A local education advocate says the stakes are high for this year’s school board races as more and more candidates continue to embrace “ideological priorities” over academic achievement.
Cristine Trooien, the executive director of Minnesota Partnership for Achievement, joined Liz Collin on her podcast. Trooien is also the founder of the Minnesota Parents Alliance and has been advocating for better public education for years.
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With midterm elections just weeks away, Trooien explained how alongside the more popular races, the ones that often matter most — like local school board elections — tend to get overlooked.
But this year, the education of a generation and the future of Minnesota will be decided as even more school districts are seeing radical candidates, Trooien said.
“It is sort of just stunning at this point. I think I heard somebody say recently that social justice and all of these sorts of ideological priorities is so 2020. Like, aren’t we beyond that? Haven’t we realized that there are more important issues in our K-12 system that we need to solve?” she said.
While important issues with school budgets, curriculum, and test scores loom, some school board candidates have signed the Pledge for Transliberation.
It’s a pledge to “oppose any effort to ban, censor, or otherwise remove LGBT content from schools,” oppose “any effort to force teachers to out their LGBT students to their parents/guardians,” and “promote inclusive policies and LGBT-focused history curricula in requirements for schools.”
NEW: DFL candidate Matt Little announces that he has signed "The Pledge for Trans Liberation."
In a social media post, Little said "When we take back the house in November, I promise to stand by our trans community members!"
Little, a former state senator, is running for Angie… pic.twitter.com/Qnsnu38saJ
— Luke Sprinkel (@LukeSprinkel) May 28, 2026
Meanwhile, in another example of identity politics in schools, the Stillwater teachers union asked candidates seeking its endorsement to respond to questions such as: “How has your racial identity shaped and informed your worldview?” and “How are you actively working to expand your own racial and cultural lens?” The union also asks candidates to “share examples of systemic and institutional racism that you’ve experienced or observed in Stillwater public schools.”
“I’m happy to report that not all organizations that endorse candidates are asking those types of questions, but it does need pointing out that there are certain activist organizations that still seek candidates that really align with those types of social priorities,” Trooien explained.
Collin pointed out how Alpha News has covered various school board candidates, including a principal running for the White Bear Lake School Board who called traditional gender views “bigoted bullshit.”
Alpha News also reported on a Forest Lake school board candidate who moonlights as a punk rocker “fighting fascism” while supporting transgender ideology.
“It begs the question, is this really what parents and people in school district communities are looking for in their leadership?” Trooien asked.
“I think it’s astonishing to people when I bring up the point that our K-12 system represents about 40% of our state’s budget and another 30% to 40% sometimes in your property taxes … in total, $20 billion are managed by the individuals that are being elected to these school boards,” Trooien explained.
She also noted that “when you’re looking at some of what I would say are sort of fringe questionnaires and endorsement processes … that are really not the main thing of public education, it’s very distracting.”
“It can be very confusing to the average voter who’s really seeking, who are these people and and can I trust them to make the most consequential decisions for my children and my tax dollars?” she added.
“And it’s very challenging, I think, for people who are trying to figure out who are the candidates that best align with their values and what they prioritize for their school district.”
To that end, the Minnesota Parents Alliance has put together a guide to help voters choose a school board member.
“We definitely need more people that will be dedicated doers and will be active and invested in managing their independent school district,” Trooien said.
“I think that local authority matters quite a bit. What works well for greater Minnesota school districts, people in rural Minnesota is not the same as what will work and what is desirable for Minneapolis, St. Paul, some of the metro area larger school districts,” she continued.”
“Having that oversight authority — versus sort of a passive puppet for special interests — is really I think at the root of what people need to understand about these local elections.”
Liz Collin
Liz Collin is a multi-Emmy-Award-winning investigative reporter, news anchor, and producer who cares about Minnesota. She is the producer of The Fall of Minneapolis and Minnesota v We the People documentary films, and author of the Amazon best-selling book, They’re Lying: The Media, the Left, and The Death of George Floyd. Her work has prompted important state laws. Yet perhaps most of all, Liz has been giving a voice to the truth—and helping others tell their stories—for more than 20 years.
Dr. JC Chaix
Dr. JC Chaix is an editor, educator, and an expert in media studies. He wrote and directed the Alpha News documentary "The Fall of Minneapolis" and "Minnesota v We the People."
