Re-Elect Ann Johnson for South Whidbey School Board Pos. 5
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Thank you South Whidbey for a wonderful first five years on our school board - let’s keep up the good work, together! I am passionate about our mission of providing high-quality, student-first, equitable schools. Kindness, collaboration, and empathy are the cornerstones of excellent schools. I will keep working for you, and for public education that fits every student’s needs. If reelected, I will relentlessly focus on providing South Whidbey's children, families, teachers, and staff a safe, trusted place to learn, engage, and build community.
This job requires a principled, grounded, experienced educator who can put our students first. I am proud of our work over the past five years, in particular our consistent growth in learning and modeling DEI practices alongside school administrators and staff. I ask for your vote for another term on the school board.
Today, we face immense funding challenges, and a federal government that aims to intimidate schools and communities that do not bend to their ideology. Our schools are not a political playground; they are places for learning and care. I will stand strong for our community values and our mission to provide excellence, equity, and safety for all students.
Endorsements
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Today is the first day of school, and the start of school board campaign season. Please support my friend and colleague Ann Johnson! She's the only candidate with the experience, background, and shared values to keep moving our district forward in academics and a culture of belonging for all students.
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We are so thrilled and honored to announce that South Whidbey Education Association, the SWSD teachers' union, has endorsed our campaign!
Thank you to SWEA for your support, and thank you to all the folks working together for the good, and for safe, excellent, equitable schools.
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🗳️ Local races matter and so do school boards. Indivisible Whidbey is proud to endorse Ann Johnson for the South Whidbey School Board. Ann is committed to supporting students, teachers, and families, and to keeping our schools strong and welcoming. 📚 School boards play a huge role in shaping the future of our kids and our community. Let’s make sure we elect leaders who put students first.
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"I've worked with Ann Johnson both in her role as a South Whidbey School Board Director and with the Leadership Whidbey Program. Ann's experience as an educator clearly informs her work on the School Board to support outstanding teaching and learning. She's the right choice to ensure students, families, and our community have great schools."
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On the school board and in her life outside of it, Ann has a beautiful focus on youth outcomes, always concerned about who will be most impacted by any decision and how to use that decision to make life better for the kids. She brings excellence to the board, and many needed perspectives, and she should be re-elected without hesitation.
Brook Willeford SWHS graduate, parent, and small business owner
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Ann Johnson is an important school board member! At South Whidbey school board meetings I have witnessed her ability to listen carefully and respond with wisdom. She is an advocate and champion for our students, open to student suggestions, offering multiple ways to work together to make both the curriculum and school culture more inclusive. I will definitely vote for Ann and will reach out to others to support her candidacy!
Sarah MacDougall, Ed.D.
Community supporter of United Student Leaders
Resident of Freeland -
Join me in re-electing Ann Johnson as School Board Director District 5. Her service in that position for the last 5 years will be of immense value to onboarding our new SWSD superintendent and setting them up for success. Ann brings practical experience and academic credentials as a long-time educator—whether teaching high school, substitute teaching, or leading the Whidbey Children’s Theater. Her level headedness and willingness to listen to all points of view is more important than ever in these divisive times. With Ann on the School Board, we can rest assured that the health, safety, and civil rights of ALL students and teachers will be protected.
Marian Myszkowski, Langley
Concerned Community Member -
Our family’s experience with Ann spans the last 15 years, starting when she was backstage manager of all the little kids(my 7 year old skunk,many little flowers, all the mice!) . It was amazing how she respectfully and lovingly managed them all each year for South Whidbey’s annual production of The Nutcracker . At Whidbey children’s theater, she nurtured and inspired every preteens(including my son’s) best self. As my kids became young adults and Ann served on the school board, I watched her listen and lift the voices of our small town’s brave youth, supporting them as they stood in the face of bigotry and extremism. I can’t imagine a better school board representative than Ann, who has made it her mission for as long as I’ve known her to support the youth of this community!
