To be a school board member, one has to do the homework.

It is not enough to campaign to “restore student success” out of the blue. You have to study our schools to know what is going on. You have to show up.

Gordon Lafer shows up. As a board member for four years he has visited elementary schools in the district that now, after two decades, have librarians once again in their buildings — thanks to actions he and the current board have taken. During his tenure, Lafer championed the innovative building trades program where high school students have built shelters for unhoused people. He understands how textbook adoptions, like 4J’s new social studies curriculum, support students’ understanding of their world. He listened to student activists and pushed for a new policy ensuring free menstrual products, an equity issue for underserved students who won’t miss school due to the cost.

Simply put, actions speak louder than words. Lafer has supported student success by getting things done for literacy, student hygiene, curriculum adoption and field service opportunities. Our community will be best served if he has a second term to continue his positive work on the 4J School Board.

Paul Bodin

Eugene