Candidate: Becky Raulerson

“Becky Raulerson has been an effective voice for education in rural counties around the State of Florida. Her leadership has been instrumental in securing "millions" of special funding dollars for small school districts and fighting to protect the rights of citizens at the local level. School board members, including Becky Raulerson, have been instrumental in pushing “common sense” proposals needed for students in small school districts like Union County. Go Becky! Go Tigers!”
~ Chris Doolin, Long-time Legislative Consultant for Small Counties and School Districts. 

Becky Raulerson currently serves as the Union County School Board member for District 4. She is an educator working for education. In her full-time role, she is a lecturer for the Agricultural Education and Communication Department at the University of Florida where she teaches undergraduate courses and advises and mentors undergraduate students. She was previously a research coordinator for the Center for Public Issues Education in Agriculture and Natural Resources (UF/IFAS PIE Center) from February 2010 to December 2011. She received a B.S. in Agricultural Communications with a minor in Food and Resource Economics and an M.S. in Agricultural Education, both from the University of Florida. Her background in youth and college agricultural organizations, such as FFA, 4-H, and Florida Blue Key enhanced Raulerson's leadership skills and eventually led her to coordinator positions with UF’s Food and Resource Economics Department and UF’s Agricultural Education and Communication Department. Raulerson built on those skills and held positions with Dow AgroSciences and Novartis Animal Health, where she served as a sales representative for both and managed $1.4 million territories. In 2004, she was recognized as outstanding alumni by the UF Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow chapter.

Raulerson also gained valuable teaching experience as a graduate student while at UF and as an English teacher at Union County High School, where she conducted in-classroom research and was a presenter at the 2009 North Florida Teaching, Inquiry, and Innovation Showcase. Raulerson was voted 2009-2010 Teacher of the Year by her colleagues at Union County High School, and was also recognized as a 2010 National Ag in the Classroom Conference scholarship recipient by the American Farm Bureau Foundation. She has contributed to research published in the Journal of Applied Communications, and she collaborated on a USDA grant project, which received national recognition through published papers and presentations. In addition, her leadership in the 2005 Florida Agriculture and Natural Resources Awareness Initiative project led to the production of multiple materials and resources currently used by Extension faculty and practitioners to disseminate positive information about the economic impact of Florida’s agriculture and natural resources industries. When working for the PIE Center, Raulerson coordinated research projects on public perceptions of agricultural words and messages, developed art exhibits to educate the public about agricultural and natural resources in Florida, and presented research findings and educational content to various groups and organizations around the state.

Raulerson said, “I’ve worked very hard at serving our students, parents, employees and community with passion and transparency. Through a board member’s role of budget and policy, I have provided input and checks and balances. I have also worked hard at communicating with our school community and improving existing communication channels while also striving for innovation. The next four years are expected to bring transition and unique challenges in which the experience of our school board members is going to be essential for navigating successfully. I would like to ask the voters of Union County’s District 4 for their vote on Tuesday, August 18.”

Raulerson was appointed to the Union County School Board as the District 4 representative on June 22, 2011 and finished out the term vacated by the death of Mrs. Sandra Floyd. She was elected back to the office for four more years by her constituents on 8/14/12 and again on 8/30/16.

Raulerson grew up in the small rural town of Bonifay, located in Holmes County in NW Florida. She has two children, both students at Union County High School.