Candidates selected for 2020 school board races
February 5, 2020
Vinnie Roberts
Election filings for the general municipal election on April 7 have closed, cementing those who filed officially as candidates. Out of all the major races in Barry County, most hotly contested of all this year are the races for school board seats.
In Cassville, no election will be held for school board. Previously, the seats that were slated to be on this year’s ballot belonged to Jon Horner, Becky Henningson and David Haddock. Both Horner and Henningson filed for reelection, but Haddock has elected to step away from the board.
In his place steps newcomer Dr. Chad Johnson, Cassville local, Rotary member and owner of Johnson Chiropractic Sports and Wellness Clinic in Cassville. Johnson will begin his term after the April 7 election. All school board seats in Cassville carry a three-year term.
Exeter will have an election for this year’s school board. Three positions will be on this year’s ballot. Currently, those seats belong to incumbents Gary Stringer, Stacy Hall and Kelly Lee.
All incumbents have filed for reelection as well as newcomer Joseph Still. Still could not be reached for comment at the time of this publication. Additionally, incumbent Gary Stringer was also not available for comment at the time of publication.
Kelly Lee is a wife and mother of three. She has been a resident of Exeter for that last 17 years.
“We have three children currently enrolled in the Exeter School District,” explained Lee. “I have served as a board member for the last three years. As a current board member, I believe that the our school provides a great education. I understand the values of our community and the impact the school has on our community. Therefore, I would like the opportunity to continue to serve as a board member to ensure that all the children in our district continues to receive the best quality education possible.”
Stacy Hall originally grew up in Washburn, but has been a resident of Exeter for the last six years. She is the mother of two, one who is a current Exeter student and another who will start school there next year. Hall was appointed to the board to fill the vacant seat left after previous board member Kerri Mattingly resigned.
“I’ve been on the board since last July and I’ve really enjoyed it. I like seeing how the staff and administration supports the kids and I would like to continue to do so,” explained Hall. “I had a lot of teachers and coaches who made a big impact on my life and I wanted to be a part of that.”
In Wheaton, no election will be necessary as only the incumbents filed for their positions. Incumbents on the Wheaton school board are Lewis Royer, Josh Kinnaman and Tony Ball. All positions on the Wheaton school board carry a three-year term.
Additionally, there will be no election held for Purdy’s school board. Originally, the board seats belonging to Travis Brown, Russ Mill and Tray Goetz were slated to be on this year’s ballot. Of those three incumbents, the only one to file for reelection was Brown.
Beginning April 7, Brown will be joined on the school board by the only other people in Purdy to file for the open seats, Levi Roden and David Young. All seats on the Purdy school board carry a three-year term.
To the north, Monett’s school board will have three seats on the ballot in April. The incumbents for those seats are Dr. Darren Bass, Dr. Jeff Carr and Jim Randall. Both Dr. Bass and Dr. Carr have chosen to file for reelection, but Randall has opted not to file.
Dr. Darren Bass is the president of Cox Monett. He and his family have been residents of Monett since 2000. He has been a part of the board for nine years, making this his fourth run for his seat.
“Right now, I think our school is really going through some good problems,” explained Dr. Bass. “All of our buildings are maxed out and we’re doing a lot of strategic planning. We have an upcoming vote for a bond increase, so it’s really important to have some consistency on the board to make sure that those plans continue to evolve if it’s approved so that we can continue to follow through with our commitments.”
Dr. Jeff Carr is a practicing chiropractor currently working and living in Monett. This is his second run for school board.
“We’re running the bond issue again this year and it’s been a lot of work and I want to make sure that it gets done,” explained Dr. Carr. “I’m trying my best to make sure that I give back to the community that has given so much to me.”
Dr. Carr and Dr. Bass will be joined on this year’s ballot by newcomers Kaley Thigpen, Jack Williams and Andy Brandt.
Kaley Thigpen is a wife and mother of two. She is currently the administrator over the CoxHealth clinics in Monett and is pursuing her Master’s in business administration.
“I’m running for school board because I’m involved in the community and my kids go to school there,” explained Thigpen. “I don’t have an agenda, I just think that it’s important to be involved and have a voice in the community.”
