Nine candidates are running for four open seats on the South Washington County school board in the Nov. 4 election.

The four seats up for election are currently held by members Louise Hinz, Kathleen (Katie) Schwartz, Eric Tessmer and Sharon H. Van Leer. Hinz, Schwartz and Van Leer are running for reelection. They are being challenged by Elizabeth Bockman Eckberg, Travis Dahle, Bryn Forstner, Juan Huerta, Chad Borseth and Lori Pecchia Michalski.

The top four candidates elected will serve terms that begin in January and expire at the end of December 2029.

The South Washington County school district covers all or parts of Cottage Grove, Newport, St. Paul Park, Woodbury, Afton, Denmark and Grey Cloud Island Townships.

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Also in Washington County, two cities will hold municipal elections in November: Mahtomedi and St. Paul Park. Most other cities hold elections in even years.

In Mahtomedi, Lilly Melander and Luke Schlegel, both incumbents, are running for reelection. Neither is facing a challenger.

St. Paul Park City Council members Jeff Haggerty and Jeff Swenson are also running for reelection. Both are uncontested.

There are many ways to vote in the Nov. 4 general election: voting early by mail, voting early in person, or voting in person on Election Day.

Information on registering to vote and voters’ rights can be found at WashingtonCountyMN.gov/Elections.

Here are the candidates running for South Washington County school board, ISD 833:

Elizabeth Bockman Eckberg

Elizabeth Bockman Eckberg (Courtesy of the candidate)

Bockman Eckberg, 43, spent close to 14 years teaching in public school, 11 of which were at South Washington County Schools, where she helped launch Project Lead the Way, a biomedical science elective at East Ridge High School.

“As a former classroom teacher, I believe public schools should help students feel they not only belong but should help students love to be at school exploring relationships with caring adults and their peers, learning about the world,” she said.

Bockman lives in Woodbury with her husband, 10-year-old son and cat. She is a director of curriculum for the University of Minnesota Medical School and a member of the local Moms Demand Action chapter and SoWashCo Special Education Advisory Committee.

“We moved into the community because we were excited for our son to experience his education in these excellent school communities,” she said. “Since my son started school, we’ve navigated and learned a lot about services for students with special needs.”

If elected, Bockman said she would focus on reducing academic achievement gaps for at-risk students and students of color, work to improve teacher retention by strongly advocating for fair wages and working conditions, encourage investing in diverse hiring practices and focus on sustainable, transparent and innovative uses of public dollars on behalf of students.

“I am committed to doing the work: listening to students, district administration, teachers and the community,” she said. “I attend board meetings in person. I have met with the district superintendent to learn more about district administrative priorities. I’ve met with the teacher union leadership to learn more about their priorities. I look forward to serving our district’s students and upholding all the responsibilities of the role in service to our community.”

Chad Borseth

Chad Borseth (Courtesy of the candidate)

Borseth, of Woodbury, is in his eighth year of teaching at St. Paul Central High School. He and his wife chose to live in the South Washington County district 10 years ago in part due to the excellent public, charter and private school options for their children. This is Borseth’s second time running for a school board position.

“I’m committed to being a true nonpartisan, independent candidate free from special interest endorsements,” Borseth said. “My goal is simple: to keep the focus on students, bring a classroom perspective to the board, and represent families directly without outside partisan political influence.”

“My work at Central has been deeply rewarding, sharpening my ability to develop practical strategies that address systemic barriers to achievement, strengthen family engagement, and ensure equitable opportunities for every learner. I am ready to bring these experiences and insights to the South Washington County School Board.”

Borseth said he is actively involved in several school and community activities, has coached multiple youth sports programs and advised student council and prom committees. He is a former member of United Teachers of South Washington County and a current member of the St. Paul Federation of Educators. In the last two years, he’s served as a union delegate to the state Representative Convention, he said.

“If elected, I would be the only active classroom teacher on our school board. This is important because everyday classroom experiences with students matter, everyday conversations with parents matter, and everyday collaborations with teachers matter. Our district deserves leadership shaped by the everyday realities of students, families and teachers,” he said.

Some of Borseth’s priorities if elected will include ensuring school security and safety, addressing chronic absenteeism and ending off-cycle, odd-year school board elections.

