School board filings complete for November elections

By Roger Sims, rsims@linncountyjournal.com

MOUND CITY – The races for school board elections across Linn County indicate that the board for the Jayhawk district will remain the same, the Prairie View board will have two new members and the Pleasanton board could go either way. The Linn County Clerk's office released the names of people who have filed for those posts on Monday, June 2.

Each of the school boards have three open seats, and even though there are five candidates for the posts on the Pleasanton USD 344 board, there will be no primary election.

All three of the incumbents on the Pleasanton school board have filed to retain their posts. Cindy Inman, Meredith Johnson and Kaye Hardy will face two new challengers – Ron Miller and  Kayleigh England. Miller has also filed to run for a seat on the Pleasanton City Council.

Pleasanton’s board does not have districts and all of the members are at-large.

For Prairie View USD 362, two of the three incumbents did not file. Board member George Nunnemacher, who has represented District 4, was not eligible to run for reelection because he moved out of the district. District 4 includes the northeast corner of the school district, except for the city of La Cygne, including Linn Valley and the southeast corner of Miami County.

Board member Rita Boydston, who represents District 5 – which includes the western portion of the school district from Centerville up into southeastern Miami County with the exception of the city of Parker – indicated earlier she would not seek reelection.

David Houston has filed to run for the District 4 seat, and Heather Schull has filed for District 5. Longtime board member Wade Teagarden, the current incumbent for District 6, has filed for reelection. None of those candidates are opposed.

The candidates for the three posts on the Jayhawk USD 344 Board of Education are even more straightforward. The incumbents have filed for reelection and have no opposition.

Those members include Tracy Springer for District 4, Matt Higgins for District 5 and Ketturah “Kitty” Rhynerson for District 6.