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Four candidates outline funding, special-education options and curriculum priorities at Lindbergh Schools forum
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Summary
At a League of Women Voters forum, four Lindbergh School Board candidates emphasized funding and special-education decisions as top priorities, debated the district's response to a construction permit dispute and explained positions on curriculum, grading and diversity.
Matt Alonzo, Christy Watts, Richard Breeding and Andrew Lawson presented their qualifications and policy priorities at a League of Women Voters–moderated forum for the Lindbergh School Board.
Moderator Kathleen Farrell opened the event, explained rules and noted audience members had submitted 84 questions for the candidates. Each candidate gave a two-minute opening statement. Alonzo presented his background as a teacher and said he ran to give back to the district; Watts highlighted facility upgrades and a ‘‘real-world learning’’ curriculum; Breeding framed his campaign around fiscal restraint and reducing ‘‘waste’’; Lawson described himself as a veteran, IT leader and small-business owner and touted the district’s ‘‘diploma plus’’ initiative.
A central theme across answers was funding: three candidates named district funding and the state’s property-tax reforms as a top near-term concern. On school finance, Lawson said Lindbergh must ‘‘be prepared for whatever comes out of Jefferson City’’ and that Prop R funds should be managed to deliver promised facility and safety improvements. Alonzo said he would continue to expand real-world learning opportunities such as EMS ride-alongs and vocational pathways.
House Bill 2937 — a bill referenced during the forum that would let a local board put a question to voters about staying in or leaving a special school district — sharply divided the panel. Watts, Lawson and Alonzo said they would support the board’s option to seek a community vote, while Breeding opposed the measure. All candidates emphasized extensive community outreach, including town halls and consultations with SSD staff and parents, before any board vote or ballot referral.
Candidates agreed the board’s primary role is governance through policy and that curriculum details belong to the superintendent and curriculum director. On classroom assessments, Watts described the district’s move from MAP to NWEA testing for more frequent data; Lawson said the district recently hired a district-level math coordinator to address math performance.
The candidates also expressed broad support for social-emotional learning (SEL) and diversity efforts. Watts cited district events for Ramadan and Black History Month as examples of inclusion; Lawson framed diversity as a strength and urged caution to avoid endorsing any religion in school instruction while supporting religious-studies content.
On conflicts of interest, candidates disclosed existing ties: Breeding said he works for Prairie Farms Dairy and would abstain on milk-related matters; Lawson said he works for Ameren and routinely recuses himself from electric-billing votes; Alonzo and Watts said they had no reportable conflicts.
The forum closed with two-minute statements from each candidate and reminders about voting: Lawson asked viewers to vote April 7, and the moderator directed voters to vote411.org and noted the voter-registration deadline given during the forum.
