Jack Lira for KUSD School Board

DeSmidt, McGuire, Ohnstad, and Wirch all support Yolanda Santos Adams and Robin Cullen. I couldn’t agree more!

Remember to vote tomorrow!

Makes sense to me!

Absentee ballots are hitting mailboxes now. This is the list of candidates that we have interviewed and endorsed. We feel they align with workers values in their respective races.

Yolanda Santos Adam for KUSD School Board

Last night I watched the following YouTube video sent to me by a friend. I had no idea the depths of Yolanda’s commitment to our wonderful city. Her tireless efforts are at the same time exhausting and inspirational. PLEASE…PLEASE…PLEASE…watch this video and then tell me this courageous woman doesn’t deserve to serve on our school board.

Thank you Yolanda for your sacrificial serving of our Kenosha community. In my eyes, you’re an icon and I respect and thank you!

Please forward this post—let’s make certain Yolanda gets elected come April 7th.

Robin, you get my first vote. No doubt about that!

"Kenosha Voices," Yolanda Santos Adams/Lifelong Kenoshan, recorded Dec 8, 2022. "Kenosha Voices" is an oral history project of the Kenosha County Historical Society, in conjunction with Kenosha Comm...

My initial reaction to the KUSD school board election results was disappointment. My ego was definitely bruised. However, after more reflection, I want my final post to be positive and focus on the wonderful things this experience has taught me.

This is what I learned:

1. The most qualified candidate received the most number of votes. Robin Cullen is intelligent, dedicated, and deeply committed to serving teachers and students. She represents the best of what a KUSD school board member should be, and Kenosha is fortunate to have her. I am grateful for her mentorship throughout this process and congratulate her on a well-earned victory as she moves on to April 7. Congratulations Robin!

2. Entering this race, I had much to learn. Along the way, I met many generous and supportive people who helped shape me into a stronger candidate and a more caring person. I am sincerely thankful for the relationships built during this journey. And, I hope to continue them—I love you guys and gals.

3. To everyone who voted for me, thank you. I appreciate the confidence you placed in me and your willingness to support a candidate who was not widely known. Your support affirmed my passion for serving our schools, teachers, and students. I appreciate that you had enough confidence to cast a vote for me. I don’t take that for granted!

4. As for what comes next, I will take time to reflect and refocus. While the outcome was disappointing and a bit of a bruise to my ego, I am grateful for the encouragement of my family, friends, and voters and am 100% confident that this experience will guide me in whatever comes next.

A heartfelt thank you. You all made this a memorable journey!

A great way to start the day. Thank you for your endorsement Carthage College Democrats!

(Robin- I hope you don’t mind, but I left you in the picture because it’s a great shot of you and the students)

A gentle reminder from our Governor. The back side of his sign continued…”for Jack Lira”.

Thanks!

Jack

Dear Anonymous - Thank You!

Last night a supporter of mine left the following Valentine’s message for my wife on our doorstep, along with a little Valentine’s gift…”Christi, 4 letting Jack serve others!”

We may be a small force in our fight for the KUSD school board race—but we are a small force filled with a lot of care, compassion and dedication to serving others.

Who ever did this…I say thank you with an abundance of gratitude.

Jack

Over the past two weeks, Kenosha has witnessed more than its fair share of guns/gun violence. We need to make it clear to the KUSD administration that we want action…Now. We need the issue of “School Safety” to be addressed by Dr. Weiss—clearly, concisely, and immediately.

This is a shout out to all concerned residents: let’s show up, fill the board room, and make our voices heard.

The next school board meeting is scheduled for February 24th.

Date: 2/24/2026
Time: 7:00 – 9:00 pm
Place: John J. Hosmanek Educational Support Center
3600 52nd Street
Kenosha, WI. 53144

If you would like to speak, you have two options:

1. Sign up in advance by clicking on the URL below

https://forms.gle/S4AiFw6XKTp1GyrH6

Note: This link will work as we get closer to the February 24th meeting and once the agenda is submitted. This is the recommended approach.

2. Sign up the day of the meeting:
You can add your name to the speaking list the day of the meeting. However, I would recommend you not wait to the day of. There are a limited number of slots to speak and they are filled on a first come, first serve basis.

It’s this simple…If we don’t show up, the KUSD administration will take it as a sign that this isn’t important to our community and things will remain status quo.

This past Sunday, the Kenosha News ran a section that compared the stances of each School Board candidate. If you haven’t seen the article, please look it up. I feel Kenosha News did a good job of highlighting the “key” issues of each candidate, in their own words.

One of my key platform issues is “Student Safety”—and with the recent shootings in Kenosha, this has become even more of an issue for our KUSD district. Below is a brief description of what I said in the Kenosha News. For more details, scroll down and look for my “Student Safety” platform and let me know what you think.

Thanks.

Jack

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Safety of our Students
We need to protect our schools from all forms of violence. Although the February referendum failed, it highlighted the need to upgrade essential safety measures—controlled entrances, modernized surveillance, reinforced doors, and shatter‑resistant window film. We must secure additional funding to ensure our schools are able to protect our most vulnerable assets, our children.

Primary voting is a week from today (2/17).

Let’s keep the words of Nelson Mandela “front lobe” as we head to the polls next Tuesday.

I love this quote!

During the last school board session, a friend of Jeremy Oster stood up and said I should not be elected to the school board because of my “political views” and that he planned on voting for Jeremy and Bob (presumably because of their ability to keep politics out of what is happening in our schools).

If you look at my “Platform 2 - Keeping Students Safe”, you will see that I reference “Ice Raids” (see below) — so I have to assume this is what Jeremy’s friend was referencing when he said I was bringing my political views into school board issues.

I want to acknowledge that the young man who spoke had every right to his opinion. And, I admire the young man for speaking up (assuming he wasn’t a “plant”). But I do take issue with his comments.

Here is my response to that young man. And, I 100% mean this. If my political stance against ICE costs me this election because it offends a certain group of voters, that is a cost I am more than willing to pay. Because more important to me than winning a school board election, is showing compassion and love to all. It is how I was raised. More importantly, my conscious and my faith require it.

Thanks for listening.

Jack

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Platform 2: Keeping Students Safe

ICE Raids
My stance on this is clear…there should be no ICE enforcement actions on or near Wisconsin schools. Past “sensitive locations” guidelines restricted ICE activity in schools, but these protections were removed in January 2025. As a result, Wisconsin schools may face increased risk of enforcement actions on or near school grounds. I believe KUSD should adopt a firm policy opposing ICE raids near any school to ensure all students can attend classes without fear or disruption. While the exact distance threshold should be determined by experts, my main point is simple: we need to create laws that keep ICE enforcement actions away from our schools.