DES MOINES, Iowa — Next Tuesday Iowans across the state will be voting for their school board candidates. However many races have multiple candidates which can make it difficult for parents to know who they are voting for.

Here are some tips for how to get to know who’s running for your school board.

• Local News – Local news coverage of candidates is a great place to start to learn more about who is running in your school board election.
• District Websites – Many school districts have who is running for school board on their websites, some even have links to forums with candidates.
• Online Presence – Check your candidates’ social media or if they have a campaign website.
• Word of Mouth – Ask your neighbors or other parents at your child’s school about the candidates running for school board.

Phil Roeder, the Director of Communications & Public Affairs at Des Moines Public Schools, said school board elections are important, even for those who don’t have children.

“They are critically important in the community. Important not only for the education of our children but for the expenditure of public resources in schools. For example especially Des Moines Public Schools, we have more locations around the city than any other organization so there’s a big community presence that schools have in the community. So even if you don’t have kids who attend school they matter,” Roeder said.

Election day is next Tuesday, November 7th.