Two candidates vie for open seat on Boise district’s board of trustees

Krista Hasler and Matthew Shapiro bring different backgrounds inside and outside of the education system as they seek a two-year seat on the Boise School District’s board of trustees.

But they have one thing in common: Each ran for a seat on the board in 2022. Hasler ultimately lost to Dave Wagers and Beth Oppenheimer, while Shapiro fell to Andy Hawes.

Rather than retreating, both Hasler and Shapiro said they are energized by the opportunity to run again.

The election will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 3. Hasler and Shapiro are squaring off in Race No. 3, which is a two-year term. Four incumbents are running unopposed. Elizabeth Langley, Maria Greeley and Paul Bennion are in Race No. 1, and they will serve a six-year term. Debbie Donovan is the lone candidate in Race No. 2, and she will serve a four-year term.

“Running school board campaigns are fairly low key but very, very important for the community,” Shapiro said. “I’m excited to be throwing my hat in the ring again.”

Hasler said she didn’t think she’d run for the board again, but she remained involved in education and found herself becoming even more energized.

“I became a self-appointed intern,” said Hasler, a mother of four who has worked as a private therapist and social worker. “No one gave me that assignment, but I learned a lot about our school board, and being a trustee is a really tough job.”

Hasler said she’s regularly attended the board’s workshops and has watched the streams of its monthly meetings. She has also volunteered as an assistant in her younger kids’ classrooms.

“What it comes down to is I’m trying to help my own kids but also helping kids who don’t have a voice advocating for them,” Hasler said. “Those are the kids I’ve worked with in the past that I’ve felt passionate about helping to support them and doing everything I can to help them reach their full potential.”

Shapiro has also put in time and effort to try to create a better learning environment for Boise’s students. His resume includes time spent as a special education assistant at North Junior High and as a substitute teacher in more than 30 Boise schools, from kindergarten through high school.

After receiving his bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Boise State University, Shapiro helped launch a charter school in Garden City. He has lived in Boise for 31 years and has a daughter who will begin her high school career this fall.

“I bring a different and unique set of experiences and priorities that will help our district … and help our kids,” Shapiro said.

His background in education is certainly part of that experience, but so is his role as a businessman. Shapiro is the CEO of rPlus Hydro, a renewable energy company that Shapiro said has projects in development mostly across the Western United States.

“With my background I have an insight into the inside of the education system as well as an outsider’s perspective,” Shapiro said.

Questions and answers with Krista Hasler and Matthew Shapiro

Idaho Education News invited Hasler and Shapiro to answer four questions surrounding their campaigns and the Boise School District. Here are their unedited answers.

1: Why are you running?

Hasler: For 20 years my dedication to children and youth has motivated my decisions. It started with boys from the inner city projects of Chicago, continued as a caseworker in foster care, as a therapist in residential treatment and in addiction recovery, raising our four children, my involvement in classrooms over the past decade, teaching youth to be leaders in the community, building a competitive dance studio, and building a private practice to help teens and adults manage their anxiety.

My involvement in schools and my mental health experience has prepared me to advocate in powerful ways for students’ academic and interpersonal opportunities. I will support teachers and parents as I do it. The past two years I have prepared to join the team of trustees and work with administrators by building relationships with them. I have been able to learn about the role of the board, the strategic plan, and education and training models at the board workshop meetings. I volunteer three hours a week in classrooms k-6 and will support students and teachers in the current challenges they are facing.

If you want to know “MY WHY,” it’s STUDENTS. They have always been, and always will be my driving force!

Shapiro: I’m running because I believe strongly in public education and believe that I can make a significant contribution to the governance of our district. I would bring a unique a combination of experience and perspectives to the board. First, I have a deep understanding of public education from both inside and outside of the system, having worked in our local schools while also considering the big picture about the present and future of education. Second, for any aspect of our schools or issues that arise, I will be asking how we can build a greater sense of ownership in, and responsibility for, our schools, from the student level up through the staff levels and out to the entire community; I believe that this is essential for helping to defend and improve public education. I have some specific ideas through which we can act on these priorities. I also have a child in our Boise schools, and I owe it to her—and to every student—to do everything I can to ensure that they have the best educational experience possible.

2: What do you think should be the top priorities of the Boise School District over the next two years?

