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Stephanie Harless
Stephanie Harless is an at-large member of the Worthington Schools Board of Education in Ohio. She assumed office on January 1, 2024. Her current term ends on December 31, 2027.
Harless ran for election for an at-large seat of the Worthington Schools Board of Education in Ohio. She won in the general election on November 7, 2023.
Harless completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Stephanie Harless was born in Columbus, Ohio. Harless earned a bachelor's degree from Denison University in 2001 and a graduate degree from the Ohio State University in 2011. Her career experience includes working as a project director.[1]
Elections
2023
See also: Worthington Schools, Ohio, elections (2023)
General election
General election for Worthington Schools Board of Education At-large (2 seats)
Stephanie Harless and Amber Epling-Skinner defeated Erik Farley and Leah Breakey in the general election for Worthington Schools Board of Education At-large on November 7, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Stephanie Harless (Nonpartisan)  | 33.0 | 14,026 |
| ✔ |  | Amber Epling-Skinner (Nonpartisan) | 32.0 | 13,627 |
 | Erik Farley (Nonpartisan) | 17.7 | 7,520 | |
 | Leah Breakey (Nonpartisan) | 17.3 | 7,352 | |
| Total votes: 42,525 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Jessica Haglund (Nonpartisan)
- Josh Hickman (Nonpartisan)
Endorsements
Harless received the following endorsements.
- Tom Burns - Worthington City Cncl. cand.
- Franklin County, Ohio, Democratic Party
- Worthington, Ohio, Area Democratic Club
- Central Ohio Labor Council
- Worthington Education Association
- Central Ohio Indivisible
- Matriots PAC
- Moms Demand Action
- Red Wine and Blue
- Michael Farley - Frmr. Sharon City Cncl. cand.
Pledges
Harless signed the following pledges.
Campaign themes
2023
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Stephanie Harless completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Harless' responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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I currently work in the software industry, where I have honed my skills in facilitation, change management, project management, instructional design, budgeting, and yearly project and product planning. I believe the combination of all these experiences makes me a highly qualified candidate for school board, one that will serve our school community thoughtfully, with strong leadership skills, and an open mind.
I moved to Worthington in 2017 with my two daughters who currently attend Worthington Estates Elementary School. I am an avid endurance runner and pace coach for a local marathon and half marathon training group.
- I will ensure that we are listening to all voices throughout the district. Worthington Schools is comprised of neighborhoods from across Central Ohio and all of those voices should be prioritized and considered when make decisions as a board.
- I will prioritize mental health initiatives for our students, teachers, staff, and administrators. We are facing a mental health crisis in this country at all age levels and I will work with experts the support existing initiatives and expand our offerings.
- I will work closely with elected officials and key stakeholders throughout the district to identify additional funding for our schools including grants, donations, and development that brings additional revenue to our schools.
School Board members are also responsible for ensuring we make responsible fiscal decisions, while anticipating future growth and setting the district and students set up for success into the future.
We have very experienced teachers and staff in our district that understand the student population, including our Director of Diversity Equity and Inclusion, that consider these issues as part of their daily jobs. As part of my campaign, I have begun to establish relationships with these key stakeholders and will continue to build these relationships and rely on their expertise as a board member.
Additionally, it is critical that board members look at the health of the district from top to bottom. We should always continue to review our data. What programs are working and for whom? What are we missing? What are our gaps and where should we expand? We need to look at these across all demographics, not just as a monolithic data set.
Worthington Education Association
Matriots Ohio
Central Ohio Labor Council
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Other survey responses
Ballotpedia identified the following surveys, interviews, and questionnaires Harless completed for other organizations. If you are aware of a link that should be added, email us.
See also
2023 Elections
External links
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Candidate Worthington Schools Board of Education At-large |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on October 9, 2023