Jack Williams is the president of Wintech, a door and window manufacturer with facilities in both Cassville and Monett. He is also a graduate of the University of Arkansas as well as a seven year veteran of the United States Air Force.
“The board serves the important role of selecting the superintendent as the CEO as well as guiding and assisting in strategy in direction. In my current position, that’s what I do on a daily basis,” explained Williams.
Andy Brandt could not be reached for comment at the time of publication.
All school board terms in Monett carry a three-year term.
In Shell Knob, there will not be an election for the school board. There were three seats set for the April election. Those seats belonged to incumbents Roger Pinnell, Stephen Crandall and Howard Trimble.
While both Pinnell and Crandall have filed for reelection, Trimble has elected to step down. In his place, newcomer April Williams has been chosen to fill the seat.
School board seats in Shell Knob carry a three-year term.
Finally, in Southwest, there will be three seats on April’s ballot. Incumbents for those seats are Doug Henry, Terry Meek and Ruth Henderson. All three incumbents have filed for reelection.
Doug Henry is a detective with the Barry County Sheriff’s office. He has 23 years of law enforcement experience and is also a youth minister. He is also an alum of Southwest High. This will be his second term if elected.
“If you ever come into running for school board thinking that you’re going to change this and that, you need to change that thinking, because you’re going to spend the first few years learning how things work,” said Henry. “There’s a lot that goes into running a school.
“I’m of the opinion that if we take care of the teachers, they’ll take care of your students,” continued Henry. “I’ve had the pleasure of working with a lot of really good people so far.”
Henderson has served six years on the school board. If reelected, this would be her third term. She currently works as a paralegal for Walmart.
“I care about this school,” explained Henderson. “I have family that goes to school there. I know what’s going on there at the school.”
They will be joined on the ballot by newcomer Diana Roller. Roller moved to Washburn in 2011. She has put four of her five children through school, with the fifth currently attending Southwest High.
“My son has an IEP and I feel that our school board needs more people on it that know more about the special education program,” explained Roller. “Having a child that’s in the special education program, I feel that I can help.”
Vinnie Roberts
Election filings for the general municipal election on April 7 have closed, cementing those who filed officially as candidates. Out of all the major races in Barry County, most hotly contested of all this year are the races for school board seats.
In Cassville, no election will be held for school board. Previously, the seats that were slated to be on this year’s ballot belonged to Jon Horner, Becky Henningson and David Haddock. Both Horner and Henningson filed for reelection, but Haddock has elected to step away from the board.
In his place steps newcomer Dr. Chad Johnson, Cassville local, Rotary member and owner of Johnson Chiropractic Sports and Wellness Clinic in Cassville. Johnson will begin his term after the April 7 election. All school board seats in Cassville carry a three-year term.
Exeter will have an election for this year’s school board. Three positions will be on this year’s ballot. Currently, those seats belong to incumbents Gary Stringer, Stacy Hall and Kelly Lee.
All incumbents have filed for reelection as well as newcomer Joseph Still. Still could not be reached for comment at the time of this publication. Additionally, incumbent Gary Stringer was also not available for comment at the time of publication.
Kelly Lee is a wife and mother of three. She has been a resident of Exeter for that last 17 years.
“We have three children currently enrolled in the Exeter School District,” explained Lee. “I have served as a board member for the last three years. As a current board member, I believe that the our school provides a great education. I understand the values of our community and the impact the school has on our community. Therefore, I would like the opportunity to continue to serve as a board member to ensure that all the children in our district continues to receive the best quality education possible.”
Stacy Hall originally grew up in Washburn, but has been a resident of Exeter for the last six years. She is the mother of two, one who is a current Exeter student and another who will start school there next year. Hall was appointed to the board to fill the vacant seat left after previous board member Kerri Mattingly resigned.
“I’ve been on the board since last July and I’ve really enjoyed it. I like seeing how the staff and administration supports the kids and I would like to continue to do so,” explained Hall. “I had a lot of teachers and coaches who made a big impact on my life and I wanted to be a part of that.”
