As part of our commitment to providing you with what you need to make an informed decision in the 2026 elections, News 6 joined with the News Collaborative of Central Florida to present the Voting Central Florida 2026 Voter’s Guide.
Tuesday, Aug. 18 is the Florida Statewide Primary election, a mix of party primaries and nonpartisan local elections, such as school board races, judicial races, and county commission races in some counties.
Recommended Videos
[ELECTION 2026: Make sure you’re eligible to vote|How to vote by mail|Election Myths]
Florida has a closed primary system, which means only members of a political party may vote in party primaries. To be eligible, a voter had to identify with that party by July 20.
However, judicial races and local races, for the most part, are open to all registered voters, regardless of political party.
Everything you need to know in order to vote in the Aug. 18 Statewide Primary, including how to vote by mail, vote early, and vote on Election Day, can be found in our Election 2026 section HERE.
Volusia County School Board District 5
The Volusia County School Board has five districts. These are nonpartisan races, so they are open to all voters.
School Board District 5 encompasses voters in the south-central part of the county. You can see a map of the area HERE.
The News Collaborative of Central Florida created a list of common questions to ask the candidates. Questionnaires were sent to all candidates.
Not all of the candidates responded. Where candidates did not respond, we have filled out the information to the best of our abilities.
News 6 compiled the candidate responses for Volusia County School Board District 5, emailing and calling the candidates over several weeks. Responses were edited for spelling and grammar, but otherwise left intact.
Ruben Colón - Incumbent
WEBSITE: https://www.facebook.com/EducateVolusia/
FOR INCUMBENTS: Why do you deserve to be re-elected in this race? I’ve called Volusia County home for nearly 25 years. I raised my family here. Both my children graduated from Deltona High School, and I’ve spent my time on the School Board focused on results, not rhetoric. Those results are measurable and official. Volusia County Schools earned an A district grade for 2025-26, our second A in two years, improving in 11 of 12 areas of accountability. Here in District 5, seven schools raised their grade this year, English Language Arts achievement held or improved in 15 of our 16 schools, and math rose in 12 of 16. Since 2021-22, District 5 has grown from zero A-rated schools to six. That progress came from steady leadership, sound budgeting, and a relentless focus on students, teachers, and school safety. I’m running to finish the work we started. I know this community because I’m part of it, and I’ve shown I can turn that commitment into outcomes families can see. I’d be honored to keep serving the students, teachers, and families of District 5.
TOP ISSUES
What are the three most pressing problems happening in your district, and what do you suggest to solve them? Please put your responses in the sections below.
Problem Number 1 and Solution: Teacher recruitment and retention remain our most pressing challenge. Great schools start with great teachers in the classroom, and like districts across Florida, we lose too many educators to pay, workload, and burnout. The solution is to keep making Volusia the place teachers want to build a career: competitive and predictable compensation, real classroom support and planning time, mentorship for new teachers, and a school board that treats educators as partners rather than problems. Our recent gains prove that when we invest in and stand behind our teachers, students achieve. We have to protect and build on that.
Problem Number 2 and Solution: School safety and mental health support is a constant priority for our families, and it should be. Parents need to know their children are safe, and students learn best when they feel secure and supported. In Volusia, we have built something that sets us apart: a partnership with the Volusia Sheriff’s Office that leads our Office of Safe Schools, putting trained professionals and proven expertise at the center of how we protect our campuses. I am proud to have earned the endorsement of Sheriff Mike Chitwood, who knows firsthand the work we have done to keep our schools safe. The solution going forward is to keep strengthening that partnership, maintain safe and secure facilities, and keep enough counselors and support staff to meet students where they are so we respond early rather than react late. Safe schools are the foundation everything else is built on, and I will keep it at the center of every decision.
Problem Number 3 and Solution: Closing the achievement gap across our schools is the work that is never finished. The progress in District 5 has been dramatic: today 88 percent of our schools are A or B rated, up from just 31 percent in 2021-22. But we still have schools that need more support to reach the same level, and we cannot leave any campus or any student behind. The solution is to target resources where the need is greatest: using our own data to identify where students are struggling in reading and math, directing intervention and staffing to those schools, and holding ourselves accountable for measurable progress every year. Our results show this approach works. The job now is to extend it to every school in District 5.
