Boise teacher, administrator to challenge Neilsen

Monday, May 19, 2008

Boise County Planning and Zoning Commissioner and former Idaho Department of Education Administrator Rosemary P. Ardinger has filed to run for the Idaho House of Representatives, District 22, House Seat B, representing the people of Boise and Elmore Counties.

She will challenge Mountain Home Republican Pete Neilsen.

Ardinger says she will bring to the legislature a strong background in public education on the state and local level, and experience dealing with the problems and benefits of growth in Boise and Elmore counties.

"I have experience as a public school teacher, as an education administrator for the state, and I have hands-on experience exploring growth and zoning in this beautiful state where we live," Ardinger said. "I've been a resident of Boise County for 22 years, a resident of Idaho since 1977. I've experienced tax increases from new property assessments like everyone else, and know the challenges District 22 faces. I'll use my candidacy to address those challenges in a positive and meaningful way."

Ardinger taught third grade, coached the school's girls basketball team, and worked as a mentor teacher at Basin Elementary in Idaho City for 10 years from 1985-1995, before becoming State Title I Director for the Idaho Department of Education, where she worked another decade under three State Superintendents of Public Instruction. While working for the Department of Education, she traveled the entire state of Idaho, visiting school districts and promoting federal funding for improved education. She retired to pursue her interests as a community activist and volunteer.

"Public education is fifty percent of the state budget -- $1.5 billion," Ardinger said. "Various failed plans for education and raises for teachers dominated much of this year's session of the legislature once again. Even Governor Otter believes the State Board of Education needs to get out of the business of trying to manage K-12 education and should give that responsibility back to the State Department of Education--and rightly so. I agree with the Governor. We're currently duplicating efforts and wasting taxpayer money."

Since the late-1980s, Ardinger also has served on a number of boards, including the Idaho Heritage Trust Advisory Board, which awards grants for historic preservation in Idaho (such as the Opera House in Glenns Ferry), and the Idaho City Historical Foundation board, to which she was re-elected president a number of times.

"I've long advocated that our rich history offers educational and economic opportunity for our future," she said.

Ardinger holds B.S. and M.Ed. degrees in education from Slippery Rock University (Pennsylvania) and Idaho State University respectively. She maintains her teaching credentials, holds an Education Specialist degree from the University of Idaho, and is certified to be a principal and superintendent.

She and her husband Rick Ardinger, Executive Director of the Idaho Humanities Council, have been married for 32 years, and have lived since 1986 on Canyon Trail, off Highway 21.

As a Boise County P & Z Commissioner, Ardinger stresses the need for responsible oversight of growth throughout the state.

"Idaho currently is the fifth fastest growing state in the nation," Ardinger says. "We've seen too many bad examples in other states where sprawl has overrun infrastructure. I'll be a diligent voice for responsible growth, quality education, quality of life, and the economic benefits growth can bring."

She plans to hold a series of public meetings throughout District 22 to listen to the concerns of Boise and Elmore County residents.

"I look forward to meeting with the people of our diverse district and hearing their concerns about what they think the pressing issues are," Ardinger says. "Many have deep family roots in District 22, and many new residents bring with them some tremendous ideas we can benefit from. I look forward to meetings with the people of Elmore County, and I look forward to serving in the Legislature."

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  • I think the only thing I remember that Nielson even mentioned in the Legislature is that "Women shouldn't be allowed to nurse their baby in public". Not government's business at all.

    It's time for a change.

    -- Posted by yniashi on Tue, May 20, 2008, at 2:13 PM
  • I before E except after C, even for Milton Peter "Pete" Nielsen. Thanks for the story... I linked to it from PaleoMedia.org...

    -- Posted by PaleoMedia.org on Wed, May 21, 2008, at 12:17 AM
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