Travis Dahle

Travis Dahle (Courtesy of the candidate)

Dahle, 44, lives in Woodbury with his family. This is his first time running for a school board position. Dahle is a certified public accountant for the state of Minnesota in the Department of Management and Budget. He serves as the treasurer for the Red Rock Elementary parent-teacher organization and is a member of King of Kings Lutheran Church in Woodbury.

“I bring a professional background in finance and accountability, which I believe will help strengthen fiscal decision-making and promote transparency,” he said. “I also value collaboration and believe in working constructively with parents, educators and community members to ensure our schools remain strong and welcoming.”

If elected, Dahle said his main priority is to ensure responsible stewardship of taxpayer resources while supporting the district’s mission of providing high-quality education for all students.

“I am running because I believe our community benefits when everyday parents and professionals step forward to serve,” he said. “I want to contribute my skills and experience to help our schools thrive and to support both students and staff in achieving success.”

Bryn Forstner

Bryn Forstner (Courtesy of the candidate)

Forstner, 36, is a Marine Corps veteran, serving from 2009 to 2013. He is currently employed by a Twin Cities-based specialty construction contractor. This is his first time running for a school board position.

Forstner lives in Cottage Grove with his wife, Stephanie, two daughters and youngest son, who each attend schools in the South Washington County district.

“Myself, as well as my wife, both are volunteer coaches within Cottage Grove’s baseball and soccer associations. We feel it’s extremely important to give back to our community as well as partake in our children’s activities,” Forstner said. “I feel running for school board is an extension of that giving-back mentality.”

If elected, Forstner said one of his priorities would be to remove political bias from the classroom.

“I do believe today’s kids are being pushed a narrative that is not conducive, and distracting to educational development,” Forstner said. “More so, I believe some of these agendas are not rooted in traditional family and core values. I am not one to judge anyone’s gender or sexual identity, and those individuals are free to do as they wish publicly, but I do firmly believe that those topics need to stay out of the classroom, especially when it comes to minors.”

Louise Hinz

Louise Hinz (Courtesy of the candidate)

Hinz, 68, of Woodbury, has spent 22 years as an educator in the South Washington County school district, according to her campaign website, and has 30 years of experience as a professional educator. She is currently a math instructor at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. She is running for reelection.

“I have held the job of parent, educator, taxpayer, community member and school board director. I understand their different roles,” Hinz stated in a Pioneer Press candidate survey. “As a parent, my job was to advocate for my child. As a teacher, my job was to advocate for my students. As a school board director, my job is to advocate for every student, every teacher, every staff member, every taxpayer and every community member in our district.”

If elected, Hinz’s top priorities will include creating a high-quality educational experience for all students, as well as advocating for student safety, according to the survey.

Juan Huerta

Juan Huerta (Courtesy of the candidate)

Huerta, of Cottage Grove, is a former Leavenworth, Kan., police officer. This is Huerta’s first time running for a school board position.

Huerta is “happily married” to his wife of over 22 years, and together they have “six wonderful children,” five daughters and one son, who each attend school in the district. If elected, Huerta said his main priority would be to raise the academic curriculum: reading, writing, math, science and critical thinking. He said he will also prioritize empowering parents, advocating for school safety and holding the district financially accountable.

“I am doing this for the children, so that they can be better prepared and ready for the real world,” he said.

Lori Pecchia Michalski

Lori Pecchia Michalski (Courtesy of the candidate)

Pecchia Michalski, of Woodbury, did not respond to an interview request. She is a registered nurse at St. Joseph’s Hospital of 45 years, and is active in jail ministry through a community outreach organization, according to her campaign website.

“Education has always been my passion. When my children attended Royal Oaks School, I volunteered often — from classroom assistance to leading Junior Great Books discussions,” she stated on the campaign site. “Today, I’m committed to ensuring every child in District 833 receives an exceptional K-12 education that prepares them for success.”

If elected, she will prioritize increasing transparency and parental rights, strengthening teacher-parent relationships, restoring a focus on core education subjects such as math, science, literature, history and art, as well as ensuring safe and fair policies for all, as stated on her website.

