April 5, 2022 election candidate profiles, Lutie school board

The following three candidates are running for two open seats on the Lutie School Board during the April 5 Ozark County General Municipal Election. The Times reached out to each candidate and asked for a photo and a 150-word profile to run in the newspaper prior to the election. For more information on polling locations or other local voting information, contact Ozark County Clerk Brian Wise at 417-679-3516.

 

Jennifer Garrison: I’m a graduate of Poplar Bluff High School, attended Three Rivers Community College (business) and received a medical billing/coding certificate from ASU-MH. I’ve lived in Lutie School District for 25 years and been married to Shawn Garrison for 23 years. We have two boys, Ryan and Tyler, who each attended Lutie from pre-K to senior year. With two active boys, I’ve always been involved with the school. I’m an active PTO member and helped organize Project Grad in 2018 and 2022. I’ve been employed at the Ozark County Health Department for 17 years and am coordinator of the Food Pantry. I value our small school and the one-on-one learning capabilities. I’ve served as Lutie school board treasurer for three years. I’m caring and nonjudgmental and will listen to what our students and staff say. I’ll value anyone’s opinion and do what’s in the best interest of the Lutie School District. 

 

John Lubbers: I purchased Noland Point Resort seven and a half years ago and became a part of the Theodosia community and Lutie School District. Being a part of the community and school is a benefit. I am currently the fire chief of the Theodosia Area VFD and president of the Theodosia Chamber of Commerce. I would like a chance to help out our school by finding a way to slow down the revolving door on the school principals and school teachers, find ways to retain the school employees so they can be members of our community and positive educators of our children. Our school needs to prepare our children for what comes after Lutie school: whether it is college, working a job, marriage, self employed or the next President of the U.S.A. I thank you for your time reading this and would appreciate your vote.

 

Suzanne Meeks: When I joined Lutie School Board in 2019, nothing like the covid crisis crossed my mind. Covid showed us that the student-teacher relationship and the classroom environment are integral parts of the learning experience, making “distance” learning very challenging; our children lost a lot academically studying at home for most of the 2020-21 school year. Children spend a lot of their childhoods in schools, making them important sites for identifying and supporting students’ extra-curricular needs. The relationship between the student’s home and school has become more important than ever. Technology is a great help to those who have it but creates a wide divide between the haves and the have-nots. I favor policies that support students in these areas. I don’t consider myself a futurist, but another thing covid taught me is that I must continue to study and promote policies that help students in new ways that we don’t yet know will benefit them. 

Ozark County Times

504 Third Steet
PO Box 188
Gainesville, MO 65655

Phone: (417) 679-4641
Fax: (417) 679-3423