Forum for Irvine school board hopefuls is set
Irvine parents are giving voters a chance to vet school board candidates.
The Irvine Unified Council Parent Teacher Assn., which serves 32 school site PTAs, is hosting a candidates forum for Irvine Unified School District board of education hopefuls at 7 p.m. Oct. 9 at the IUSD offices, 5050 Barranca Parkway.
“Hosting the candidate forum is consistent with [the] PTA’s mission as a strong advocate for public education,” council President Petra Schaefer said in a prepared statement. “California’s public schools are facing a financial crisis and [the council] wants to insure that the IUSD community has an opportunity to get to know the candidates so that they can make an informed choice on Nov. 6.”
There are nine candidates vying for three open seats on the school board. Board members Michael Parham, Carolyn McInerney and Sue Kuwabara’s terms expire in November.
Parham, the only incumbent, is running against Irvine businessman Paul Bokota, educator and businesswoman Lauren Brooks, school planning director Margaret Brown, educator and Irvine Finance Commission Chairman Omar Ezzeldine, retired teacher Carolyn Inmon, school nurse Michelle Ollada Alipio, educator and scientist Bob Vu and Orange County Deputy District Attorney Cyril Yu for a seat.
Candidates will make a statement, answer two uniform questions and may field questions from the audience for a limited amount of time. Attendees can speak with candidates after the forum.
The forum can be watched on Cox Channel 39.
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