Editor,

A diverse board is helpful in bringing a variety of perspectives to the decision making process. The best decisions often come out of a balancing of diverse, even opposing views. To be clear, I am talking about the kind of diversity that has been lacking on the school board for years now – a diversity of opinion.

While I deeply respect and value the contributions of each serving board member, they have brought an almost entirely monolithic point of view to the district agenda. Reviewing the board minutes from the last two years, one sentence appears again and again and again: “All in favor.” The last “nay” was back in February 2023 by the venerable Mr. Greenheron. But South Whidbey is not “All in favor” at all. The contentious public board meetings, the dissenting advisory votes by the student board members and the rocky showing of recent bond measures all clearly demonstrate that the community is very much not uniformly on board with the administration’s direction. Yet we have no one on the board that is willing to disagree or push back on the superintendent’s agenda. We need the creative tension that only a diverse set of opinions can provide.

We need someone who can speak on the behalf of the portion of the community that does not simply endorse the direction the district is taking. We need someone who pushes the administration to prioritize the student experience, to be judicious in spending public funds, to pursue academic excellence. We need someone who will challenge this school district to be a place today’s graduates would want to send their kids to one day. That’s how we ensure a robust future for the school and for the community as a whole.

Having known Gwendy Gabelein for over a decade, I can attest to her (often overflowing) passion for this district and the success of the students it aims to educate. This committed, non-partisan, firecracker of a mom cares enough to speak her mind, even when it’s not easy. This is exactly what we need more of to balance the lack of diversity of perspective on the board today.

Join me in supporting Gwendy for the school board!

Dimitri Rabinovich

Freeland