Amanda Murphy
Whidbey Island Yoga -
I will enthusiastically cast my ballot for Ann Johnson in November. Her experience, integrity, and spirit of cooperation and inclusion represent all the qualities I celebrate in an effective and excellent school board member.
Katie Shapiro
SWES and SWMS Parent, Freeland -
Everything I've seen Ann take on, from the Whidbey Children's Theater to the School Board to singing in a choir, she has done with good cheer, dedication, creativity and purpose. I trust her 100% and more to do what's best for our precious young people on South Whidbey Island.
Vicki Robin
Writer, speaker, community leader -
I am impressed with the joy, dedication, and care that Ann brings to our community. Her track records shows a deep commitment to making SWSD a kind, safe, and inclusive learning environment for all, and I trust her wholeheartedly to continnue this work. I proudly endorse Ann Johnson!
Gabbi Korrow
Farmer, SOS Steering Committee Member -
I’m voting for Ann because I know she’ll continue her work to ensure every child in our schools receives an equitable education that recognizes their unique needs to learn and thrive. Ann’s education experience, thoughtfulness, and compassion make her the best choice for my kids and the SWSD community.
Chris Carlson, Langley City Councilmember
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I will be voting for Ann Johnson again this November. As a healthcare provider for our community's youth, I value Ann's record of serving all students and leading with empathy. Ann will continue to lead our schools to be a safe, trusted place to learn, engage, and build community.
Hannah Carlson, ARNP
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Ann Johnson values what I value: an education that emphasizes the objective skills like science, math, and writing, as well as the skills to understand history and current events in the context of diverse perspectives. This happens in a nurturing environment that's safe for all. As time goes by, I'll be looking to our students for informed participation in our society. I want them to have a well-rounded education that includes the ability to question, research, critique and lead.
Janet Staub is the parent of two grown-ups, volunteers with Mother Mentors, Hospice, Indivisible Whidbey, and Sings with Open Circle Singers
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As a proud public school educator I believe we need more people like Ann serving our students. She has the skills, experience and values we need on the board.
Carter McCoy, Freeland Resident and public school teacher
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We support Ann Johnson for School Board. She has the right combination of experience as an educator, leadership skill and proven dedication to all our district students.
Debora Valis PT and Steve Shapiro MD, Grandparents
Volunteer With Us!
Interested in helping on the campaign? Please drop us a note below, and we will be in touch shortly. We can't wait to hear from you!
Ann’s campaign team is made up of parents, grandparents, and community members. We would love to have you join us.
Where Ann stands on the issues facing our schools:
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In 2023, over 60% of the South Whidbey community voted to approve a school bond that would fund essential updates and upgrades to the middle and high school building. The bond was a community-wide effort involving parents, grandparents, community leaders, and the district and board. Ann supported and helped lead on the bond. Gwendy opposed the bond, while offering no other solution to the pressing need for capital funding for repairs and upgrades.
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The Trump administration has issued multiple Executive Orders trying to mandate curriculum and programmatic changes in our nations' public schools, attempting to censor content or programs that focus on US history and civil rights. The administration is working to censor educators, support book bans, and intimidate school districts into adopting their extreme ideology. WA State Superintendent Reykdal maintains that these federal proclamations are overreach, and local control should be maintained. Ann agrees with Superintendent Reykdal. Gwendy has spoken at school board meetings urging compliance with the Administration’s overreach and rollbacks of multicultural education.
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The SWSD and community designed a comprehensive, inclusive process to recruit and hire a new superintendent in 2024-2025. Parents, community leaders, grandparents, students, staff and many community members participated in the search process. Views diverged widely, and many folks had different priorities. However, in the South Whidbey way, everyone worked together. Ann helped design and implement this comprehensive process. Gwendy criticized it in school board meetings and did not collaborate in any meaningful way.
