LAKELAND, Fla. – (Monday, Aug. 28, 2017) – Jennifer Sabin filed today at the Polk County Supervisor of Elections office to run for the Polk County School Board District 5 seat.
Sabin, a 39-year-old freelance writer and former language arts teacher, is running for the seat because she is passionate about improving the education experience for students, teachers and parents.
That can be accomplished in three ways:
• Respect teachers through proper support, training and honorable negotiations.
• Build a stronger relationship between board members and the community through public comment, community events and site visits to schools.
• Believe in the value of a free and appropriate, high quality public education for all students, regardless of abilities, socio-economic status or location.
Sabin wants to make sure the district and local schools retain as much autonomy as possible so students are served in the way that best meets their needs.
“Teachers ought to be given the space to use their skills,” Sabin said. “They don’t have that freedom any longer because we have focused too much on standardization and relied too heavily on invalid measurements.”
In addition to too much standardized testing, the problem also is rooted in a lack of respect toward professional teachers, who have seen their autonomy slowly removed over the years.
Sabin is an active education advocate. She is the coordinator of Opt Out Polk County, which is part of the Opt Out Florida Network, a community of people who oppose state-mandated standardized testing. Sabin also has vocally opposed non-mandated tests the Polk County School District used to evaluate teachers.
Sabin is a lifelong Florida resident who has lived in Lakeland since 2008. Her husband Bruce has been a Polk County Schools teacher for 11 years. They have three children: Charlotte, 10; Mary, 7; and Hudson, 4.
Lean more about Sabin by visitin her website: https://sabin2018.wordpress.com and Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/JenniferSabinAdvocate/. You can also follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/justsabes.