Mandan school board candidates discussed listening to teachers, the location of a new high school and how the pandemic affected the school year during a League of Women Voters open forum.
Incumbents Rick Horn and Caroline Kozojed and candidates Tom Peters and Ellie Shockley all participated in the forum Thursday evening, which was broadcast on Dakota Media Access. Stacey Bendish, who is also running for an at-large position, did not attend.
Horn is executive director of the housing authorities for Morton, Emmons and Mercer counties; he has served on the board since 2014. Kozojed was elected in 2015 and is an assistant professor at the University of Mary s Gary Tharaldson School of Business. Shockley, an education researcher and Tribune contributor, ran unsuccessfully for a spot on the board in 2020. Peters lost a bid for an open Morton County Commission seat last November. He is a former Mandan Middle School assistant principal. Bendish is a boilermaker for Boilermakers Local