LIBERTY TOWNSHIP, Mich. — Teacher and community leader Nancy Smith today announced her campaign for state representative in District 65. Smith, a Democrat, emphasized the importance of protecting the workers, businesses, and schools of District 65 from the economic fallout of COVID-19.
“Today, I am calling on the Governor and state legislators of both parties to provide greater financial relief for the workers, farmers, businesses, schools, and medical facilities of District 65. COVID-19 isn’t just a public health catastrophe; it’s also an economic and financial crisis, and it has the potential to hit our rural communities especially hard. Therefore, it is crucial that we reverse years of cuts to rural school funding, tackle disparities in rural access to healthcare, and empower our workers, farmers, and businesses.”
Smith brings a breadth of experience to the campaign. For nearly 25 years, she has worked as a special education teacher at a school in Horton, Michigan, where she has also served on the board of the local teachers’ union. Additionally, Smith is a founding member and former chair of the Jackson Community Forum, which sought to facilitate discussion around a range of local issues, and a former advisor for the Jackson Area Youth Council.
A longtime advocate for public education, Smith has said that “every student, regardless of race, income, or disability, is entitled to the dignity of a good education.” Over the past decades, however, funding for public schools has decreased, while the state has assumed greater control over curriculum. “This has hit rural schools especially hard,” Smith said.
“If I’m elected to the State House, I will work not only to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on our rural communities, but also to bridge the existing inequities and injustices that it has brought into clear relief,” she continued. “Politicians of all parties must work to ensure our rural communities don’t just survive this pandemic -- but that they emerge stronger.”
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