School board elections: Kila

School elections are May 4 with contested trustee races in several school districts.

Information on candidates will be published throughout the week. Candidates were invited to respond to questions emailed by the Daily Inter Lake to provide voters with more information such as a candidate’s background, experience and reason for running.

The following information is for Kila School District candidates.

There are three candidates running for one three-year term. They are incumbent Logan Bench, Taylor Butterfield and Chelcie Miller.

Polls will be open from noon to 8 p.m. May 4 in the school gym, 395 Kila Road.

Name: Logan Bench (i)

Occupation: Stay-at-home father

Background/experience: I have served on Kila school board for the last three years. I am also the vice president of Kalispell Wrestling Club, a nonprofit club serving the community and a safe place for over 100 kids to learn the sport.

Why are you running? My children all go to Kila School and I believe in teaching my children to give back to their community. I want to be a part of their future and to help provide the best school and atmosphere for productive learning.

Name: Taylor Butterfield

Occupation: Full-time mom

Background/experience: Active member of Kila Country Church as well as the new music teacher for Vacation Bible School week at Kila Country Church. Member of Flathead Liberty Coalition, Fallen Heroes Project, Operation Underground, Montana Conservation and Values, judge for Taste of Bigfork, March for Life. I actively seek volunteer work where it is needed.

Why are you running? I am running for Kila School Board because I believe change is needed for our children. I have become more of an active member in this community since having kids of my own. I want parents to be proud to send their kids to Kila School and know that we hold the values of this country and their education at the highest level. I am an active writer to our legislators and will keep being a voice for those who want change and may not know the proper steps. I would like to be the voice for our parents and know that their concerns will always be heard by me without bias; we are all parents wanting the best for our children. I will be that voice.

If elected, is there anything you want to see accomplished? If elected, I would enjoy being on the library committee as I am an avid history reader and would like to encourage more to read what our foundation was built on and built for. There should never be a biased agenda for other people’s lives. I am someone who takes action! I do not participate in mainstream social media platforms, as I believe communication is being suppressed; we need to stand together and truly be the voice for our children, not posting about it with no action. I am ready to take all challenges head-on. We stand together!

Name: Chelcie Miller

Why are you running? I feel so privileged to be a part of the Kila community and to have my three children attend Kila school. My hope is for every child to enter into an environment each day that serves, educates and loves them well, to see every teacher step into a workplace that empowers them with the resources they need to thrive and deepens their passion for education, and to have parents and a community feel that their thoughts and opinions are heard and valued when it comes to decisions regarding our schools. I would feel honored to serve alongside our already phenomenal board of trustees as we uphold and celebrate everything that is working so well and to work together to evaluate opportunities for improvement and how best to adapt and grow. 2020 taught us how powerful this community’s love for its students is and what we are capable of when we keep our focus on them. I am excited to see what we can accomplish as we continue to focus on every kid, every day.

If elected, is there anything you want to see accomplished? If elected I would love to further the conversation around improving teacher benefits/offering health insurance, as well as our current building’s inability to adequately accommodate the growing population in our area. I want to focus on how we best serve the students and staff we currently have in our school and also how we ensure we will be able to do the same as they increase in the years to come.