Two hopefuls have emerged in the upcoming School Board election for a spot being vacated by a retiring board member.
The interest comes in the 4th District race where Bob Young is the incumbent. It is there Dr. Charles Collier and Tonya Bess have picked up qualifying papers to seek the spot. The election is in August.
Neither prospective candidate has turned in papers to qualify. All candidates have until April 5 at noon to qualify for the race. There is no party primary for the School Board seats as they are all considered independent candidates.
“I’ve missed a lot of my grandchildren’s ball games and I worked as a teacher for 24 years and was on the School Board for 12,” said Young, who plans to not seek re-election to a fourth term. “I’ve enjoyed my time on the board and I think we’ve accomplished quite a bit in those 12 years.”
The six-member School Board is elected in staggered four-year terms with the 2nd, 4th and 6th Districts coming up for election this year. The other incumbents include 2nd District representative Bill Zechman and 6th District representative Scott Holmes, both of whom told the Standard they plan to seek re-election.
None of the incumbents have picked up or returned qualifying papers.
Among the School Board’s responsibilities is appointing a director of schools, with the present board appointing Bobby Cox to take the place of Dr. Jerry Hale, who is retiring in September, the same day the re-elected or newly elected School Board members will begin their terms.
To qualify for the School Board, a candidate must be an adult and hold at least a high school diploma. The person must also be a Warren County resident in the district in which they are running and must get at least 25 signatures from registered voters within that district on his or her qualifying petition.
School Board members earn $260 per month in base pay and $15 per committee meeting.