Endorsements: Zolmierski, Payton and Davia for Carol Stream District 93

This endorsement is a consensus opinion of the Daily Herald Editorial Board.

Three of six candidates running for three open four-year seats on the Carol Stream District 93 school board are teachers, or married to a teacher. Perhaps this is not a coincidence - teachers have been expressing concerns to the board about staffing, dual-language resources, the school calendar and a new, more strict teacher sick-day policy.

Incumbent Jessica R. Zolmierski, a middle-school music teacher in a neighboring district, says her background helps her with asking the right questions and seeing the big picture. While she has no single issue driving her interest, she says she will keep an eye on curriculum issues and the needs of the dual-language program.

Joshua R. Payton says that as an educator at Fenton High School, parent and community member, he can represent all district stakeholders. He would like to make District 93 a destination district to attract top teachers by addressing compensation, in-school support and opportunities for growth and development. He also would like the district to do an equity audit. Payton is married to a teacher in District 93 and said he would recuse himself from votes on teacher contracts.

Kristen Davia, who has four children in the district and many hours of volunteer time, is a thoughtful, well-researched candidate familiar with the school and its processes. She says the school board should listen to education experts and not push a personal agenda or "pander to a vocal minority" on curriculum matters.

Gaspare "Jasper" Vaiana was appointed to the board in October, but lacks the deeper education experience of the other three candidates. Also running for a four-year seat is Michael A. Lovatt, who is married to a teacher in the district and said he will recuse himself from voting on teacher contracts. He is running on a slate with the three candidates on the ballot for the three open 2-year seats on the board.

Longtime incumbent Sonal Amin chose to not participate in the Daily Herald election process, limiting the opportunities for us and for voters to understand her goals and positions.

We're confident that Zolmierski, Payton and Davia can best serve the interests and needs of District 93 students in the next four years. They are endorsed.

• District 93 serves more than 3,000 students in grades kindergarten through eighth grade with the majority of families living in Carol Stream, Bloomingdale and Hanover Park. The district operates an Early Childhood Center, six elementary schools and two middle schools. The election takes place on Tuesday, April 4, and early voting is under way.