For Andy Hawes, the biggest issue facing the Boise School District is declining enrollment.

For Kirt Naylor, it’s the emotional well-being of students.

The candidates running for a four-year term on the Boise school board offered different priorities Tuesday night during a forum at Boise High. The student-led, pro-democracy organization BABE VOTE(opens in new tab) organized the event. Election Day(opens in new tab) is Tuesday, Sept. 1.

Both Hawes and Naylor are experienced attorneys with different areas of expertise.

Hawes has focused on real estate and facilities as in-house corporate counsel. He works for J.R. Simplot Company and was a Boise trustee from 2021 to 2023. Naylor has experience prosecuting child protection cases and was chairman of the Governor’s Task Force on Children at Risk from 2001 to 2016.

As enrollment declines, Hawes said the district needs to see facilities as assets. If the district considers closing a school, he would find creative ways to use the building to support the community.

“Are there other uses that we can use for facilities that would fit squarely with what the community wants in serving students?” Hawes said.

Naylor said enrollment is important, but he wants to focus on helping students in kindergarten through high school thrive amid the emotional challenges they face each day.

“I believe that our students are dealing with very significant emotional, personal issues coming from the state Legislature, coming from outside sources but also from within,” Naylor said.

Although the forum focused on a local school board race, the Legislature was a frequent topic. Moderator and senior EdNews reporter Kevin Richert asked the candidates how they would navigate serving as a trustee while following state law under a Legislature that is trying to impact the social fabric of schools.

As an Idaho native, Naylor said he’s heard for years that local control should be paramount. But the Legislature seems to micromanage schools. There’s also tension between educators and politicians, he said, and an adversarial relationship with higher education.

“I think we need to engender an environment where teachers are a profession that can be looked up to and that we respect,” Naylor said.

Hawes said there is an inherent tension between school boards and the Legislature. They have different goals and expectations for what it takes to fund public schools. He said local leaders should find common objectives and build relationships with lawmakers.

“Like it or not, though, we’re partners,” Hawes said.

The Legislature has required(opens in new tab) K-12 students to start the school day with a moment of silence(opens in new tab), prohibited transgender students from using their preferred bathroom(opens in new tab), enacted regulations on which flags and banners(opens in new tab) can be displayed in classrooms and required teachers to show fetal development videos(opens in new tab).

Boise High senior Mona Schwartz, a BABE VOTE board member and chapter president who helped organize the forum, told EdNews that these policies are polarizing students.

“When you try to legislate schools, students are going to start feeling that political nature,” Schwartz said in an interview.

In her opinion, mental health is the biggest challenge in Boise schools. When legislators micromanage schools without accurately representing student voices, she said students feel like they can’t express themselves, and it makes it harder to have conversations on campus.

“We, as students, feel a lot of that tension,” she said.

During the forum, both Hawes and Naylor mentioned “tragic” events over the last few years in Boise schools.

A 16-year-old Boise High student, who was transgender, died by suicide in January. Her parents spoke to NBC News about the societal pressures she faced. In January 2025, special education assistant Gavin Snow died by suicide as police attempted to arrest him on child sexual abuse charges. The Boise district in November announced a $7 million payout in tort claims to families affected by Snow.

Hawes said the district has done a good job in bringing mental health into the forefront but should never declare victory. He said the district should look closely at what services schools provide and if they are effective.

“We really need to be constantly on guard to make sure that our students feel safe,” Hawes said.

Naylor mentioned the importance of partnerships with public health organizations to bring counseling into schools to educate students on what mental health really means. He said a lot can be accomplished by communicating and discussing challenges in life.

“I believe that we could listen more to some of the needs of the students and help them to talk amongst themselves,” Naylor said.

Election details

There are technically three races for Boise trustee on Tuesday, Sept. 1, but only one is contested.

Trustees Alejandro Necochea and Krista Hasler are running unopposed for two six-year terms on the board. Their names will not appear on the ballot.

Naylor and Hawes are running for one, four-year term. All seats are at-large, meaning there are no zones within the district.

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