With seven candidates running for two positions on the Flathead Valley Community College Board of Trustees, a candidate forum Monday was an important venue for them to espouse their views and plans for the college.

Hosted by the college’s faculty senate and moderated by physics professor Jim Boger, the forum featured five of the candidates: Tom Sward, John Phelps, John Fuller, Robert Webb and Marion Foley. They answered seven questions ranging from the college’s finances to the importance of accepting diverse ideas.

Candidates Tom Harding and R. Scott Sorensen were not present, but Harding provided a statement.

The other trustee election slated this year, for the Flathead-Glacier school district, had been canceled. Board chairman Bob Nystuen had no challengers and thus reclaimed his seat by acclamation.

Those at the candidate forum are running for two positions available representing the Columbia Falls, Bigfork and Whitefish school districts.

The election is May 6.

Tom Sward, a longtime Marine, said he chose to run because his son is a student at FVCC.

“I’m keenly interested in his academic track,” the Bigfork resident and Flathead High School graduate said.

Sward said he believes his organizational experience as a chief of staff for a Marine division and experience with the young people of the Marine Corps make him a good candidate for the position.

He likes seeing the college involved in all the affairs of the community but does feel the purpose of the board is to improve interactions in the classroom. Finding resources to improve education would be key for him, along with finding a way to reach out to Northwest Montana’s unemployed and underemployed residents.

Diverse ideas are tantamount to a solid education, Sward said. His experience at the National Defense University in Washington, D.C. provided him with international diversity and he hopes to emulate some of that at FVCC.

John Phelps has been a member of the FVCC board since 2007 and is seeking a third term. The Whitefish resident taught classes in American government and political theory at FVCC in the 1990s.

“I was a student here as well,” he said. “I bided my time and ran at the first opportunity. I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.”

Phelps, formerly city attorney for Whitefish, has a law degree from the University of Kansas and said he remains eminently qualified for the position.

The college’s planned University Center is something he hopes to see through to completion so students in the Flathead can get four-year degrees.

He said the role of the board is to gauge reactions from the community and not to abuse its power. His priorities going forward are to improve the reputation of the college and entice international students to attend. Long-term goals include making the college the cultural hub of Northwest Montana by inviting cultural groups to find a home on the campus.

Phelps said he thinks the college could improve by fostering debate and spirited discussion. He noted a lack of either when he taught at the school more than a decade ago.

John Fuller was a public high school teacher for 42 years and knows education policy reform can take a while. He hopes to expedite FVCC’s process and make the college a better place.

His experience on the Montana Board of Public Education makes him a good fit for the college’s board, the Whitefish resident said.

“When it comes to the glacially slow movement of educational policy-making, I am well aware of it,” Fuller said. “I’m skilled at handling those issues.”

He said he believes the role of the board can be whatever it needs to be, whether a rubber stamp for the administration, a supportive body or a thorn in the side of those in power.

Fuller wishes to give teachers and the administration what they need to succeed and “get out of the way.”

He said the college can remain the “red-headed stepchild” of the Montana University System or can be a center for lifelong learning.

“From algebra to xylophones, we need to meet what the community needs,” he said.

He said he is keenly aware the jobs of the past — mining and logging among them — might not be the jobs of the future and he believes FVCC has to help locals who might be wary of higher education get a hand up.

The last thing he wants to see at the college is “hedonistic belly-button watching.”

Robert Webb has volunteered much of his time with various organizations, including serving on the board of the Montana Veterans Home and the Columbia Falls Library Association.

The Hungry Horse resident said he believes volunteer work is something everyone should do, and he hopes to continue that with a position on FVCC’s board.

He said the role of the board is to make a well-oiled machine and see that everything on campus works as it is supposed to.

“Politicians promise everything every election, but then find out when they get to Washington or Helena that they are the lowest man on the totem pole,” Webb said. “I want to get my finger on the pulse of the college and really find out what it needs.”

He said the dwindling job market is of utmost concern for the valley, and those people who can no longer work in the aluminum plant or forests need an opportunity. FVCC can expand their trade programs to accomplish that.

The cost of education is a major issue, he said. Webb would like to see prices come down to make it more affordable.

He sometimes judges speech and debate tournaments and can see what open discussion can do for a young mind. He said FVCC should always encourage open debate.

Marion Foley served as an FVCC trustee for four years in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Tragedy forced her hand and she stepped down to raise her family.

The Martin City resident has always found FVCC’s openness to new ideas a welcome addition to the valley — including the introduction of an all-black basketball team to Kalispell in the college’s infancy in the 1970s.

Foley said she believes the board should be supportive to students, teachers and the administration.  She would like to see the college take a leadership role in the valley and be understanding that as baby boomers retire, they want to continue education at FVCC.

Her attraction to events such as the TED Talks held at the college show, for her, how thirsty this valley is for diverse, different ideas.

She has not been a fan of “indenturing our higher education students” with massive loan burdens. She wants to change that and give FVCC students more opportunities to afford school.

Tom Harding has been a college board member since 1990. A Whitefish native, he wasn’t present at the meeting but wanted the gathered few to know how much serving on the board has meant to him.

He is a retired businessman and veteran. His wife is an educator in Kalispell.

He said he hopes to be re-elected to continue to make FVCC “a well-respected and vibrant school that is financially solid.”

R. Scott Sorensen also did not attend the forum. A Whitefish native, he has served on the Whitefish City-County Planning Board.

Reporter Ryan Murray may be reached at 758-4436 or by email at rmurray@dailyinterlake.com.