Luke Jensen, Marcel Leclair face off for an at-large seat.

Name: Luke Jensen

Age: 34

Occupation: Educator, owner of Millbrick Media.

Community involvement: Lewiston School Committee (2017-2020), Lewiston City Council (2020-2021), School Committee Facilities Subcommittee chairperson (2018-2020), School Committee Administrative Subcommittee chairperson (2018-2020), LHS Expansion and Improvements Subcommittee member and chairperson (2018-2020).

1. Why do you think you are the most qualified or best candidate for this seat?

As one who taught here in Lewiston last school year, and as a former School Committee member, I know exactly what needs to change, what’s possible to change, and how to make those changes happen. I know how to work with a committee and get results. We need to change the culture in our district, and better meet the needs of everyone in our school communities. On top of that, we need to better advocate for changes at the state level, particularly around how underfunded Lewiston is by the state. Significant, positive changes are not out of reach.

2. What is the most important issue facing the Lewiston School Department and how would you address it? Be specific.

The biggest issue is that the school budget is so big, yet there is almost no fat in it. That’s out of our control, short of the state changing the education funding formula. Locally, we need to start letting teachers actually teach, again. Our school environments are not currently suited for effective teaching and learning and it’s no surprise that our students are not as engaged as they should be. There are several policies (grading system, attendance, response to violent/dangerous behavior, among others), that can be changed or enacted, and it’s time the School Committee addresses them.

3. What can you do as a School Committee member to improve test scores and graduation rates?

We should move away from viewing test scores as a measurement of student growth. No Child Left Behind was a disaster that overemphasized the importance of standardized testing. Its successor, the Every Student Succeeds Act, gives states more flexibility but still measures success through standardized testing. Instead, we should measure success based on reading levels and ability to conduct grade-level math operations. Graduation rates will increase over time with a long-term approach. The changes I stated above will help make students more engaged with their learning. We shouldn’t lower our standards just to increase our graduation rate.


Name: Marcel Leclair 

Age: 55

Occupation: Self-employed 

Community involvement: I volunteer at St. Martin de Porres shelter and I provide entertainment for the Christmas tree lighting and block parties for the city of Lewiston.

1. Why do you think you are the most qualified or best candidate for the seat?

I pledge to be a voice for the many parents and students in the school system who are not being heard by the (Lewiston Public Schools) administration, as well as for taxpayers, who are paying more each year for outcomes that have worsened. Too often, we have seen School Committee members simply carry out the directives of the superintendent, rather than ask tough questions and act as advocates for their constituents. As an outsider who has also had extensive experience within the school system as a parent and an advocate for my special-needs granddaughter, I will be the voice for those who are unheard, the squeaky wheel in the machine.

2. What is the most important issue facing the Lewiston School Department and how would you address it? Be specific.

Safety comes first. Without guaranteeing safety for each and every student — from school grounds, to classrooms, to hallways to bathrooms — academic potential and success have also been compromised. A number of parents have removed their children from (Lewiston Public Schools) due to safety issues and violence they have experienced or watched in school. Even one such instance is one too many. For this reason, I would first prioritize safety and initiate an enforced return to traditional, tried-and-true standards of student behavior and consequences. If students feel safe, they will be better able to learn. 

3. What can you do as a School Committee member to improve test scores and graduation rates. 

Only by returning and committing to academic fundamentals — the building blocks of all learning — (Lewiston Public Schools’) test scores and graduation rates will improve. Rather than create endless PowerPoint presentations of new programs and initiatives that are portrayed as the magic key to improvement, we need to get back to prioritizing the basics. When the basics are taught effectively, students are given the tools they need to build academic success. (Lewiston Public Schools) is proof that the idea that “academic should take a back seat,” as Maine Department of Education Commissioner Pender Makin advocated, has done nothing but harm the children of Lewiston.

Angela Burke

Burke has dropped out of the race, but her name will remain on the ballot. Votes for Burke will not be counted.