Hasler: If elected as a trustee I will reinforce support for mental health resources for students and teachers, looking at preventative measures to help families and educators before issues build and spiral. I will advocate for more resources in early education, specifically resources to help teachers and students with literacy. I’ll encourage a focus on increasing learning opportunities in secondary education through the accelerated, technical, and advanced placement options as is outlined in the strategic plan.

Through the upcoming development and implementation of the District’s Graduate Profile, I will encourage opportunities to develop vital character skills. Students with skills such as social awareness, discipline, determination, and proactivity will build ongoing individual and community success. I am dedicated to building unity within our community and our District. Bringing focus to the strengths and similarities that we hold within our community as we learn to respect and make space for the differences we encounter.

Shapiro: Folks familiar with our school district will have no problem making a list of top priorities. Student mental health will certainly be up there. So will be retaining experienced staff and recruiting talented new staff. Preparing ourselves well to ride through the political tides in the Legislature and their effects on school funding, etc. is important as well. A difference that I bring is a longer-term perspective and a proactive approach that focuses on the roots of issues and on solutions with the highest leverage. This is why I believe that a top priority of the district should be the creation of regular opportunities for open dialogue in each of our schools, inclusive of parents, staff, students, and community members. I call these forums “school councils,” and I think that piloting and implementing them District-wide within the next two years would have tremendous benefits, including greater patron understanding of what our schools do and why, a greater sense of community and sense of shared ownership and responsibility, improved identification of issues of common interest and development of solutions, and more. I also think that encouraging student voices in these forums would be essential and so valuable.

3: How should the district address declining enrollment numbers?

Hasler: I would like to see the District continue the assessment and information gathering process. Why are families choosing other options and/or leaving? Are fewer families moving into Boise?

I would encourage the District to work with the City of Boise to look at current development strategies and assess how they are impacting our community makeup now and for the future. As the District continues to paint the picture of the well rounded opportunities and success in our District I will encourage them to continue building those opportunities.

The District can emphasize the value placed on education within our community. Our community is proud to support education and our schools. Boise School District outcomes go above and beyond academic benchmarks and have the potential to teach empathy, leadership, and teamwork in powerful and lasting ways!

Shapiro: In order to address declining enrollment, we first need to gain a thorough understanding of why enrollment has declined. What’s driving it? Factors related to demographics, such as fewer households with kids within the District, are not really within the District’s control. On the other hand, to the extent that declining enrollment is related to families choosing non-District options like homeschooling or charter or private schools, those are things that the District can develop strategies for.

Those strategies would, I think, include highlighting the benefits of the Boise Schools experience and the various alternatives that the District offers. If additional flexibility in options can be developed and are warranted in order to serve more families who might otherwise feel the need to pursue alternatives, then those should be explored as well. A long-term strategy will include creating a wider and deeper sense of ownership in our public schools by all of the city’s families.

While we develop and implement strategies to reduce or reverse decline in enrollment, we should at the same time explore how we might best adapt to declining enrollment, including ways to maintain or improve efficiency without compromising student services.

4: How would you rate the current state of the Boise School District overall?

Hasler: Very good, and the Boise School District is always striving for excellence. Dedicated teachers, and school and District administrators are invested in education and their students.

Over the past two years I have watched them develop and implement the learner focus system, aimed at increasing opportunities for differentiation in learning. They are committed to building clarity in the learning process, where students identify the learning intention and understand when they have met the learning objectives.

There is room for growth and they are continually working to adjust and adapt as they implement processes to help students achieve their best learning. I will encourage them to have transparent and effective communication patterns. When needed I will encourage the District to gather responses of parents, students, educators, and stakeholders to assess areas of strength, concern, and as decisions are made. If elected I will add to their efforts of identifying areas to build and grow and will contribute to the teamwork and leadership of the board.

Shapiro: Overall, we know that the Boise School District is one of the best in the state, if not the best, based on a variety of measures. But we can’t rest on our laurels. Nor should we rely only on conventional yardsticks like test scores, graduation rates, and national rankings. When we consider that the ultimate purpose of the District and our education system is to help each and every student learn and develop toward their greatest potential, it is clear that we have unlimited opportunity to be better and to do better.

We should always be reflecting on what we exist for, who we serve, how we serve, and how we can do it better. We need to be more holistic in our approaches to every aspect of our education system and district, and every issue that we face, because everything is interconnected. We need to be always examining, in a public way, the assumptions underlying our system and policies and practices. And we need to be seeking ways to build a sense of ownership in, and responsibility for, our schools. These are all key opportunity areas for the District that I would like to help us focus on.

More information on the candidates: