SALISBURY —The Rowan Chamber of Commerce, Catawba College and the Salisbury Post are once again coming together to offer the community the opportunity to participate in  two candidate forums in October.

The Rowan County Commission Candidate Forum is Thursday, Oct. 13, at 6 p.m. in Catawba College’s Ketner School of Business. The event in the Tom Smith Auditorium will be moderated by Josh Bergeron of the Charlotte Observer.

The Rowan-Salisbury Schools Board Candidate Forum is Monday, Oct. 17, at 6 p.m. at the Norvell Theatre and will be moderated by Glynn Weatherby, Rowan Partners for Education chairman.

The moderators will ask the candidates questions submitted to the Salisbury Post. This is the community’s chance to ask the questions they would like answered. Send questions to be considered to editor@salisburypost.com and indicate in the subject line which forum, commissioners or school board, you would like your questions asked.

“Each of the candidates will have a short period, a minute or a minute and a half, to tell people about who they are and why they are running,” said Chamber President Elaine Spalding. “No participant will have access to the questions prior to the event.”

She said the goal is to get immediate responses from participants, both to see how well informed they are and to have genuine responses.

“There will also be a short time at the end for each of the candidates to give closing comments,” she said. She reminded residents that no questions will be taken from the floor, so anyone who would like their question answered should make sure to send an email to the Post.

Protocol includes campaign buttons are permitted, however, no signage, campaign materials or mascots will be allowed at the venues. Tables will not be provided for the candidates to display their materials.

Don’t put campaign signs on the property since the purpose of the forums is to educate voters about the candidates and their stands on issues of importance to the business community, along with other concerns.

The forums are free and open to the public; however, seating is limited. If you are unable to attend the event, you may watch it on government television stations (it will be broadcast several times prior to Election Day).

The Chamber holds annual candidate forums under the guidance of its Government Affairs Committee, which is led by Chairman Terry Osborne. The objective of the committee is to enhance communication and discussion with local, federal and state governments on important issues relating to Rowan County and its municipalities, businesses and citizens.

The committee is open to Chamber members.

The committee reviews relevant local, state and national issues and makes policy recommendations to the board of directors. Particular areas of interest include business advocacy issues, community and economic development, land use, infrastructure and transportation systems.

The Rowan Chamber is a not-for-profit business advocacy organization with 800 members that has been serving the needs of the business community for nearly 100 years. Benefits include professional development, business referrals and networking programs. For more information contact the Chamber at 704-633-4221 or info@rowanchamber.com or www.rowanchamber.com