Spencer Waugh

Spencer Waugh was born in Rapid City, South Dakota. Waugh's career experience includes working as a professor, debate coach, high school teacher, and student teacher supervisor. He earned a bachelor's degree from Central College in 1998 and a graduate degree from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln in 2007.[1]

Waugh has been affiliated with the following organizations:[1]

Lutheran Church of Hope

Simpson College

Des Moines National Tournament Host Committee

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Spencer is a husband, father of two daughters enrolled in college, an experienced educator and he is running for the Iowa House in District 21. He has been married to his wife Sinikka for 25 years. She runs a small business based in Indianola that is in its 16th year of operation. Spencer moved to Iowa from the Black Hills in 1994 to attend Central College, and made Iowa his forever home. He began teaching high school in Indianola in 1998, was recognized as Indianola’s 2008 Educator of the Year. He attended the University of Nebraska at Lincoln to earn his MA. Spencer began helping to build Simpson’s Debate Team in 2011 while also teaching at Dowling Catholic High School in West Des Moines. He served as the Director of Speech, Debate & Mock Trial starting in 2013 as a full-time faculty member. Now he works with undecided students at Simpson College as they choose their major, and he supervises high school student teachers during their final semester before entering the classroom as educators.

When Spencer is not at work, you may find him driving his 66 Mustang, or asking his friends to help work on it, and spending time with his family. He looks forward to listening to your needs and concerns so that he can best represent your voice in the Iowa House.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

We must strive to be the national model of excellence in education.  When I started training to be a teacher in 1994 in Marion county, Iowa took pride in having one of the best education systems in the nation.  This is why I stayed in Iowa to raise my family, and why I chose to teach here. It is time to look forward and work together to be great again! Our communities, our kids, and our state deserve better. We must increase access to mental healthcare, especially in rural areas. While mental healthcare funding and access have only decreased over the years, the stresses of life have increased. Iowans need help and we need to start taking that seriously. We need to invest in mental healthcare across the state, but especially in HD 21.We must stop the erosion of individual rights, which means we need to protect personal rights of all, not just a select few. Our state has lost a sense of community we once had, and I believe most Iowans miss that. In the Iowa House, I will work to protect the rights, freedom, and liberties of all our neighbors.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Education is my number one priority, but it is not the only area that has been ignored by the current legislature. We must find ways to listen to to the our constituents, and work together towards solutions.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

An elected official must be able to listen to others.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

Challenger Explosion.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

I started a paper route when I was in the 5th grade, and I kept it into high school.

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

IOWA FEDERATION OF LABOR, AFL-CIO