In Wheaton, no election will be necessary as only the incumbents filed for their positions. Incumbents on the Wheaton school board are Lewis Royer, Josh Kinnaman and Tony Ball. All positions on the Wheaton school board carry a three-year term.
Additionally, there will be no election held for Purdy’s school board. Originally, the board seats belonging to Travis Brown, Russ Mill and Tray Goetz were slated to be on this year’s ballot. Of those three incumbents, the only one to file for reelection was Brown.
Beginning April 7, Brown will be joined on the school board by the only other people in Purdy to file for the open seats, Levi Roden and David Young. All seats on the Purdy school board carry a three-year term.
To the north, Monett’s school board will have three seats on the ballot in April. The incumbents for those seats are Dr. Darren Bass, Dr. Jeff Carr and Jim Randall. Both Dr. Bass and Dr. Carr have chosen to file for reelection, but Randall has opted not to file.
Dr. Darren Bass is the president of Cox Monett. He and his family have been residents of Monett since 2000. He has been a part of the board for nine years, making this his fourth run for his seat.
“Right now, I think our school is really going through some good problems,” explained Dr. Bass. “All of our buildings are maxed out and we’re doing a lot of strategic planning. We have an upcoming vote for a bond increase, so it’s really important to have some consistency on the board to make sure that those plans continue to evolve if it’s approved so that we can continue to follow through with our commitments.”
Dr. Jeff Carr is a practicing chiropractor currently working and living in Monett. This is his second run for school board.
“We’re running the bond issue again this year and it’s been a lot of work and I want to make sure that it gets done,” explained Dr. Carr. “I’m trying my best to make sure that I give back to the community that has given so much to me.”
Dr. Carr and Dr. Bass will be joined on this year’s ballot by newcomers Kaley Thigpen, Jack Williams and Andy Brandt.
Kaley Thigpen is a wife and mother of two. She is currently the administrator over the CoxHealth clinics in Monett and is pursuing her Master’s in business administration.
“I’m running for school board because I’m involved in the community and my kids go to school there,” explained Thigpen. “I don’t have an agenda, I just think that it’s important to be involved and have a voice in the community.”
Jack Williams is the president of Wintech, a door and window manufacturer with facilities in both Cassville and Monett. He is also a graduate of the University of Arkansas as well as a seven year veteran of the United States Air Force.
“The board serves the important role of selecting the superintendent as the CEO as well as guiding and assisting in strategy in direction. In my current position, that’s what I do on a daily basis,” explained Williams.
Andy Brandt could not be reached for comment at the time of publication.
All school board terms in Monett carry a three-year term.
In Shell Knob, there will not be an election for the school board. There were three seats set for the April election. Those seats belonged to incumbents Roger Pinnell, Stephen Crandall and Howard Trimble.
While both Pinnell and Crandall have filed for reelection, Trimble has elected to step down. In his place, newcomer April Williams has been chosen to fill the seat.
School board seats in Shell Knob carry a three-year term.
Finally, in Southwest, there will be three seats on April’s ballot. Incumbents for those seats are Doug Henry, Terry Meek and Ruth Henderson. All three incumbents have filed for reelection.
Doug Henry is a detective with the Barry County Sheriff’s office. He has 23 years of law enforcement experience and is also a youth minister. He is also an alum of Southwest High. This will be his second term if elected.
“If you ever come into running for school board thinking that you’re going to change this and that, you need to change that thinking, because you’re going to spend the first few years learning how things work,” said Henry. “There’s a lot that goes into running a school.
“I’m of the opinion that if we take care of the teachers, they’ll take care of your students,” continued Henry. “I’ve had the pleasure of working with a lot of really good people so far.”
Henderson has served six years on the school board. If reelected, this would be her third term. She currently works as a paralegal for Walmart.
“I care about this school,” explained Henderson. “I have family that goes to school there. I know what’s going on there at the school.”
They will be joined on the ballot by newcomer Diana Roller. Roller moved to Washburn in 2011. She has put four of her five children through school, with the fifth currently attending Southwest High.
“My son has an IEP and I feel that our school board needs more people on it that know more about the special education program,” explained Roller. “Having a child that’s in the special education program, I feel that I can help.”
