Kanawha County Schools elections (2014)
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Three seats on the Kanawha County Schools school board were up for general election on May 13, 2014. Newcomer Ryan White as well as incumbents Pete Thaw and Becky Jordan won election against Curtis Robinson, Vic Sprouse, Tracy White and Calvin McKinney.
About the district
- See also: Kanawha County Schools, West Virginia
Kanawha County Schools is located in Kanawha County, West Virginia. Kanawha County is home to 192,179 residents, according to the United States Census Bureau.[1] Kanawha County Schools was the largest school district in West Virginia, serving 28,458 students during the 2010-2011 school year.[2]
Demographics
Kanawha County outperformed in comparison to the rest of West Virginia in terms of higher education achievement in 2012. The United States Census Bureau found that 24.3 percent of Kanawha County residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree compared to 17.9 percent for West Virginia as a whole. The median household income in Kanawha County was $45,642 compared to $40,400 for the state of West Virginia. The poverty rate in Kanawha County was 14.2 percent compared to 17.6 percent for the entire state.[1]
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Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Voter and candidate information
The Kanawha school board consists of five members elected to four-year terms. Board members are elected at large, but represent different geographical districts. No more than two members elected from any magisterial district may serve on the board during a given term. There was no primary election and the general election was held on May 13, 2014. Three seats were on the ballot in 2014 and two seats are on the ballot in 2015.[4]
Candidates began to file affidavits of candidacy on January 13, 2014. The filing deadline for school board candidates to get on the ballot in the general election was January 25, 2014.[5]
Elections
2014
Candidates
Although all Kanawha County school board candidates ran in the same at-large race for the three available seats, the winners represent specific geographic districts. Since no more than two candidates from any particular district may serve on the board during a given term, Ballotpedia divided the candidate list by the geographic districts that candidates would have represented if elected.
District 1
- Curtis Robinson
- Ryan White
- Graduate, University of Michigan, West Virginia University College of Law
- Attorney
- Vic Sprouse
- Founder and CEO, Brickhouse Cardio Club
District 2
- Becky Jordan
- Incumbent
- Graduate, West Virginia University
- Pete Thaw
- Incumbent
- Graduate, Morris Harvey College
District 3
- Tracy White
- Autism mentor and classroom aide
District 4
- Calvin McKinney
- Graduate, West Virginia University Institute of Technology, Marshall University, West Virginia College of Graduate Studies
- Retired Educator
Election results
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Ryan White |
23% | 14,403 | |
| Nonpartisan | Pete Thaw Incumbent |
19.3% | 12,101 | |
| Nonpartisan | Becky Jordan Incumbent |
15.2% | 9,552 | |
| Nonpartisan | Calvin McKinney | 14.3% | 8,968 | |
| Nonpartisan | Vic Sprouse | 13.4% | 8,401 | |
| Nonpartisan | Tracy White | 10.5% | 6,571 | |
| Nonpartisan | Curtis Robinson | 4.3% | 2,669 | |
| Total Votes | 62,665 | |||
| Source: West Virginia Secretary of State, "Official Election Results," accessed June 23, 2014 | ||||
Endorsements
No candidate received an official endorsement in this election.
Campaign finance
No candidate filed a campaign finance report with the West Virginia Secretary of State.[6]
Past elections
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2012
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What was at stake?
Three seats on the Kanawha County board of education were at stake in the election on May 13, 2014. Incumbents Pete Thaw and Becky Jordan sought re-election against newcomers Curtis Robinson, Ryan White, Vic Sprouse, Tracy White and Calvin McKinney.
Issues in the district
Bottled water vs. tap water
In March 2014, the district made the decision to use tap water for drinking and cooking for the first time since the Freedom Industries chemical spill. Since the spill in January 2014, schools kept drinking fountains covered and provided bottled water for students. The decision to stop providing bottled water came after Governor Earl Ray Tomblin lifted a state of emergency for the county and requested additional tests for traces of crude MCHM at more than 100 schools across the state. All but one school came back at non-detect levels at a two parts per billion screening level. The screening level was stricter than Tomblin's initial 10 parts per billion level and 500 times more protective than the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's one part per million recommendation. Because crude MCHM wasn't detected at the strict screening levels, Kanawha County school officials lifted the ban on tap water. Kanawha County Superintendent Ron Duerring said parents who do not want their children using tap water will need to send a note to their principal or teacher.
Some parents in the district were not happy they did not have notification of the decision sooner. Karan Ireland, a mother of two Kanawha County students, organized Citizens Actively Protecting the Environment and encouraged members to push the county to provide bottled water for the remainder of the school year. She believed the district deliberately did not give her group the opportunity to organize and that had parents been given that opportunity, they could have taken an inventory of the remaining bottled water and mobilized donation drives to bring in more supplies. She believed that many people do not drink tap water in their homes, and therefore students should not be drinking it in schools.[7]
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for the Kanawha County Schools election in 2014:[5]
| Deadline | Event |
|---|---|
| January 13, 2014 | First day to file affidavits of candidacy |
| January 25, 2014 | Last day to file affidavits of candidacy |
| February 7, 2014 | First day to request an absentee ballot |
| April 30, 2014 | Early voting begins |
| May 7, 2014 | Last day to request an absentee ballot |
| May 10, 2014 | Early voting ends |
| May 13, 2014 | Election day |
Additional elections on the ballot
In addition to the school board election, residents of Kanawha County also voted in a County Commission election, a State Executive Committee election, a District Executive Committee election and a Conservation District Supervisor election.[4]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Kanawha + County + Schools + West + Virginia"
See also
- West Virginia
- Kanawha County Schools, West Virginia
- West Virginia school board elections, 2014
- List of school board elections in 2014
- School board elections, 2014
- Kanawha County, West Virginia ballot measures
- Local ballot measures, West Virginia
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 United States Census Bureau, "Kanawha County, West Virginia," accessed March 6, 2014
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed March 5, 2014
- ↑ West Virginia Secretary of State," West Virginia Voter Registration," accessed March 6, 2014
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Kanawha County, "Kanawha County Election Center," accessed March 6, 2014
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 West Virginia Secretary of State, "2014 Election Information," accessed February 19, 2014
- ↑ West Virginia Secretary of State, "Elections," accessed March 6, 2014
- ↑ Samuel Speciale, Charleston Daily Mail, "Schools in Kanawha County begin to use tap water," March 5, 2014
| 2014 Kanawha County Schools Elections | |
| Kanawha County, West Virginia | |
| Election date: | May 13, 2014 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Curtis Robinson • Ryan White • Vic Sprouse • Pete Thaw • Becky Jordan • Tracy White • Calvin McKinney |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
