In what could be seen as a referendum on the Sarasota School Board leadership, the incumbent board chairwoman faces reelection against a local mother who has managed to out-raise her by more than $70,000.
Karen Rose, the incumbent District 2 board member, faces Liz Barker, a local mother, former school psychologist and school parent-teacher organization member, in her first bid for reelection since she was first elected in 2020.
While Barker has managed to out-raise Rose in campaign contributions as of publication, past Sarasota School Board elections show that the winner isn't always who raises the most. In the 2022 election, the three victorious candidates, Bridget Ziegler, Tim Enos and Robyn Marinelli, each raised less money than their opponents.
Should Barker and Tom Edwards, the other incumbent school board member up for reelection, each win in August, the board's ideological makeup would sit at 3-2 conservative compared to 4-1 conservative as it stands as of publication.
The Herald-Tribune interviewed candidates to discuss their backgrounds, goals and visions for the Sarasota School District. Here is what each candidate had to say.
Sarasota County School Board, District 2: Karen Rose
Campaign contributions: $107,200Campaign expenditures: $39,862.41 (All data as of July 10.)
Rose, the incumbent board chairwoman, has worked in the Sarasota School District for more than 30 years as a teacher, principal, executive director of middle schools and now as a board member.
Her goals, as laid out on her campaign website, state she wants to see Sarasota Schools ranked as the top district in the state, keep campuses safe and secure, ensure systems to grow academic excellence, embed accountability in the budgeting process, and prepare every graduate for college or a career.
Rose has garnered endorsements from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, the Sarasota County Republican Party, Florida Rep. Fiona McFarland, Florida Rep. James Buchanan, Florida Sen. Joe Gruters and Sarasota County Sheriff Kurt Hoffman. She was also listed on a Moms for Liberty page that said she pledged to support the fundamental rights of parents.
Notably, the Sarasota Classified/Teachers Association declined to endorse any school board candidates this cycle. The union had previously endorsed Rose in her 2020 campaign.
The Herald-Tribune attempted to reach Rose for an interview, but she did not respond to interview requests. A Herald-Tribune reporter reached out over text message five times over four weeks and approached Rose at the district's offices to ask for an interview. When asked at The Landings district building, Rose shook her head and walked away. When asked before the June 18 school board meetings, Rose interrupted the reporter and asked district police to remove the reporter.
The Herald-Tribune also sent Rose a letter to the address listed on her financial disclosure. No one was home when the U.S. Postal Service attempted to deliver the letter on Friday, July 5 at about 11 a.m., according to tracking data from the USPS. Rose later picked up the letter from the post office on July 9, tracking shows.
Rose has been critical of the Herald-Tribune's coverage of the Sarasota School Board, specifically coverage of the actions taken following the swearing-in of new board members in 2022 where Rose made a motion to terminate the district's current superintendent Brennan Asplen.
Following Asplen's removal, Rose supported Terry Connor's candidacy during the superintendent selection process, calling him the "obvious choice".
Connor's first year as superintendent has been described by both conservative and liberal school board activists as a success — with third-grade reading scores rising seven percentage points compared to the previous school year.
Rose also faced criticism from a vocal group of school board activists for pushing the district to re-draw its board member district lines despite having just done so in 2021 following the census.
The redistricting raised questions into Rose's residency, as she lists a townhouse in District 2 as her home but does not claim the homestead exemption — a tax break that homeowners can claim on a property where they reside as their "permanent residence."
A house in Siesta Key, which Rose filed under in 2018 when she first ran for school board and lost, is listed under her husband's name: Dan Miller. Miller claims the homestead exemption on the Siesta Key home. The Siesta Key home would have been drawn into Rose's district under one of the proposed maps.
Sarasota County School Board, District 2: Liz Barker
Campaign contributions: $178,422.42Campaign expenditures: $104,676.03 (All data as of July 10.)
Barker, a mother of four with students in Sarasota County public schools, a former school psychologist and current parent-teacher organization member, is challenging Rose for her seat on the board this August.
Barker said she sees the District 2 race as a referendum on Rose's tenure on the board. Sure enough, one of Rose's biggest votes as a board member — motioning to fire Superintendent Brennan Asplen — drove Barker to be more involved in school board politics, she said.
Asplen's approval rating among parents and district staff was very high, but the board still moved to terminate him. Barker said there's a feeling among district parents that they're not being heard by their board members.
"In prior years, we weren't heard because we weren't paying attention, we just trusted our elected leaders to do their jobs," Barker said. "But now that we're seeing the impacts of a really politically motivated school board, we're seeing those impacts in our kids' classrooms. You have our attention, and we want something different."
During a four-year term on the school board, Barker said she wants to put kids over political chaos, ensure parental involvement in a common sense way that works for all parents instead of just some parents, prioritize better mental health support for students, and advocate for the district's educators.
Throughout Barker's interview with the Herald-Tribune, she repeatedly mentioned a focus on cutting through divisive politics and re-focusing the district on students.
"We get so spun up and distracted with all these culture war-type issues, that we don't focus on the things that we agree on," Barker said. "When it comes to education, there's a whole lot for you to agree on."
Rose does not represent the needs of the community, Barker said. She pointed to the chairwoman's campaign finances and donations from developers, asserting that she answers to her donors. In contrast, Barker pointed to some of her individual campaign contributions, asserting that she answers to the parents, neighbors and retired educators in the district.
With a background in school psychology, Barker said she feels equipped to lead a school district on the board. She said in her career she took a data-centered approach to making decisions — something she'd take with her to the school board.
She also said the board could spend its money better, especially as federal COVID-19 funding dries up this fall. The board often spends with political motivation, and not renewing the tax referendum this fall would be "catastrophic", she said.
"It's a bit of a do-or-die moment for us right now," Barker said. "Either we decide to come together as a community and prioritize public education and we say that 'This is a foundation, a building block of our community, and we value it and we're willing to do whatever it takes to protect it,' or we don't."
Follow Herald-Tribune Education Reporter Steven Walker on Twitter at @swalker_7. He can be reached at sbwalker@gannett.com.
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