Thompson announces candidacy for Lakeland school board

Michelle Thompson announced her candidacy for school board trustee, Zone 3, in the Lakeland Joint School District in the Nov. 7 election. Thompson has served on the board for four years, currently serves as the board chair, and according to a news release, is looking forward to continuing to serve her community.

“Our current school board has been effective in returning the district’s focus back to the fundamentals of education by providing vetted curriculum, revamping policies to ensure they support the goals of the district and the needs of the community, and ensuring parents are included and their rights are protected,” Thompson said in the release. “Our new superintendent, Lisa Arnold, and her dedicated staff are also working hard to keep our schools’ attention on education. As we diligently work together, our board, staff, and parents, we are making progress.”

Thompson said she is passionate about creating an environment to improve education and promote a love of learning.

“I want to make sure our schools are safe and continue to get back to the basics of education,” she said in the release. “As America continues to feel divided and under attack, our schools should not become war zones and our children should not be casualties.”

According to the news release, Thompson will accomplish these items by relying on her past four years of experience on the school board “where she has proven by her voting record that she will approve policies that protect parents and students as well as improve education in our schools.”

Thompson was elected to the board in 2019 and voted to open the schools in the fall of 2020 without face masks.

She helped draft the policy keeping gender ideology out of Lakeland schools, ensuring girls’ bathrooms are protected, and the district would respect the Constitution by not requiring certain pronouns to be used by students or staff. The policy was approved by the board in early 2023.

Thompson and her husband have lived in Kootenai County for 31 years with 24 of those years in Rathdrum.

“As a mother of three, my children attended Lakeland Junior High and Lakeland High School, and now two of my grandchildren attend school here,” Thompson said in the release.

Thompson is a counselor for a local counseling agency and owns her own business. She received her Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies from the University of Idaho and a Master of Social Work from Boise State University. The release said Thompson is “optimistic that the school district has a bright future and looks forward to continuing to serve the families in the Lakeland Joint School District and improving the schools for all students.”