Katie Schwartz

Katie Schwartz (Courtesy of candidate)

Schwartz, 47, of St. Paul Park, was born and raised in South Washington County. She has served as a South Washington County school board member for 12 years and is running for reelection.

“My 12 years of dedicated board service have given me deep institutional knowledge and proven leadership experience,” she said. “Throughout my tenure, I’ve consistently championed both students and teachers, understanding that their success is interconnected and essential to our district’s excellence.”

Schwartz is a team leader at insurance company the Hartford and has worked with the organization for seven years. She said she is an active member in her community, coaches kids’ sports and serves on various community and school board committees.

“My track record includes successfully balancing budgets during challenging economic times while maintaining educational quality and programs,” she said. “I’m committed to evidence-based education practices grounded in research and data, ensuring decisions lead to measurable student outcomes. This combination of experience, fiscal responsibility and dedication to sound educational practices makes me qualified to continue serving effectively.”

Sharon H. Van Leer

Sharon Van Leer (Courtesy of the candidate)

Van Leer, of Woodbury, is the director of culture and inclusion at Mitchell Hamline School of Law and is running for reelection in her fourth term as a school board member.

“My journey began in St. Paul’s Rondo Community, an experience that shaped my perspective and commitment to equity,” she said. “Twelve years ago, I ran for school board because of the lack of diversity on the board, and I wanted to represent those who felt unheard and marginalized.”

Van Leer is a founding member of the Law School Diversity Professionals Board, an advisory board member for the Woodbury YMCA Racial Justice Committee, a board representative for the South Washington CARES Board, a board representative for the Achievement and Integration Committee, a community representative for the Tenth Judicial Selection Committee and a board member for the Lawyers Board of Professional Responsibility.

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“I am running for reelection because I believe, I trust and I support our public school system. My campaign is not driven by a political agenda; it is rooted in my experience as a professional and an advocate for children,” she said. “I support unique, dynamic academic programs that are student-centered, so that every child has access to resources, preparing them for a successful future in a global society. Let’s ensure our educational system remains a positive force in our community’s future.”

If reelected, Van Leer said she will prioritize strengthening the district’s financial standing, advocate for an increased focus on mental health and wellness and for programs that foster more than just academic achievement, but “provide resources that generate awareness between health, education and social services.”

Adam Dullinger’s politicizing moment arrived in the mail one day last spring, in the form of a letter from the city’s Department of Safety and Inspections. The lawn grass and assorted plantings at his North End home had grown too high, it said, and he had 72 hours to cut them or DSI would do it for him, at considerable cost to his wallet.

Armed with information about a state law that allows pollinator-friendly native landscaping to grow more than 8 inches tall, Dullinger appealed the order to the city’s legislative hearing officer, who saw things his way. The officer said she would recommend to the St. Paul City Council that his appeal be approved.

It didn’t help. Three days later, he came home to find the city had mowed his front lawn down to the grass nubs, pollinator plants and all. The mower had found its way into his fenced-in backyard and made short work of his milkweed, bellflower and white Dutch clover, even destroying several ankle-high tree saplings.

Alarmed, Dullinger returned to City Hall to testify before the city council — “I was like, ‘Hey, this process needs to be fixed’” — which approved his appeal, but the damage was already done. Rather than simply grumble about the episode, Dullinger took the most dramatic practical step he could think of: he filed to run for mayor.

‘I’m a quick learner’

Dullinger, 29, is the youngest and arguably most politically inexperienced of four candidates vying to challenge St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter for his seat as the mayor seeks a third term in the Nov. 4 election, which will be decided by ranked-choice ballot. The winner will serve three years due to the city’s transition to even-year elections.

Some might call Dullinger an unlikely candidate. Given his work as a mechanical engineer, he said he’s never served on his neighborhood district council or on a City Hall board like the Planning Commission or Capital Improvement Budget Committee, which are often gateways to understanding municipal processes.

“I’m a quick learner,” said Dullinger, a licensed professional engineer who helps design fire safety equipment for a company based in South St. Paul.

In mayoral forums, Dullinger, who said he bikes most everywhere he goes whenever he can, has been the most bullish in favor of expanding the city’s cycling infrastructure, especially the proposed five-mile bike path along Summit Avenue.

