Voter’s Guide: The 2026 Collier County School Board Primary Election

Samuel Zocco, Opinions Editor

May 27, 2026

Voter's Guide: The 2026 Collier County School Board Primary Election

On Tuesday, August 18th, voters in Collier County will cast their ballots in the Primary Election to advance their candidates to the November General Election.

In adherence with The Wave’s commitment to spark meaningful discussions about the greater community, a voter’s guide to the Collier County Public Schools School Board Election has been compiled. This guide draws upon publicly-available resources to give voters an overview of the candidates and make an informed decision this August.

Voters will select two candidates per district to advance to the General Election in November. School Board elections are non-partisan, thus, none of the candidates have been affiliated with any political parties.

There are a total of five members that make up the Board, one representing each of the five districts. Districts 1, 3, and 5 are up for election during Midterm election years while Districts 2 and 4 are up for election during General Election years.

Candidates for District 1

Jeff Donaldson

Jeff Donaldson is a Senior Pastor of Christ Community Naples. He has dedicated his life to spreading the Christian faith. He comes from a family of educators, with his mother being a longtime public school English teacher and one of his daughters recently becoming a teacher. He graduated from Moody Bible Institute and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Theology at Liberty University.

He is running for the Collier County School Board to advocate for students, empower parents’ rights, and to protect the values of the community. He is an opponent of bureaucracies and special interests determining curriculum in classrooms. He proposes strong conservative leadership for voters this August.

Donaldson plans to set higher educational standards and promote reliable teaching methods to push students to reach their full potential. He wishes for every student to have a strong educational foundation. He also promotes supporting and rewarding teachers who help students achieve these goals.

Donaldson advocates heavily for parents’ rights to the education of their children. He pledges that parents will have full access to the curriculum and classroom materials, including textbooks. He will fight to ensure schools respect the role of parents and work together for the benefit of students.

To secure school campuses, he supports partnerships with law enforcement; dedicated school resource officers and staff trained to respond to crises. He also supports updating security technology and implementing new safety protocols.

He advocates for fiscal responsibility and accountability. He wants to cut down on wasteful spending and redirect resources to teachers, instructional materials, and programs that will impact learning.

Donaldson is also making the commitment to expand opportunities for students planning to attend trade and technical schools.

Acknowledging the role that Artificial Intelligence is playing in the world, Donaldson is pushing for clear safeguards to protect students and promote critical thinking skills.

Stephanie Nordin (withdrawn from race updated 06/10)

Stephanie Nordin is a lifelong resident of Collier County and is a graduate of Collier County Public Schools. She is a mother of four boys enrolled in the school district, including twins with autism.

She is a graduate of Leadership Collier and recipient of the 2025 Bobbie Lake Family Member Leadership and Advocacy Award.

Nordin founded the Autism Collier Resource Center and co-founded the Autism Collier Charter School. These foundations help create opportunities for families who require additional support.

Nordin has been an active member of the community over the years, attending school board meetings and serving on advisory committees. She is currently serving as the Chair of the Parent Exceptional Education Resource Committee and sits on the CCPS ESE Advisory Council. She was also appointed by Senate President Kathleen Passidomo to the Florida Advisory Council on Developmental Disabilities.

She pledges to focus on students and help them reach their potential using methods that produce measurable results in reading and math.

She promises to strengthen the workplace culture that helps teachers and staff.

Nordin wishes to build strong relationships between the board and state partners to advance Collier’s priorities.

She supports fiscal responsibility and is focused on using funds to support classrooms, teachers, and students.

Nordin pledges to support policies that will expand opportunities and responsibly use new technology to support teachers and learning in the classroom.

Ronald Nuara

Ronald Nuara is listed as a candidate for school board, running for the District 1 chair.

No information is currently available about this candidate.

Candidates for District 3

Kelly Mason

Kelly Mason is the incumbent representative of District 3 running for re-election. She assumed office on November 22nd, 2022. She was also the representative of District 1 from 2014-2018. Mason is most famously known for her role as founding board president of Mason Classical Academy.

Before taking on an administrative role, Mason worked with special needs children and taught American History, Economics, and Government at the high school level. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in History from Baldwin Wallace College and a Master’s Degree in Social Studies Education from Nova Southeastern University.

In addition to her dedication to education, she promotes health and wellness as a group fitness instructor and participates in local 5k races. She has also been a vocal advocate and volunteer for animal rescue services over the years.

Mason will be running on her extensive record in education and the policy decisions of the Board during her tenure. This includes; increased teacher compensation with a base salary increase of $1,350 with those rated “highly effective” receiving an additional $880; increased school choice and accountability for homeschooled students; fiscal responsibility; and a push for local control over mandatory school start times.

She is dedicated to the Board’s core priorities: academics, culture, climate, fiscal responsibility, human resources, and student conduct.

Mason is currently running unopposed in her district.

Candidates for District 5

Ford Dalusma

Ford Dalusma is a candidate for the Collier County School Board, running for the District 5 chair.

No information is publicly available about this candidate.

Timothy Moshier

Tim Moshier is the incumbent representative of District 5. He also serves on the Ochopee Fire Board and Everglades City compliance Board. He has 30 years of experience in transportation and logistics as the creator of a restoration company and a truck detailing business in Cleveland, Ohio.

He graduated from Northwood University in Midland, Michigan before creating his businesses and working a 27-year-long career with Ryder System Inc, an American transportation company that specializes in truck rental and leasing. During his time at Ryder, he helped raise scholarship funds for employees’ children. He also participated in the Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital Harley Ride with the Seminole Indians to raise millions for hospitalized children.

He became involved in local politics following the Covid-19 pandemic, as he disagreed with the School Board’s handling of the situation and claimed that the policies enacted by the Board weren’t properly preparing students for life after high school.

Like Mason, Moshier will be running on the achievements and policies of the Board.

Information about voter eligibility, registration, and casting ballots is available below.

Eligibility Requirements

You are eligible to vote in Florida elections if you are:

a U.S. citizen
a resident of Florida
at least 18 years old by Election Day

You are NOT eligible to vote in Florida if:

a judge has ruled that you are unable to vote
You have been convicted of a felony and have not had your civil rights restored

For those under 18, you may preregister to vote at:

the age of 16
the age of 17

If you are a student, you are eligible to vote in Florida if you:

reside in another state, but attend college in Florida
provide a valid photo student ID from a college/university at the polls
reside in Florida, but are attending college in another state

Registration

The voter registration deadline for the Primary Election is Monday, July 20th. Eligible voters can register to vote or update their registration information:

by mail
in person
online
at a drivers’ license office
at a tax collector’s office
at voter registration agencies
at some public assistance offices

Early Voting

Any registered voters may cast their ballot early at a voting site that contains state or federal elections.

Early voting for the Primary will be available from Saturday, August 8th to Saturday, August 15th.

Election Day Voting

On Election Day, polling locations will be open from 7am to 7pm.

Absentee Voting

Any registered voter may request an absentee ballot to vote by mail. The option is also available for absentees to drop-off their ballot at a secure location. Voters may return up to two other ballots in addition to their own.

The absentee ballot request deadline is Thursday, August 6th, and the absentee ballot return deadline is Tuesday, August 18th.

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About the Contributor

Samuel Zocco, Opinions Editor

Samuel Zocco is a junior at Marco Island Academy and Opinions Editor for The Wave. He is also an actor in local theatre productions. His interests include movies, videogames, working out, and spending quality time with friends and family. He has concepts of a plan to attend college in Florida.