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HB 1296 contains common-sense legislation to protect students' freedom to learn and belong in public schools. Far-right, culture war proponents want to change the law to strip privacy from students, including forcing schools to alert parents of things such as a student's desired nickname or pronouns. Ann thinks following existing Washington law, protecting student privacy, and ensuring they are safe at school is the most important value. Gwendy has publicly opposed HB 1296.
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High school students voted on and championed the hanging of Pride and BLM banners on the tennis court fences. The banners were stolen, once again, in 2025. Ann has championed student voice and urged support for replacement of the stolen banners. Gwendy urged the new Superintendent, Dr. Becky Clifford, not to replace the stolen banners, calling them “divisive.”
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The WA Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) releases curriculum standards for the different grade levels. The curriculum is research-based and includes topics such as HIV/STI prevention, affirmative consent, and the gender spectrum. Ann agrees that these are important topics for all students to learn (in an age appropriate manner, for different grade levels). Gwendy has spoken up against comprehensive health education at board meetings and in community forums.
Make a Donation
Support our schools by helping to re-elect Ann to SWSB today!
Prefer to mail your donation in?
You can also mail in your donation to the address below
Address
PO Box 116
Clinton, WA, 98236
Ann’s Campaign Kickoff
We had a wonderful kickoff event for Ann’s campaign at Greenbank Cidery & Taproom on June 29th.
Please reach out to the campaign to donate or volunteer today.
See what the community is saying
Ann is deeply connected with our community and neighbors are already sending in letters of support!
Ann’s Accomplishments
Achievements
One of the many accomplishments that Ann is proud of is that South Whidbey has been named a school board of distinction two years in a row.
Anne has contributed to the district’s success. While a board member South Whidbey has achieved:
High School GPAs improving
SAT scores improving and much higher than average
"Exclusions" (i.e. suspensions/expulsions) decreased compared to last year
MS Academic Growth each year for the past 2 years
ES "Referrals" (i.e. discipline) decreased every month compared to last year
$80 million dollar school bond
Specific year by year achievements as a member of the board
2021-22 School Year
Seismic retrofit of Community Center gym
21-22 enrollment flat compared to previous year for the first time since 2000
Switched to using SMART goals and OKRs for district goals, to increase accountability
E-School bus grant, provided free e-bus and charging station
District awarded $134k grant (⅔ of total cost) for installing solar panels on North Campus
Began school bond process, which culminated in an $80 million bond, passed by voters by 60.31% in November 2023
2022-23 School Year
Reconfiguration of 5/6th grades, to save district $300k/yr and unlock more revenue from renting out South Campus
Started providing a paid day off to all employees for Juneteenth
Started receiving mid-year data reviews from leadership team, to increase transparency and accountability
Improvements in Math and ELA test scores across all K-4, 5-6, 7-8 levels
11 and 12th grade PSAT and SAT scores higher than state and national averages
SWHS used as “model school” for Forefront Suicide Prevention Program
Reduced budget deficit by 65% compared to the previous year, by keeping expenditures essentially flat while revenue increased
New ELA curriculum, part of year-long process involving input from teachers and students
Passed policies…
providing written and oral interpretation services for guardians of students
strengthening supports for students in foster care
strengthening the school counseling program
for Financial Education course, preparing students for adulthood and community
2023-24 School Year
Improvement to discipline policy, aligned with our Culture of Care and Restorative Justice practices
Professional Communications policy
2024-25 School Year
Passed policies…
adding leadership and social skills to the list of learning goals
requiring yearly district goals to flow through to the yearly School Improvement Plans created by each principal, increasing alignment from the boardroom to the classroom
Appointed new Superintendent, Dr. Clifford
Approved a resolution affirming our district’s protection of immigrant and LGBTQ+ students
Sent a letter WA Interscholastic Activities Association, affirming our district’s support for statewide policies that allow all students to play on the team that aligns with their gender identity
Created a Climate Action committee, tasked with proposing climate action goals for the district to adopt, along with curriculum improvements, etc.