He calls the avenue an essential east-west connection in the city’s bike network, and has sometimes criticized fellow candidate Kaohly Her in forums for not coming down more decisively for or against the project.

“If I become mayor, I won’t be running for another office,” said Dullinger in a recent interview, in a dig at Her, who currently holds the position of state representative.

Issues

Dullinger, who grew up in a semi-rural town outside St. Cloud, recalled spending long hours biking trails that would take him far from home at a young age. The isolation and anxiety that young people feel today, he said, might have a solution as simple as building better bike paths to keep them safe cycling city streets, as well as investing in public transit and pedestrian-friendly infrastructure.

On some other issues, he’s still feeling things out. He recently proposed that the city use eminent domain to acquire and tear down the vacant CVS at University and Snelling avenues, which has become an eyesore property, but he’s since discovered that the building carries a $3 million valuation, which would make it a pricey purchase for the city.

In interviews and political forums, he’s stressed the need to reform DSI and have police focus on non-fatal shootings. The latter issue, which also is one of Carter’s favorite talking points, came to Dullinger’s attention when he served on a jury in a murder trial involving a man who had sought vengeance after his son was shot in the face.

The trial opened his eyes, he said, to the importance of having police get ahead of revenge shootings by thoroughly investigating non-fatal gun crimes.

“To me, that says the police department needs to be run better,” he said.

Public monopolies

Dullinger said he is not seeking political endorsements or campaign contributions, and he said he’s steered clear of involving himself with advocacy groups by design. Some have called Dullinger a single-issue candidate, overly focused on expanding the city’s bike network. He sees things differently.

“Specifically for things like utilities, I think it’s important for government to be involved in those, like trash and water. Things that have a public utility need to be run by the city, and the city needs to make sure they benefit the entire public,” Dullinger said.

“I think it would be cool if they ran internet and electricity and composting — anything that benefits from a public monopoly,” he added. “As with electricity distribution, it’s good to have a singular network. In other industries, it’s important that government stay out of the way. Beyond basic regulation, they don’t need to be involved in the nitty-gritty.”

Adam Dullinger on five key issues

Age: 29

Family: Single; no children.

Education: Bachelor of science degree from the University of Minnesota in mechanical engineering; minor in product design.

On the proposed remodel of Grand Casino Arena

Dullinger has said he’s adamantly opposed to the city proposing $200 million in local funds — $400 million total — to renovate the home of the Minnesota Wild. “$200 million over 300,000 people? That’s $600 per person,” he said. “Especially when we’re talking about cutting the budget in so many ways, that doesn’t make any sense to me.”

The Wild, he pointed out, are under contract at the arena for the next decade. “We have the leverage,” he said. “We should put the public’s interest first.”

On declining downtown property values and downtown revitalization

“I think the most important thing to do is making the city a more livable place, and to make those spaces places people actually want to spend time in,” said Dullinger, in a recent mayoral forum. “Downtown has been very built. They’ve got multiple highways that run directly through it that the city doesn’t get to control.”

“In the spaces that we can control, we need to prioritize more pedestrian spaces … and make it possible to be able to bike down there, so that way you don’t have to bring your car,” he added. “It’s the people that are the vitality of our city. … If we don’t make it so that they want to live here, then we’re lost.”

On administrative citations

A question before voters on the Nov. 4 ballot asks whether to amend the city charter to allow the city council to create administrative fine schedules for those who break city ordinances. Dullinger said he will vote “yes” because “there’s a lot of benefits,” though he acknowledged, “I haven’t dug into it too much.”

On the St. Paul Public Schools special levy referendum

Another question on the ballot asks whether to raise property taxes by $37.2 million per year, adjusted for inflation annually for 10 years, to fund the St. Paul school district. Dullinger said he will vote “yes,” though “in my ideal world, the state would take over all the (school) funding.”

He recalled growing up in a comfortable school district that frequently approved levy referendums to fund amenities like laptops, while a poorer district next door to his own voted down referendums “because they can’t afford it. That’s tragic to me.”

On housing

Dullinger said the city has focused too heavily on encouraging private developers to build affordable rental housing, and it should put more energy into encouraging homeownership through housing co-ops, condominiums and other under-explored options. He said the city could build its own public housing, including market-rate units that would subsidize affordable units.

