Vote Jodi

Election update: I won! I want to thank my opponent, Abby Jefferson; she stepped up to serve, made me a better candidate, and I hope she serves the district now/in the future. I'd also like to thank volunteers: sign captains, door hangers, LTEs, pick-me-up texts and food, person-to-person advocacy ALL mattered. I am humbled that my community trusts me with our students. That election was hard work (Breck and I are both smoked) but I am so excited to return to the board room and get after it.

Let's go!

Breck says, "VOTE JODI!"

Be safe during Halloween! And VOTE!

Veteran's Day is 11/11--a week-plus after the election--but I wanted to post a nice photo of : Brian, retired Army of 26 years; me; Grady, a new Army infantry officer; Fin, considering some military work; and Shep, currently deployed Navy officer. Bless those who serve or served.

My response to Nancy Dominick’s Mountain Mail Letter to the Editor: Does Petit create a conflict of interest?

Dear Nancy,
Thank you for asking if I have a conflict of interest since I am a school board member and a district employee as a substitute teacher, English-as-a-second-language teacher, and a sewing and alterations mentor (the last two jobs were funded by grants). I DO have a conflict of interest. And I, too, was worried about this conflict of interest; so much so, that I used my first question as a board member to ascertain how I must behave because of this conflict:
1. I must recuse myself from any vote pertaining to Horizons Exploratory Academy (HEA), where my employment takes place. This has not happened yet, and if elected please know I will recuse myself from any vote REMOTELY impacting HEA.
2. I must not make over $10,000/year as an employee of the district. This is NOT a problem. For all three employment efforts (subbing, teaching English as a second language, and instructing sewing/alterations), I made $2327 for all of the 2020-2021 school year. In addition, I made $300 during the same academic year from Full Circle Restorative Justice (FCRJ) during HEA’s disorientation (the year-long curriculum for new HEA students). My lead teacher and I teach de-escalation and respectful conversation techniques —tools HEA expects their students to use in their HEA, personal, and professional lives.

I obviously don’t work at HEA for the money. In fact, I was not going to sub last academic year or this academic year because of COVID-19. However, Shannon Scheffel, the district’s substitute teacher coordinator, called and asked if I would sub for HEA because no one else is interested. And this is where my true HEA conflict of interest comes in: my heart. HEA students inspire me with their grit and love; HEA teachers hearten me to give as much to the students as they do. And, in the end, those are the same reasons I want to retain my seat on the board: inspiration and motivation, regardless of all the conflict that comes with it! Be well. Jodi

In case you have not decided, let Doc Hud and Doc Stack persuade you to !

Today. TODAY! 10/26/21, Tuesday, right-darn-now-TODAY is the last day to mail in your ballot to confirm it will be received in time to count. If you can't mail your ballot today, you can always drop off your ballot at the Chaffee County Courthouse, 104 Crestone.

Thanks to the awesome Sip-n-Stitch ladies for having me at your session!

Some more support! Mail in your ballot!

Have you mailed in or dropped off your ballot yet? Get 'er done!

Some more letters of support. Get those ballots mailed in!