Editor’s note: Mounir Lynch was one of the top six vote-getters in the May 6 primary and now advances to the November general election.
At a time when school boards have become the center of community dialogue — especially here in Ohio — the calls for interested persons to step up and run has reached a fevered pitch.
Mounir Lynch is not only heeding the call, but doing so in the very same district where he was once a student: the Columbus City Schools Board of Education.
“In a time where public schools are facing attacks from just about every corner of our government, it’s a really important time for people who really understand the needs, the strengths, the challenges and the future of public education to step up and work on behalf of our communities,” said Lynch, a public health educator.
The Buckeye Flame spoke with the candidate about his goal to restore public trust in the local school system, how his age is an asset and what we could all be doing to more support teachers.
To listen, click play directly below or read our (edited) conversation beneath the audio link.
Why the Columbus City Schools Board of Education and why now?
That’s a great question. First and foremost, I grew up in Columbus City Schools (CCS) and I will always be proud of this district. The schools made me the person that I am today. And I also recognize the many challenges that we’ve faced ever since I was a kid.
I’ve always cared for this district. I’ve always known that we can do better. And in a time where public schools are facing attacks from just about every corner of our government, it’s a really important time for people who really understand the needs, the strengths, the challenges and the future of public education to step up and work on behalf of our communities.
I do not think that any candidate should be defined in any way by their age, but I have to highlight: you’re in your twenties and you’re running for office! That’s awesome.
Thank you so much. I think there are a lot of really qualified candidates, but my age is not a weakness. We know that there are many people that have served us well while being in their 20s. So I don’t see that as a drawback at all.
One of your stated goals is to restore public trust in the Board of Education. Where do we start with that?
Well first of all we start with actually listening and engaging with our communities and letting our people know that there are people in those seats at that table who truly care for them and understand their needs. And where [board members] don’t understand, they’re willing to learn and to listen. And they are people that are focused on what we need to do right now, rather than petty arguments within the board. We have accountability to our community, and that means that we need to deal with this division within the school board, and make sure that we are fulfilling our obligations to our community.
In my non-Buckeye Flame life, I am a professor of education, so I have a particular passion for supporting teachers. Talk to us a little bit about the role of teachers and supporting them right now in Columbus.
Absolutely. The teachers are the backbone of our school district. They do the hard work every single day and I have worked very closely with them in my time as a guest educator in CCS. We know that every year you’ll get an email or a text from a teacher friend of yours asking to donate to their fundraiser or asking to buy things off of their Amazon list. And I want a district that really puts the resources in teacher’s hands first, because when they are safe, when they are not burnt out, when they are being valued for who they are, our students see the result of that and growing up in the district I witnessed multiple teacher strikes. I walked the picket line with my teachers just a couple years ago, and our board should not have this animosity with the teachers that keep the schools running every single day.
How do you activate your neighbors to actually get out and vote in a school board election, which we know the turnout is sometimes pretty low for those elections?
I think the tides are changing. I think people are really activated and engaged with the entire political system right now and we do understand that local elections are where we start. They have the greatest impact on us. And I do have hope that that engagement will increase.
I like to let people know that whether you have a child in the district or not, or whether you ever attended the district, this is something that our community got together to vote for that levy recently, and did so at a time where people are scared of increasing their cost of living. And so we all have an investment in this district, and we all are proud of this district and we should be engaged in an election that influences this district’s future.
You are an out LGBTQ+ candidate for a school board at a time when LGBTQ+ issues are quite the lightning rod in education. How do you navigate that?
That’s a great question. I’m very proud of my identity in these challenging times. We really have the tools to lean on each other here in Columbus. Our LGBTQ+ community is one of our greatest strengths and values to our culture and to the way we interact with each other.
Although it’s a very dark and frankly dangerous time for us as a community, we know that when we get together and we do the work on the ground every single day, we protect ourselves and we care for one another just as we always have done for generations as an LGBTQ+ community. So although it’s extremely scary, especially for our trans friends right now, we know that we can lean on each other and we can move each other into the future and hopefully by electing LGBTQ plus people in all corners of our government, we can have even more power and strength in our communities. 🔥
IGNITE ACTION
- Learn more about Mounir Lynch’s campaign by visiting his campaign website here and following him on Instagram here.
- Check your Ohio voter registration status here.
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