How would you handle district budget issues? I approach the budget the same way families approach their own: spend responsibly, prioritize what matters most, and make every dollar count. A school district budget is a statement of values, and mine start with the classroom. That means directing resources first to the things that drive student success, our teachers, safe schools, and proven interventions, and being disciplined about everything else. Sound budgeting is exactly why District 5 has made the gains we have. When you fund what works and hold spending accountable to results, students achieve. Going forward, I will keep pushing for transparent budgeting that the public can see and understand, fiscal reserves that protect us against state funding swings and enrollment changes, and a clear-eyed focus on outcomes rather than just line items. I will also keep advocating at the state level for the funding Volusia students deserve, because too many of our decisions are shaped by decisions made in Tallahassee.I will always ask the same question of any dollar we spend: does this help our students and support the people who serve them? If the answer is yes, it is worth defending. If not, it does not belong in the budget.
How should the district handle teacher shortages? Teacher pay in Florida ranks near the bottom nationally. That is a statewide problem set largely in Tallahassee, not something any single school board controls on its own, and I will keep advocating loudly at the state level for the funding and the veteran-teacher pay our educators have earned. You cannot ask people to shape the next generation while they work two and three jobs to make ends meet. A state problem is no excuse for local inaction. Within the authority we have, District 5 has reduced our instructional vacancies and kept great teachers in our classrooms, and it shows in our results. On recruitment, we grow our own by encouraging students and paraprofessionals already in our schools to pursue teaching, and we partner with local colleges to build a steady pipeline into Volusia classrooms. We target hard-to-staff subjects and schools, so no campus is left behind. The answer to shortages is not lowering the bar. It is fighting for fair pay at the state level while making Volusia a district where teaching is a career worth building and staying in.
Florida ranked last for academic growth in reading. How would you improve that? That ranking is a wake-up call, and I take it seriously. Reading is the foundation for everything else a child learns, and a student who cannot read on grade level by third grade struggles for years afterward. This is a statewide crisis, but the answer starts in our own classrooms, and District 5 is already moving in the right direction. English Language Arts achievement held or improved in 15 of our 16 schools this year, even as the state slid backward. We build on that by doubling down on what the evidence proves works. Every state that improved in reading did the same thing: they committed fully to the science of reading, structured, explicit phonics instruction in the earliest grades where literacy is built. We keep that front and center in kindergarten through second grade, because that is where the foundation is either laid or lost. We use our own assessment data to identify struggling readers early and get them targeted intervention before a small gap becomes a permanent one. And we make sure teachers have the training and the materials to deliver that instruction with confidence. We also cannot ignore the factors outside the reading block. Chronic absenteeism and screen-driven, passive learning are pulling students backward statewide. A child cannot learn to read in a seat that is empty, so family engagement and attendance are part of the strategy, not separate from it. The state ranking tells one story. What we do in District 5 classrooms tells another, and I intend to keep it that way.
What changes, if any, would you make to school safety policies? School safety is not a talking point for me. It is a record I helped build. In 2022, I supported the decision to have the Volusia Sheriff’s Office run our district’s safety and security operations, because keeping campuses safe is police work, and it should be led by law enforcement professionals while our educators focus on teaching. That partnership is now the backbone of one of the strongest school safety operations in the state.
I would protect and build on the layered approach we have in place rather than tear it apart. Today every Volusia campus is staffed by School Guardians, School Resource Officers, and School Resource Deputies. We have hardened our facilities with single points of entry, fencing, security cameras, and access controls. We run regular drills and site assessments, and we put the FortifyFL reporting app on every district device so students and staff can report threats early. Volusia was also selected as one of only three districts in Florida for a drone-based emergency response pilot, and we demonstrated it right here at Deltona High School.
The change I would make is to never stand still. Threats evolve, so our response has to evolve with them. That means continuing to invest in mental health support and early intervention, keeping our technology and training current, and strengthening the Sheriff’s Office partnership that makes rapid, coordinated response possible. Safe schools are the foundation everything else is built on, and under my leadership, Volusia will keep leading, not following, on protecting our students and staff.
How should book challenges and library removals be handled? Through a clear, consistent process that follows the law and respects everyone involved. Volusia County Schools has an adopted policy for handling challenges to library and instructional materials, and we are required to follow Florida law in how those challenges are filed and reviewed. That is exactly how it should work. Decisions this important should never come down to one person’s opinion or the loudest voice in the room. They should follow a defined process every single time.
That process starts with the recognition that parents have a right to be heard about what their children are exposed to, and it is our job to take those concerns seriously and review them fairly. It also means relying on trained professionals, our media specialists and educators, along with review committees, to evaluate materials on their merits rather than reacting to pressure from any direction. The standard should be consistent, transparent, and grounded in what is age-appropriate and educationally sound.
My role as a board member is to make sure that process is followed faithfully, that it complies with state law, and that families can trust it to be fair. When we handle these questions calmly and by the book, we protect both our students and the confidence of the community we serve.
