School board candidates fielded questions from voters during a public forum Monday held by the Elmira City School District. Four candidates are vying for the three open spots on the ballot.
Voters in the city of Elmira will choose school board members at the polls next week.
Incumbents Kellie Lowman and Sara Lattin are seeking another term.
Lowman is completing her first term and Lattin, who currently serves as the ECSD board president, has been a board member since 2009.
Newcomers Karah Sheahan and Caitlin Fields are seeking a first term.
Questions from the audience were submitted ahead of the forum and moderated by the district’s public information officer.
Each candidate was asked the same question and given a minute to respond.
Questions ranged from ideas on ways to connect the district with the community and district strengths in the community to handling bullying concerns, contentious issues with fellow board members, the Beecher Elementary receivership, and voucher programs and school choice.
Candidates expressed their commitment to listen and connect with the community on topics of interest and areas of concern, such as bullying.
Candidate Karah Sheahan said that along with communicating with school officials, students like her daughter can be a solution to bullying by being more aware and “not just being a bystander.”
“It happens every single day, and it could be her sometimes,” said Sheahan. “I keep reminding [them] just be nice and be kind. And if it's not right, then please speak up.“
When asked how they would work with each other on a controversial topic, the candidates said they would listen and find ways to build consensus or compromise.
Candidate Caitlin Fields said “diversity of thought” among board members is “beneficial.”
“It's important that you stand on your values and maybe seek to get an understanding,” said Fields. “And just- I think that we can all move forward seeking to get understanding. And again, it may not go our way this way, but having that diversity of thought.“
Thomas K. Beecher Elementary School was identified for a receivership with the state in February according to the New York State Education Department.
Schools identified for receivership are “struggling or persistently struggling” academically.
“It's probably very stressful to have the state involved in the day to day operations of your building, especially when staff feel like they're working incredibly hard, and so that communication to the board is helpful for us in understanding that,” said Kelly Lowman.
Lowman said the board has “a lot of trust” in the superintendent, administration and educators to work through the receivership.
The Elmira City School District said it has submitted its approved continuation plan to the state and will begin implementation in the next school year.
It is unclear how long the school has been underperforming and when the approved continuation plan will be available to the public.
Lowman and Sheahan both agreed that voucher programs for school choice and charter schools will financially impact the public school system.
Fields said she is unfamiliar with the “implications of choosing” public, charter or private school.
Lattin said she is “very supportive of school choice.”
“It started out very contentious with the charter school that's in our district, but I believe that we understand that we offer very strong [educational] and the curriculum and the [supports], and they have their purpose,” said Lattin. “So, I do believe that [there's] parents that feel their child is a better fit in private school.“
Elmira’s charter school, Finn Academy, offers Kindergarten through sixth grade education.
It had approximately 411 students enrolled in 2024-2025, according to that year’s data, the most recent data available by the U.S. Department of Education.
The ECSD’s charter school tuition expense is $5,784,384.
Additionally, some candidates expressed their support of Yondr pouches for phone-free spaces in the schools. These are used for secure placement of phones during the school day and are part of this year’s bell-to-bell ban on cell phones in schools in New York.
In addition to the board candidates, ballots will also include the school district’s proposed $160,727,766 budget for the next fiscal year.
Bios for each candidate and budget documents can be found on the district website.
The school budget vote and elections take place on May 19.