Voter guide: Jeffco school board candidates answer 6 questions about the issues

A school cafeteria full of students and a food bar full of apples.
Voters in Jeffco Public Schools will elect three new school board members in the Nov. 4 election. (RJ Sangosti / The Denver Post)

In Jeffco Public Schools, voters are selecting three school board members this year.

Seven candidates are running in total. Two candidates, Michael Yocum and Denine Echevarria, are running for a seat representing Jeffco’s District 1. Two candidates, Peter Gibbins and Samuel Myrant, are running for the District 2 seat. Three candidates, Tina Moeinian, Mary Parker, and Gloria Rascon, are running to represent District 5.

All Jeffco voters will have the opportunity to select one candidate for each race in the Nov. 4 election.

Gibbins and Moeinian have the endorsement of the Jefferson County Education Association, the teachers union. Parker, the current District 5 board member, is seeking reelection but declined to participate in the JCEA interview and endorsement process.

The three seats up for election are currently held by Danielle Varda (District 1), Paula Reed (District 2), and Mary Parker (District 5). With all three seats contested, the composition of the five-member board could shift depending on the outcome of the election.

To help readers learn more about the candidates, the Colorado Trust for Local News asked each of them the same set of questions.

Read their answers below. Responses may have been edited for formatting, but otherwise each candidate’s answers are as submitted.

This voter guide was produced by the Colorado Trust for Local News in collaboration with Chalkbeat Colorado.

The Latest

The Denver school board approved a two-year, $3.5 million contract with TeachStart to provide year-long substitute teachers for certain schools.

A Chalkbeat analysis suggests that the district’s joint initiative with its teachers union hasn’t yet given its 20 pilot schools an edge over other high-poverty campuses when it comes to academics and school climate.

A Chalkbeat analysis found that staff turnover, unspent dollars, and community partner tensions have been key challenges for the 7-year-old program.

Superintendent Nikolai Vitti says the law punishes districts for system inequities that contribute to chronic absenteeism.

State lawmakers will consider creating a new agency to oversee IPS schools and charters. Here’s a look at the history and powerful advocates behind that push for unified control over city schools.

The majority of low-income Tennessee students did not receive help paying for summer meals in 2025 for the first time in years. Now, local officials want the state to bring back federal aid for 2026.