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As a free-market conservative running for mayor in a city led squarely by members of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, Mike Hilborn has few illusions about the rocky path before him to the corner office at St. Paul City Hall.

His company, based on West Seventh Street, employs workers — about 60% of them previously incarcerated or in addiction recovery — to plow snow, power-wash trucks and decks, and string Christmas lights, paying them $25 per hour with benefits. To his mind, his “second chance” hiring should make him the talk of the city. Instead, he feels treated as an also-ran in St. Paul’s five-way mayor’s race, which culminates with the Nov. 4 election.

“Nobody is funding my campaign,” said Hilborn, speaking broadly. “Business leaders, they have no interest. I’m not a good candidate. You’re not a good candidate if you can’t raise money. They don’t want to put any money in, because if they do it’s going to get tracked and they’ll have their name on there for donating to a guy who wasn’t a leftist. … I’m not going to win.”

Still, “we live in a constitutional republic,” Hilborn said. “And if we let one voice dominate and take over, that’s really bad. … I’m willing to take the hit here.”

‘Stuff that sounds good that doesn’t do good’

When Hilborn ran for state office last year as a Republican in House District 65B, he drew about 23% of the vote, losing heavily to state Rep. Maria Isa Perez-Vega, a DFLer. This time around, he has not sought the endorsement of the GOP. Relatively few of his campaign donations have originated from inside the city. He’s mostly hit up friends and family living elsewhere.

And yet he’s shown up for mayoral forum after mayoral forum, urging residents to embrace a platform that would block many of the mayor’s socially conscious initiatives, like $50 college savings accounts for the city’s newborns. “Fifty dollars? Really? It’s that stuff that sounds good that doesn’t do good,” said Hilborn, 62, in a phone interview.

“I’m common sense — lower taxes, lower crime and we’ve got to stop this homelessness,” he said. “The only person who is going to be able to fix St. Paul, because it’s not good financially, is a businessman or a businesswoman. … People agree with me, but they’re just not willing to do anything about it.”

Critics have said some of his own proposals sound financially unsustainable, and that the campaign promises on his website are short on details around how they’d be achieved. Early in his campaign, he promised to double St. Paul’s police force over time, while at the same time reducing property taxes by 50%. That promise led some on social media to question how the city would draw talented officers without raising pay, which likely would require increasing taxes, not cutting them.

Hilborn has since abandoned that proposal.

“I was ahead of the curve on that one,” he said. “That was stupid.”

High taxes

Undeterred, Hilborn has repeatedly pointed out the city has the highest sales tax in the state, and among the highest in the nation. Property taxes have been no less forgiving.

He points to his own experience with his commercial landlord, who raised the monthly rent this year on his company’s West Seventh Street headquarters from $17,000 to $22,000, based largely on the building’s property tax increases.

“We have to lower taxes,” said Hilborn, who has called city spending unsustainable. “Otherwise, people are going to leave. … Sometimes we’re just going to have to say no to things we’re going to have to wait on.”

Starting his own business

Hilborn, who is engaged, raised three sons to adulthood across his 40 years in St. Paul, and he said he’s fully committed to a city some of his friends have chosen to move out of. He found a job at a UPS store while an undergraduate at what was then Bethel College and stuck with the company for 17 years before starting his own business out of the garage of his Highland Park home. He now lives in a downtown condominium.

He’s criticized city leaders for not embracing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s efforts on immigrant detentions and deportations, though he’s been less supportive of “collateral arrests” of immigrants at workplaces who were not the initial intended target.

He’s labeled a five-mile bike trail proposed by the Melvin Carter administration along Summit Avenue as wasteful spending, and said he’s “not sold” on the city’s management of residential trash collection, which he said should be led entirely by the private sector.

“Government, it should keep people safe,” Hilborn said. “It should make sure there’s a level playing field for businesses, so we’re all playing by the same rules. It should do the least amount of things possible to provide those fundamentals. It should not be picking up trash. It should not be doing what the private sector does, because government is not good at things. Everything is by committee. It rarely works.”

Mike Hilborn on five key issues

Age: 62

Family: Engaged; three adult sons.

