Two bills being heard in Delaware are aimed to be solutions in the fight against anti-Asian rhetoric, violence, and hate. The legislation was inspired by a dad and a college student, who are getting additional support from a very special kindergartener.

“I believe everyone in Delaware should learn about the vast cultures and traditions of Asian and Pacific Islander communities,” said Austin Lou.

Austin is a kindergartener with a grown-up voice advocating for legislation to support AAPIs.

“I’m here today to speak in favor of House bill 322,” he said. “I’m proud of my heritage, but sometimes I can feel invisible.”

Yunfei Lou is Austin’s dad. He grew up in Lewes, Delaware.

“I still kind of struggle with an identity crisis of who I am as a one and a half generation Asian American mom, a lot of the time, I still slip and say them Americans, even though I am an American through and through. I pay taxes, I vote,” said Yunfei.

Yunfei wants to instill a sense of belonging among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and increase education.

“We basically we want to kind of remove that veil, the mystique around being Asian and really give the community an opportunity to really learn about who we are,” he said.

Yunfei has partnered with Devin Jiang, who’s a junior at the University of Delaware studying public policy.

“COVID-19 was when I saw this community crumble for the first time and I realized that Asian Americans can’t be silent anymore,” said Devin.

Together Devin, Yunfei and little Austin are lobbying for AAPI inclusion in education and to establish a state AAPI commission in the form of two bills.

“The first step is to gain more political representation, making sure that we have a voice at the table,” said Devin.

“Once we have that commission established, we can then start having some brainstorming sessions on trying to get community feedback,” said Yunfei .

SB 297, the AAPI education bill, has already evolved to include programming for all racial, cultural, and ethnic groups.

“We want to be as inclusive as possible,” said Yunfei .

“This would mean more educational programs in schools and a stronger sense of belonging for Asian American students like me,” said Austin.

The education bill will be heard in committee on May 15. HB 322, which would establish the AAPI state commission, has passed the Delaware House and will also be heard in the Senate.

Over 5,600 Delawareans turned out to vote in Tuesday’s school board elections across the state, according to the unofficial results from the Delaware Department of Elections. Contested races were held in seven districts: Appoquinimink, Colonial, Red Clay Consolidated, Indian River, Delmar and Woodbridge.

While other districts throughout the state did have seats up for grabs, Delaware Code states that elections will not be held if there is only one person running.

Here are the preliminary results posted by the Delaware Department of Elections, in alphabetical order by county:

NEW CASTLE COUNTY

Appoquinimink

Incumbent Norm Abrams has been reelected to his at-large seat on the Appoquinimink School Board, which he has held for 15 years. He received 54% of the 880 total votes cast, beating opponents Britney Mumford and Candace Justino.

Mumford, executive director of the public education equity-focused nonprofit DelawareCAN, was the runner-up with 32% of votes. Justino, who works with the nonprofit “Public Allies of Delaware” program at the University of Delaware, received the fewest votes.

Colonial

Incumbent Robin Crossan was narrowly reelected to represent District G on the Colonial School Board, a position he’s held for six years. He received 52% of the 362 total votes cast, beating opponent Tanya Kerns, a retired financial analyst with Amtrak, by just 12 votes.

Red Clay Consolidated

Susan Sander has been elected to represent District E on the Red Clay Consolidated School Board, beating incumbent Jason Casper, who has held the position for almost seven years. Sander, a community volunteer and former executive assistant for assisted living communities, earned 72% of the 2,043 total votes cast.

KENT COUNTY

Lake Forest

Incumbent Sarah R. Starkey has been reelected to her at-large seat on the Lake Forest School Board, which she has held for almost five years. She received 77% of the 290 total votes cast, beating opponent David Mazur, a former behavior modification specialist in New Jersey.

SUSSEX COUNTY

Delmar

Russell Smart has been elected to fill the at-large seat on the Delmar School Board. Smart, whose son is a student in the district, received 68% of the 563 total votes cast, beating opponent Dawn Turner, who was previously appointed to fill a vacant seat on the school board in 2021 and served through June 2023.

Woodbridge

John Campbell has been elected to fill the at-large seat on the Woodbridge School Board. Campbell, who has two children in the district and coaches youth sports, received 59% of the 684 total votes cast, beating opponents Brian Swain and Kristie Thomas.

Swain, a former teacher and principal, was the runner up with 34% of the votes. Thomas, who served on the boards of a government tax ditch program and the Woodbridge Little League, received the fewest votes.

Indian River

Anita West-Werner has been elected to represent District 4 on the Indian River School Board. West-Werner, a U.S. Air Force colonel and parent of two children in the district, received 59% of the total 835 votes cast, beating opponent Joshua Hudson, a captain with DNREC’s Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police.

BACKGROUND: Delaware’s school board election guide: Who’s running in your district?

Send story tips or ideas to Hannah Edelman at hedelman@delawareonline.com. For more reporting, follow them on Twitter at @h_edelman.

The election results for 2024’s school board races have been released.

The preliminary  results for the 2024 Delaware school board elections are in, and there will be five new faces sworn into their seats this summer.

Across state’s 19 school districts, 16 candidates campaigned for seven open seats in seven districts.

Here are this year’s winners:

New Castle County

Appoquinimink School District — Incumbent Norman A. Abrams Jr.

Colonial School District — Robin Crossan

Red Clay Consolidated School District — Susan Sander

Kent County

Lake Forest School District — Incumbent Sarah R. Starkey 

Sussex County

Delmar School District — Russell R. Smart

Indian River School District — Anita West-Werner

Woodbridge School District — John Campbell

Raised in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, Jarek earned a B.A. in journalism and a B.A. in political science from Temple University in 2021. After running CNN’s Michael Smerconish’s YouTube channel, Jarek became a reporter for the Bucks County Herald before joining Delaware LIVE News.

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