A Wichita teacher, running for the people she loves

Candace Landers is a Wichita teacher, a wife, a mother, and a neighbor who believes the future of this community is worth showing up for.

She spent almost 15 years in the classroom, from kindergarten through third grade. Third grade stuck with her for a reason: it is the year Kansas asks every child to read on their own, and she saw how much of that work falls on teachers and the people around them.

Along the way, she learned that the lessons that build a good classroom also build a strong community. Tell the truth. Work hard. Listen to one another. Leave things better than you found them.

Some of the kindergartners from her first classroom are old enough to vote now, and she still runs into former students around town. Their futures matter to her as much as her own kids' do.

Today, she works as an Organizing Assistant with United Teachers of Wichita, helping educators and school staff stand up for themselves and each other. She is a wife and mom of two, and like a lot of families, hers depends on the schools, services, and neighbors that hold this community together.

She is running for Kansas House District 88 because she refuses to leave the future of the people she loves in someone else's hands.