Incumbent Douglas W. Benjamin is running to retain Director Position 5 on the Bellingham School Board. Benjamin first joined the board by appointment in 2014 and has since been elected for terms in 2015 and 2017. Outside of school board work, Benjamin is a licensed mental health counselor who runs his own practice. Additionally, he chairs the Whatcom County Public Health Advisory Board and serves on a task force related to the Whatcom Alliance for Healthcare Access.

In this race, Benjamin is prioritizing executing the school board’s strategic plan, The Bellingham Promise. He has also focused on modeling equity and inclusion and keeping the administrative operations of the board running smoothly. Benjamin wants to build on the board’s recent accomplishments like upgraded bus facilities, athletic infrastructure improvements, and new schools in Sehome and Happy Valley.

Challenging Benjamin is Jeffrie Ford, who runs a cleaning service. Ford has no public service or community leadership background, and he lacks a website with detailed policy proposals. His official voters' guide statement says that he is new to Bellingham and wants to make sure that inequities between school districts are addressed.

We recommend Douglas Benjamin for Bellingham School Board, Director Position 5 because of his public service experience and his commitment to an equitable and inclusive school district.