Three on ballot for one board spot

MATTAWA - There is a three-way race for one seat on the Wahluke School District Board of Directors. So the primary election, which has already started and will end at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 4, is crucial.

The candidates who garner the most and second-most votes will go on to the general election in November.

One of the candidates is incumbent Maybeline Pantaleón. The two challengers for director district No. 1 are Maria Dolores Cruz-Chiprez and Cynthia DeVictoria.

This campaign has been a bit strange.

When Cruz-Chiprez filed, she was told there was a discrepancy with her last name. The staff at the elections department told her they couldn't get it straightened out in time to get her on the ballot.

Cruz-Chiprez told one of the other candidates what happened and that she was not running. They all thought there was no pressing reason to campaign. So nobody campaigned with any amount of vigor.

Even when the ballot came out, the three candidates didn't realize Cruz-Chiprez was on it. They learned of that after The Royal Register asked each of the candidates to email a statement about why people should vote for them.

Cruz-Chiprez was still wondering what was up when she spoke with The Royal Register. She was wondering whether to campaign or forget the whole idea. She decided her candidacy was confirmed when mailed ballots reached her family.

The incumbent, Pantaleón has been on the board just about one year. She was appointed to an empty seat the same day she became a U.S. citizen.

"I'm a dedicated community member," she said. "I have lived in the city of Mattawa for about 24 years, which is nearly all of my life."

"Granted, I have been on the school board for a short amount of time, and I'm still in the learning process, but I am planning to do what's best for the children of this district," she added.

Pantaleón has a deep interest in the success of Wahluke schools. She attended here from kindergarten through high school. She and her husband have started a family and intend to live here indefinitely.

Pantaleón is employed as the clerk of the Mattawa Police Department. She is also a reserve officer for the same department, graduating from the Moses Lake Reserve Police Academy in April.

De Victoria and her family have lived in Mattawa for 23 years. Her son and daughter graduated from Wahluke High School. She worked for the Wahluke School District in special education for eight years, and she is currently employed by Columbia Basin Health Association (CBHA) as a Parent Educator.

If her name sounds familiar, that could be because she is the wife of Arthur de Victoria. He works for the Wahluke School District in the IT department and is the long-time head coach of Wahluke's boys and girls soccer program.

"Much of my work experience has been working with families and supporting parents in the education of their children," she said. "I am a strong advocate for parent involvement, I strongly believe parents are their child's first teacher and parent involvement is critical to student success."

DeVictoria has two years of experience as a past board member. She is also a former member of the local Community Resource Forum, connecting families with community resources.

DeVictoria sat on the National Children's Council Committee for Grant County, connecting families in a national study on children's health. And she was a member of the Washington State Commission on Hispanic Affairs.

"I am well aware of the importance of open communication with parents, staff members and students," deVictoria said. "I believe our board members should be present, visible and available as they represent you, our families, staff and community."

"I am ready to take my past experience to work toward the best possible outcomes for our students," she added.

Maria Dolores Cruz-Chiprez is best known as Lola Chiprez. She has lived in Mattawa for 38 years.

"I am a parent of two Wahluke Students," she said. "I would like to be on the School Board to help make a difference for our Parents and the Students."

Cruz-Chiprez was born in Othello, but her parents lived in the Mattawa area. The family later moved into town.

Cruz-Chiprez worked for the Wahluke School District as a para educator for eight years. Her duties were in the special education resource room at what was then the Saddle Mountain Intermediate.

Moving on in life, Cruz-Chiprez managed apartments in Mattawa for five years. Now she works for Jones of Washington at a vineyard near Mattawa.

The reason Cruz-Chiprez wants to help parents is that she tried that once before and it did not end well. She was a member of a group that was formed to help parents with concerns.

"We taught them, or got them the materials to learn how to organize a plan and communicate with the special education director," she said. "At the last minute the parents were convinced no on would listen to them and backed out of talking to the director."

"Parents feel like nobody ever listens to them," she added.