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Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools elections (2015)
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Three seats on the Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools School Board were up for general election on November 3, 2015. The seats of Berkeley District incumbent Ruth Larson, Roberts District incumbent Heather Cordasco and Stonehouse District incumbent James Nickols were up for election.[1]
Newcomers John Riofrio and Sandra Young ran for the Berkeley District seat, while James Beers and Petra Nadal competed for the Roberts District seat. Young and Beers won the two open seats. Nickols, who was the only incumbent to file for re-election, lost to challenger Holly Taylor in the Stonehouse District race.[2]
One of the six candidates in this election participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 school board candidate survey. Check out the "What was at stake?" section to see survey answers.
About the district
Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools is located in southeast Virginia in James City County. The county seat of James City County is Williamsburg. James City County was home to 72,583 residents in 2014, according to estimates by the United States Census Bureau.[3] In the 2012-2013 school year, Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools was the 26th-largest school district in Virginia and served 11,024 students.[4]
Demographics
James City County outperformed the rest of Virginia in terms of higher education achievement in 2013. The United States Census Bureau found that 45.8 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 35.2 percent for Virginia as a whole. The median household income in James City County was $76,960, compared to $63,907 for the state of Virginia. The poverty rate was 8.7 percent, compared to 11.3 percent for the entire state.[3]
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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 Williamsburg-James City County School Board is a seven-member board with five elected members and two appointed members. The two appointed members are selected by the Williamsburg City Council for four-year terms to represent schools in the city. The remaining five seats are elected by district. Seats in Berkeley, Roberts and Stonehouse Districts were on the ballot in 2015. The general election was held on November 3, 2015. The next scheduled election for seats in Jamestown and Powhatan Districts was November 2017. The filing deadline for candidates interested in running for the board was June 9, 2015.[6][7]
Elections
2015
Candidates
Berkeley District
| John Riofrio | Sandra Young 
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Roberts District
| James Beers
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Petra Nadal | ||
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Stonehouse District
| James Nickols | Holly Taylor
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Election results
| Williamsburg-James City County School Board, Berkeley District, General Election, 2015 | ||
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Sandra Young |
52.3% | 2,301 |
| John Riofrio | 47.4% | 2,082 |
| Write-in votes | 0.32% | 14 |
| Total Votes | 4,397 | |
| Source: Virginia Department of Elections, "2015 November General," accessed November 3, 2015 | ||
| Williamsburg-James City County School Board, Roberts District, General Election, 2015 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| James Beers |
55.1% | 2,011 |
| Petra Nadal | 44.6% | 1,628 |
| Write-in votes | 0.3% | 11 |
| Total Votes | 3,650 | |
| Source: Virginia Department of Elections, "2015 November General," accessed November 3, 2015 | ||
| Williamsburg-James City County School Board, Stonehouse District, General Election, 2015 | ||
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Holly Taylor |
53.7% | 1,931 |
| James Nickols Incumbent | 46.0% | 1,654 |
| Write-in votes | 0.36% | 13 |
| Total Votes | 3,598 | |
| Source: Virginia Department of Elections, "2015 November General," accessed November 3, 2015 | ||
Endorsements
The James City County Republican Committee endorsed Sandra Young, Petra Nadal and Holly Taylor.[8]
Campaign finance
Candidates received a total of $12,654.60 and spent a total of $10,322.95 as of October 26, 2015, according to the Virginia State Board of Elections.[9]
| Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Berkeley District | |||
| John Riofrio | $1,455.00 | $1,294.79 | $160.21 |
| Sandra Young | $2,736.00 | $1,997.29 | $738.71 |
| Roberts District | |||
| James Beers | $4,660.60 | $4,525.50 | $135.10 |
| Petra Nadal | $450.00 | $0.00 | $450.00 |
| Stonehouse District | |||
| James Nickols (incumbent) | $548.00 | $473.98 | $74.02 |
| Holly Taylor | $2,796.00 | $2,031.39 | $764.61 |
Past elections
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What was at stake?
2015
Ballotpedia survey responses
One candidate out of six total candidates in this race participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 survey of school board candidates. The following section displays the responses to the survey questions from Berkeley District candidate Sandra Young.
Top priorities
When asked what her top priorities would be if elected, Young stated:
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My top priority would be to be accessible to the Berkeley District and to address their concerns.[10] |
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| —Sandra Young, (2015), [11] | ||
Ranking the issues
The candidates were asked to rank the following issues by importance in the school district, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. This table displays the candidates' rankings from most to least important:
| Education policy |
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Click here to learn more about education policy in Virginia. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
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| Issue | Young |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Expanding career-technical education | |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Improving college readiness | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
Positions on the issues
The candidates were asked to answer 10 multiple and short answer questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. A link to the candidates' responses can be found below.
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for the Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools election in 2015:[7]
| Deadline | Event |
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| June 9, 2015 | Deadline for candidates to file nomination documents |
| October 13, 2015 | Deadline to register to vote in the general election |
| October 27, 2015 | Deadline to apply for an absentee ballot by mail |
| October 31, 2015 | Deadline to apply for an absentee ballot in person |
| November 3, 2015 | Election Day |
Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: Virginia elections, 2015
This election shared the ballot with races for clerk of court, county revenue commissioner, commonwealth's attorney, county board of supervisors, county sheriff, county treasurer and soil and water conservation district.[2]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools Virginia. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools | Virginia | School Boards |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools, "Members," accessed January 27, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Virginia Department of Elections, "List of Candidates," September 9, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 United States Census Bureau, "James City County, Virginia," accessed January 27, 2015
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed April 22, 2014
- ↑ Virginia Department of Elections, "Election Results," accessed September 17, 2013
- ↑ Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools, "Members," accessed September 21, 2015
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Virginia Department of Elections, "2015 November Election Calendar," accessed January 27, 2015
- ↑ James City County Republican Committee, "2015 GOP Candidates," accessed October 22, 2015
- ↑ Virginia State Board of Elections, "Campaign Finance Reports," accessed October 27, 2015
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2015, "Sandra Young's responses," September 30, 2015
| 2015 Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools Elections | |
| James City County, Virginia | |
| Election date: | November 3, 2015 |
| Candidates: | Berkeley District: • John Riofrio • Sandra Young Roberts District: • James Beers • Petra Nadal |
| Important information: | Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
