A blue wave that saw conservatives nationwide lose governors\u2019 races, ballot initiatives and even school board elections appeared to have affected Colorado, as well. It was a setback in our state for candidates running on student academic growth against the union machine.<\/p>\n
But there was a bright spot \u2014 El Paso County \u2014 where reform-minded candidates swept Academy District 20\u2019s three seats, won two of three contested seats in the ultra-competitive Colorado Springs School District 11, and won at least one of two seats up for grabs in School District 49. The second race in D49 remains too close to call.\u00a0<\/p>\n
All three El Paso County districts preserved their pro-education reform majorities. These victories, hard-fought and locally grounded, reiterate the same mandate for desperately needed academic improvement that local voters gave D-11, D-20 and D-49 when they elected reform slates in 2021 and then again in 2023.<\/p>\n
In D-11, Dr. Michelle Ruehl, a retired Air Force colonel, pilot and former Air Force Academy English instructor, and \u2014 assuming his slim margin of victory holds \u2014 Jeremiah Johnson, a longtime D-11 IT professional and parent, prevailed in one of the most competitive districts in Colorado. They will join returning board members who have made significant early progress on student achievement and who recently terminated the longstanding collective bargaining agreement between the district and the teacher\u2019s union. Ruehl\u2019s and Johnson\u2019s victory on a night when nearly every other large district in the state lapsed into union control underscores how D-11\u2019s voters continue to value results over rhetoric.<\/p>\n
Colorado Education Association-backed candidate LeAnn Baca Bartlett captured the third D-11 seat and will replace Julie Ott as the lone union voice on the seven-member board. Her presence ensures debate, but Ruehl and Johnson\u2019s victories cement a working majority focused squarely on improving literacy, math proficiency and post-graduation readiness.<\/p>\n
In D-20, nationally recognized school safety expert Susan Payne, English language learning teacher Holly Tripp, and clinical psychologist Dr. Eddie Waldrep, running together as a unified team, delivered the third consecutive election where academic-minded reformers claimed every seat. Their wins continue a now six-year trajectory of stability and focus in District 20, where consistent leadership has helped drive one of the state\u2019s highest-performing academic cultures, rooted in rigorous standards and strong parental engagement.<\/p>\n
The task now turns from campaigning to governing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Both districts face the same challenge that defines public education throughout Colorado today: how to reverse the decades-long decline in academic outcomes while restoring confidence among families and teachers alike. The next chapter will hinge on aligning classroom instruction with proven, effective curricula, building teacher morale through professionalism rather than politics, and ensuring that every student, regardless of background, leaves school ready for college, career or service.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In a year when many of Colorado\u2019s school boards turned back to their old, counterproductive ways \u2014 and to a discredited agenda that politicized learning \u2014 El Paso County\u2019s schools continued marching forward for the sake of our community\u2019s kids. Voters sent a clear message: schools exist to educate, not indoctrinate.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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