The presidential election is hotly debated and contested. It's unlikely that any article written by a college freshman would sway any opinions one way or another. However, it is important to remember that we are not just electing a president. There are literally dozens of state positions that are also being filled; these should be every bit as important to Americans, and may even impact us more in day to day life.

For me, education is an important issue. Maybe that's because I am still involved in public education, or maybe it's resultant of the diversified education experience I have had. Whatever the reason, I find myself looking at local candidates' education policies very closely.

Something that shocked me when I was filling out my absentee ballot was that school board positions had been made partisan. Why would this occur? What is the purpose of a partisan school board director? Public educators and administrators are not allowed to force political views on their students, so what purpose could it possibly serve to make these positions partisan?

Upon further research, I discovered that 23 counties in North Carolina currently elect school board positions on a partisan basis, with two more counties (Rockingham and Transylvania) expected to join in the next election (2018). If the bill to make these positions partisan passes in these two counties, 25 percent of the state will be operating with a party system to elect school board members. 94 of America's largest school districts hold partisan elections, most notably in Maryland, North Carolina, and Utah. The reasoning is that many voters find it difficult to find information on candidates in order to make an informed decision, so they simply vote the party line.

Voting this way is dangerous no matter the position one is electing or the party one supports, but it seems even more so when it comes to school boards.

Much in the same way that Supreme Court justices are expected to pursue justice rather than the goals of any political affiliation, so too should school board members be expected to pursue the "right" outcome for students, rather than that which fulfills a party platform.

Justices to the Supreme Court, though they may have beliefs that align with one party more than another, are not to be appointed solely based on their partisan associations. I think that the only way to foster the development of truly just education policy and reform is to keep school boards nonpartisan.

The thing is, there are Democrats who love common core and Democrats who hate it. There are Republicans who strongly support greater integration of technology into education and Republicans who wish we could melt down the tablets and computers to be used for scrap metal.

We cannot make choices for the minds of the future based on the political standards of today. The parties have changed significantly in their platforms, over the course of their existence. The introduction of partisanship to roles like school board members will surely serve only as a means of increasing the division already so clear in our country.

The focus must turn to what is right in our education system, rather than what will increase partisan popularity.