What outside organizations or endorsements are supporting your campaign? I am proud to have earned the endorsement of Sheriff Mike Chitwood. His support means a great deal, because it reflects the strong partnership between Volusia County Schools and the Sheriff’s Office and the real progress we have made on school safety, work I have helped lead. Several other organizations have interviewed me as part of their endorsement process, and I look forward to their decisions in the weeks ahead. But the support I value most comes from the people closest to our schools: the teachers, parents, students, and families of District 5 who have seen our results firsthand. I am running to keep earning that trust every day, and I welcome the support of anyone who shares my commitment to safe schools, strong results, and proven leadership.
If elected, what policy would you try to pass in your first year? In my first year, I would push to expand our Career and Technical Education pathways and strengthen career exploration in middle school, building on a program that is already one of Volusia’s greatest success stories. Our district has grown from 164 to 279 CTE programs, pathways, and academies, a 70 percent increase, and every one of them is now aligned to at least one industry certification. Currently, three out of four students graduate “College and Career Ready,” earning industry certification or college credit. My goal is to take that momentum further.
The opportunity I care most about is starting earlier. We already offer CTE pathways in 14 middle schools, and I want to expand that reach so more students discover their interests and talents before high school, when it can shape every decision that follows. Too often we wait until a student’s junior or senior year to talk about careers. By then we have missed years of chances to spark motivation and connect classroom learning to a real future.
I would also keep deepening the employer partnerships that make this work matter. Volusia already partners with AdventHealth, the Volusia Manufacturers Association, Space Florida, Embry-Riddle, and more than 210 active business partners who bring internships, clinicals, and pre-apprenticeships to our students. Not every student is headed to a four-year university, and every one of them deserves a clear path to a good career. Strong CTE pathways keep students engaged, lift graduation rates, and build the local workforce at the same time. I want Volusia to keep leading on this, and I want every one of those doors open to our students in District 5.
Dean Condon
WEBSITE: www.drdean4d5.com/
FOR CHALLENGERS AND OPEN SEATS: Why do you deserve to be elected in this race? Have the priorities, knowledge, experience, and skills to solve the most important problems.
TOP ISSUES
What are the three most pressing problems happening in your district, and what do you suggest to solve them? Please put your responses in the sections below.
Problem Number 1 and Solution Outcomes: Poor proficiency hovering just over 50% in Math and English. Nearly half of VCS graduates lack 10th-grade-level proficiency. The solution is to develop a strategic plan for each grade level in close collaboration with educators, who are the experts and set their own measurement strategies. This must be a top priority for the entire district.
Problem Number 2 and Solution Order: VCS had over 55,000 disciplinary referrals last year. Many teachers have been assaulted by students, and many more struggle to manage disruptions, disorderly classrooms, and bad behavior. The three-step solution involves 1. Train all administrators and teachers in a common language, approach, and protocol that focuses not just on punitive discipline but on a replacement-behavior strategy that cultivates better behavior. 2. 5% of kids cause 95% of the problems. These behaviors are not limited to the classroom and manifest at home. Train parents using the same strategies. 3. Have dedicated, trained individuals who proactively work with kids with troubling behavior, lessening that workload for teachers and administrators.
Problem Number 3 and Solution Oversight: The school budget needs to be fully transparent (line-by-line), especially for the School Board, but it is not. Only then can the School Board effectively determine financial priorities and make the right decisions. Financial priorities must focus on investing in the classroom, with an emphasis on people, not things.
How would you handle district budget issues? Financial transparency will be the first and most crucial step. A thorough forensic audit is needed to identify the best strategies to eliminate waste and maximize the impact of our resources on the learning experience.
How should the district handle teacher shortages?
- Pay teachers a fair wage, as they do not get pay increases that even keep up with inflation.
- Ensure that they have the resources and support to do their jobs well.
- Release them to participate in developing educational strategies to increase academic proficiency.
- Attack the pervasive organizational culture of fear many teachers experience when considering expressing their opinions. Build trust.
Florida ranked last for academic growth in reading. How would you improve that? Make Math and English the top priority and allow educators at each level to help develop the strategies to accomplish that goal.
What changes, if any, would you make to school safety policies? While schools are relatively safe from external threats, classroom safety remains a major problem. Implementing the “Order” strategy above will go a long way toward solving the problem.
How should book challenges and library removals be handled? Prioritize parental rights and child protection by restricting graphic sexual content via objective, age-based standards. Use transparent challenge processes with parent input, opt-outs, and proactive collection audits. Focus on suitability and due process—not ideology—to align with law, polls, and developmental needs while enabling local democratic control
What outside organizations or endorsements are supporting your campaign? Volusia/Flagler Central Labor Council
If elected, what policy would you try to pass in your first year? Addressing safety orders in the classroom, financial transparency, emphasis on math and English proficiency, and strategies to retain teachers and workers.