A candidate for City Council Pos. 6, City of Medical Lake in the 2011 Washington General Election

Age: 61

City: Medical Lake, WA

Education: Graduated from Cheney High School in 1979. Earned a bachelor’s degree in applied psychology in 1996 and a master’s degree in public administration in 2004 from Eastern Washington University.

Political experience: Has served on the Medical Lake City Council for 16 years and been a chairperson for each council committee. She was mayor pro tem for three years on the council.

Work experience: She has worked as a school bus driver for the past 11 years. Before that she worked as a Spokane Regional Health District social worker for 12 years and a certified nurse’s aid for 10 years.

Family: She has three adult children who attended Medical Lake schools and has two children currently attending schools in the district.

Her pitch: Parsons said her time as an elected official will make her a successful school board member. She said she’s helped manage Medical Lake city finances and advocated for combining the Medical Lake Fire Department with Spokane County Fire District 3. As a school board member, she said she’d advocate for special needs students and better pay for paraeducators.

Her words: “I’d like to help Medical Lake schools to keep being progressive, because I don’t want to see kids falling through gaps.”