A forum for Lee County school board candidates is set for July 9 at Florida Gulf Coast University.
Hosted by the League of Women Voters of Lee County in partnership with WGCU and The News-Press, the event is a chance for candidates to answer questions and explain their positions.
Four seats on the seven-member board will be on the ballot: Districts 1, 4, 5 and 6. Districts 1 and 6 will be decided in the Aug. 18 primary.
Candidates in Districts 1, 4, 5 and 6 are campaigning on platforms of fiscal transparency, teacher retention and parental rights as the district navigates a $92.4 million budget deficit and “strategic budget realignment” that has already resulted in notices for 457 staff contract non-renewals.
The School District of Lee County is home to more than 100,000 students at its 118 schools. It is the eighth-largest school district in Florida and the 27th-largest in the nation, according to the district’s 2024-25 impact report.
“Voters should be familiar with the candidates and the elected officials and the decision-making process within government so they can understand how those decisions are made and how they affect them personally in their communities,” League President Sandy Frank wrote in an email.
All 11 qualified candidates were invited; most have agreed to attend. The forum will be moderated by John Davis of WGCU and Amy Bennett Williams of The News-Press and streamed live on The News-Press, WGCU and Lee County League of Women Voters Facebook feeds.
Contributing: Mickenzie Hannon, The News-Press
If you go: Lee County School Board Candidate forum
The forum is at 6 p.m. Thursday, July 9, at Florida Gulf Coast University’s Water School, Room 138 A&B, 10501 FGCU Blvd. S., Fort Myers. The forum also will be streamed on The News-Press’, WGCU’s and the League’s Facebook pages. Advance registration is requested. Register at my.lwv.org and click the calendar tab at left-side. Additional voter information is available there and at Vote411.org
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Have issues? Lee County School Board candidates to appear at election forum
Reporting by Amy Bennett Williams, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News / Fort Myers News-Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Amy Bennett Williams, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News | USA TODAY Network
