Endorsements: Donahue, Taylor-Demming, Fosdick, Jain for Dist. 204 school board

DuPage County voters will navigate a field of 11 candidates to fill four, 4-year seats on the Indian Prairie Community Unit School District 204 school board on April 6.

Incumbents Laurie Donahue and Susan Taylor-Demming are strong candidates on a strong board that worked together during the pandemic. Most students had the technology in place before they were forced into remote learning. Both board members should be reelected.

For the other two seats, the candidates include Allison Fosdick, Marina Kosak, Shannon Adcock, Yanmei May Liang, Saba Haider, Supna C. Jain, Kader Sakkaria, Rajesh Narayan and Robert O. Harris

Fosdick is a teacher and District 204 parent. She said it's important to address inequities in the schools. With limited funds, she said the district needs to find a way to keep teachers' salaries competitive.

Kosak is a dean at Oswego East High School with children in District 204. She said the needs of students should be a priority. She hopes to work on reintegrating students after the pandemic and keeping class sizes small.

Adcock is a full-time parent with children in the district. She said the school board should get more feedback from the community before making decisions. She supports the arts and active time for students.

Liang, a nurse, has children who went through District 204. She said students and parents have experienced a lot of stress through the pandemic, and she would work on suicide prevention and mental and emotional growth.

Haider, with a background in science, is a mother of students in the district. She said it's important to give students the tools to deal with social and emotional health issues.

Jain is an educator with two children in district schools. She has a background in law and works as a college professor. She said mental health issues are not being met, because she sees college students with social and emotional issues.

Sakkaria is a tech officer with children in the district. He said there could be better communication from the school board. He feels it's important to have diversity in the schools.

Narayan is a technology specialist with a child in the district. He said, in a changing world, it is important to prepare students for a future that can't be imagined today.

Harris has an education background that includes leadership roles in K-12, community colleges and universities, along with experience at various businesses, according to his website.

This is an experienced group of candidates and any one of them would be a good addition to the school board. Experience and concerns for students' mental health give Fosdick and Jain an advantage.

We endorse Donahue, Taylor-Demming, Fosdick and Jain.