Education: Bachelor’s degree in business, with minors in communications and economics from Bethel College.

On the proposed remodel of Grand Casino Arena

Hilborn said he would not oppose the mayor’s push to seek $200 million from the state for a remodel of the arena. “If we lose the Wild hockey team — it’s already dire, I can’t even imagine that,” he said in an interview. “I would find a way to make sure we retain that business, one way or another. I don’t know what to do. We’re losing too many businesses. We can’t lose that one.”

On declining downtown property values and downtown revitalization

“If we want to revitalize, first of all we have to keep residents and businesses from leaving,” said Hilborn, during a recent Coalition of Asian-American Leaders forum. “Our crime is really bad. Shoplifting, people are just going into stores, grabbing what they want and leaving, and no one is holding them accountable. And when they do get arrested, they’re right back on the street the next day. … We’ve got to lower taxes. You can’t be the most expensive place to run a business in Minnesota and expect people to open businesses there or to continue. … And then homelessness, I don’t see compassion letting people sleep in tents. Having people sleep on sidewalks doesn’t inspire people to come into our city.”

On administrative citations

Hilborn said he will vote “no” on a question on the Nov. 4 ballot that would allow the city council to institute fine schedules for ordinance violations. “That’s a hard no,” he said. “That’s horrible. … You’re already the worst place to run a business in Minnesota, and you’re going to add that to it? Are you kidding me? Is anybody thinking long-term here?”

On the St. Paul Public Schools special levy referendum

“Enough. Enough of this taxing,” said Hilborn, in an interview. “I don’t want to put all this money into bureaucrats and all the extra staff that doesn’t actually go into teaching kids. We’ve got to get down to the basics — reading, math — and not all this administrative and ideological stuff that we’re doing. It’s time to focus on efficiency.”

On housing

Hilborn has advocated for minimizing government involvement in housing by reducing regulations for homebuilders, which he predicted would help increase supply and ultimately lower home prices. “You’ve got to make it so that builders can build,” he said, during a recent forum. “This rent control has been an absolute disaster. … The free market is what’s going to make things work. Regulations are 20% to 25% the cost of a home, sometimes 30%. If you go to North Dakota, houses are $15,000 to $30,000 less per house.”

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Today is Sunday, Oct. 19, the 292nd day of 2025. There are 73 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Oct. 19, 1987, the stock market crashed as the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 508 points, or 22.6% in value (its largest daily percentage loss ever), to close at 1,738.74 on what came to be known as “Black Monday.”

Also on this date:

In 1781, British troops under Gen. Lord Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown, Virginia, as the American Revolution neared its end.

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In 1914, the First Battle of Ypres began in World War I.

In 1960, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested during a sit-down protest at a segregated lunch counter in Atlanta, one of the early events of the non-violent protest movement that King was instrumental in leading during the nascent civil rights era.

In 1977, the supersonic airliner Concorde made its first landing in New York City, flying from France, in three hours and 44 minutes. The flight marked the start of regular commercial Concorde service between Paris and New York.

In 2003, Pope John Paul II beatified Mother Teresa during a ceremony in St. Peter’s Square. Mother Teresa, who founded the Missionaries of Charity global order that attends to society’s outcasts, was elevated to sainthood in 2016 by Pope Francis. She died in 1997.

In 2005, former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was put on trial by the Iraqi Interim Government, accused of crimes against humanity. Captured by U.S. forces in 2003, Hussein was convicted, sentenced to death and executed by hanging in December 2006.

In 2016, in the third and final 2016 presidential debate with Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, Republican Donald Trump refused to say he would accept the results of the election if he were to lose.

Today’s Birthdays:

Artist Peter Max is 88.
Actor John Lithgow (LIHTH’-goh) is 80.
Fox News host Steve Doocy is 69.
Singer Jennifer Holliday is 65.
Boxing Hall of Famer Evander Holyfield is 63.
Filmmaker Jon Favreau is 59.
Former first daughter Amy Carter is 58.
“South Park” co-creator Trey Parker is 56.
Comedian Chris Kattan is 55.
Filmmaker Jason Reitman is 48.
Actor Gillian Jacobs is 43.
Actor Rebecca Ferguson is 42.