While there are 2 seats up for grabs for this year’s Claremont Unified School District board election, the Claremont Faculty Association is endorsing just one candidate through this November.

CFA chose to endorse incumbent Hilary LaConte during its monthly representative council meeting on Tuesday at the Alexander Hughes Center. The decision was made after a few hours of deliberating following 5-minute speeches from Ms. LaConte and other board candidates Joe Farrell and Sam Mowbray.

“The teachers, counselors, psychologists and nurses of Claremont need the same level of access to board members as administrators now enjoy,” said CFA President Joe Tonan. “It is our hope that Ms. LaConte will make this a priority.”

The teacher’s union gave Ms. LaConte the nod due to her record of community service and “passion” for education, as well as her dedication to regularly visiting CUSD schools and listening to concerns of staff as a board member. Ms. LaConte was also endorsed by the California School Employees Association, Claremont Chapter #200 this week.

“I sat down with the communications negotiations team and when we looked over the information, we unanimously decided to endorse Hilary,” said Cheryl DiGiulio, CSEA, Claremont Chapter #200 president. “We just looked at her past record with the school board and what she has done. After we reviewed that, we made a vote.”

See our full story in the Wednesday edition.

–Landus Rigsby