State House Candidate Forum Breakfast
Date and Time
Wednesday Oct 3, 2018
8:30 AM - 10:00 AM CDT
Wednesday
October 3, 2018
8:30 a.m. - Registration Check-in and Breakfast Buffet
9:00-10:00 a.m. - Candidate Forum
Location
Courtyard Marriott
185 Radio Drive
Woodbury, MN 55129
Fees/Admission
Includes breakfast buffet.
$20 for members
$25 for non-members
Deadline to register is Friday, September 28, 2018.
*Full refund available upon 48 hour cancellation*
Website
State House Candidate Forum Breakfast
Description
2018 State House District Representative Candidate Forum
Register now to attend a State House Representative Candidate Forum over breakfast. This is a great opportunity to hear from the candidates, gain a better understanding of the candidates' platform, and ask questions before Election Day. The event is open to Chamber members and the public.
House District Representatives 53A:
Andy Turonie—Andy is a lifelong Minnesotan; minus a four year stop at the University of Wisconsin River Falls. He grew up in Cloquet and graduated from UWRF in 1996. He and his wife Kendre have lived in the Woodbury area since 2003 and have two boys, ages 11 and 6. Andy works for an educational software company conducting sales presentations and product training and has over 20 years of business-to-business consultative sales experience. He and his family attend Guardian Angels Church in Oakdale and Andy has served on the Woodbury Days council. Andy currently coaches Woodbury youth football and in his spare time enjoys golfing and playing guitar in a band.
Tou Xiong-- Tou Xiong is currently serving as a City of Maplewood Councilperson, a position he has held since 2015. Tou has lived in House District 53A for 16 years and attended Tartan High School. He graduated from St. Cloud State University with an Economics degree and holds a Juris Doctorate from William Mitchell College of Law. After law school, Tou worked for the Harrison Neighborhood Association, starting first as an Urban Planning Organizer and later became the Executive Director. He was then the Legislative Liaison for the State Ethnic Councils where he advised the Minnesota Governor’s Office and Legislature on legislative policies impacting ethnic Minnesotans. Tou has also enjoyed working with the Hmong Chamber of Commerce to expand opportunities for small and large businesses in the community.
House District Representatives 53B:
Kelly Fenton (Incumbent)--Kelly Fenton is serving her second term in the Minnesota House of Representatives. She is an Assistant Majority Leader and Vice Chair of both the Commerce and Regulatory Reform Committee and the Subcommittee on Workplace Safety and Respect. She also serves on the Rules and Legislative Administration, State Government Finance, and Government Operations and Elections Policy committees. Kelly has a strong passion for improving education in Minnesota. She brings extensive experience to the Legislature as a former educator and school administrator for the fourth largest school district in the nation. She also helped train educators receiving alternative certification through programs including Teach for America. Also working to improve health care in Minnesota, Kelly is championing legislation for Step Therapy Reform which was recently signed into law. She is also a strong voice in the House for meaningful health care reforms that will help improve affordability, accessibility and choice for Minnesotans. Kelly has a B.A. in education from Marquette University and a Master’s in Education from the University of Houston. Additionally, she is a graduate of University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business State Legislative Leadership Foundation and the Bowhay Institute of Legislative Leadership Development. Kelly lives with her husband, Greg in Woodbury. Together, they have three children.
Steve Sandell—Steve and his wife moved to Woodbury 14 years ago after 35 years in St. Paul where they worked and raised their children. Steve’s career includes teacher and coach, school administrator, a YMCA board member, and the teachers’ representative on the Visitation School Board of Trustees. He was head of education at the Minnesota Historical Society and director of the Humphrey Forum, a museum of government and politics at the University of Minnesota. He wrote a Minnesota history textbook and an analysis of school reform for the Stanford Business School. Steve earned his BA at Brown University, teacher certification at Macalester College, and MA in education and public policy at Stanford University as a Bush Foundation Fellow.
