The board must continue to nurture its relationships with a wide range of community groups to maintain our vibrant programming.
Smith: As a candidate for Olympia School Board and a local business owner, I understand the importance of balancing limited resources with ambitious goals. I believe we can preserve and expand diverse programming, even with tight budgets, through creativity, partnerships, and careful prioritization. We should protect programs that engage students’ interests, like arts, career and technical education, and advanced learning, while exploring grants, community partnerships, and shared resources to fund them.
My experience running a business has taught me how to allocate resources efficiently and measure results. Collaborating with local businesses, nonprofits, and higher education can create real-world learning opportunities at little additional cost. By using data to evaluate program impact and aligning spending with student needs, we can maintain a broad range of opportunities that prepare every Olympia student for success in college, careers, and life.
Olympia School Board District No. 5
Are there options for solving the district’s budget shortfall without consolidating schools?
Gilbert Lamont: Solving a school district’s budget challenges without closing schools requires optimization and strategic prioritization. With declining enrollment, resources must be used efficiently while maintaining educational quality. We must closely examine the intent and impact of our policies and recognize that preserving a small-school model does not align with state funding structures, requiring difficult adjustments.
Honest conversations are needed to define what is feasible and essential, as compromises will be necessary. Staffing reductions and increased administrative responsibilities have already occurred, underscoring the need for a thorough review of data and inefficiencies. Engaging the community to establish shared priorities and maintain transparency is essential. Additionally, exploring creative partnerships, such as collaborations with the city, can help extend resources and sustain vital programs. Through careful analysis, collaboration, and innovation, we can work toward financial stability while continuing to serve students effectively.
Emily Leddige: Yes. While consolidation may be one option, it shouldn’t be the first or only solution. We can address budget challenges through efficiency, transparency, and collaboration. That means conducting a line-by-line review of expenditures, exploring shared services with neighboring districts, and advocating for stable, equitable state funding that reflects the real costs of education. We can also expand partnerships, pursue grants, and look for creative ways to use underutilized spaces for community benefit.
If closures do become necessary, they must be guided by a researched, transparent plan that includes meaningful input from affected schools and the broader public. Any decision should prioritize student stability, long-term educational quality, and community trust — not just short-term financial relief.
What can be done to make sure students and faculty feel safe in schools?
Lamont: Creating a safe environment for students and faculty begins with fostering open communication, trust, and respect. When everyone feels heard and valued, concerns can be addressed early through collaboration and problem-solving. Empowering educators with training and resources to manage behavioral and emotional needs builds consistent, supportive classrooms.
Safety also depends on inclusion; ensuring that all students, regardless of background or ability, feel accepted and represented within the school community. Implementing restorative practices further strengthens safety by promoting empathy, accountability, and relationship-building rather than punishment. Together, these efforts cultivate a positive, inclusive culture where students and staff feel secure, respected, and connected, allowing teaching and learning to flourish.
Leddige: Safety is about more than physical security — it’s about emotional and psychological well-being, too. We can strengthen both by ensuring clear communication channels between students, staff, and families, and by investing in mental health resources such as counselors, social workers, and trauma-informed supports. Providing ongoing training and education for staff and students is also key — covering everything from emergency preparedness and digital safety to de-escalation and inclusion.
Strong partnerships with local law enforcement and emergency services are important, but safety must be rooted in restorative and preventative practices, not just punitive ones. Finally, we need to maintain safe, welcoming physical environments while fostering a sense of belonging. When students and staff feel connected, supported, and empowered, schools become truly safe places to learn and grow.
How can the school board ensure students have access to a diverse array of programming while facing budget constraints?
Lamont: To ensure students continue to have access to a diverse array of programming while facing budget constraints, the school board must focus on impact over intent, prioritizing programs that are most effective, equitable, and widely used. This requires data-driven decision-making to identify which offerings produce the greatest benefit for students and align with district goals.
Open, transparent communication with families, staff, and the broader community is essential to build understanding and trust during challenging financial decisions. By engaging stakeholders in setting priorities, the board can ensure that limited resources are directed toward programs that best serve student needs and maintain opportunities for enrichment.
Exploring creative partnerships, grants, and shared services can also help extend programming options despite financial limitations. Ultimately, thoughtful evaluation, collaboration, and transparency will allow the district to preserve diverse learning opportunities that truly make an impact.
Leddige: Even in tight budgets, we can preserve diverse learning opportunities by being intentional, transparent, and creative. That starts with protecting core and enrichment programs — like art, music, PE, HiCap, special education, and alternative learning — because each contributes to student engagement and growth.
We should also evaluate programs that aren’t effectively serving students and redirect those resources into programs that are making a real difference. Meeting students where they are means ensuring access to a variety of learning experiences, materials, and approaches — not a one-size-fits-all model.
We can stretch resources through cross-program collaboration and community partnerships with local colleges and organizations to expand opportunities without major new costs. By aligning funding with what works and focusing on student needs, we can continue offering a diverse, well-rounded education that supports every learner — no matter the budget.
This story was originally published October 12, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
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