All four candidates responded to a Dayton Daily News questionnaire about their reasons for running and plans for office, if elected.
Ryan Chewning
Chewning said he’s running for a seat on the board to bring a fresh perspective, with a goal to better represent district parents and promote better community engagement.
His top three priorities include ensuring the district continues to offer high-quality education to allow students to succeed, building better relationships with community members and leaders and ensuring the community knows how and why the district is spending its tax dollars.
Chewning specifically referenced the 2024 lawsuit between the district and city of Vandalia over improperly shared tax revenue, which Chewning said could have been avoided by prioritizing strong lines of communication between the district, the city and the community as a whole.
“While I am new to an elected local government position, I have spent the past two and a half years doing ‘my homework’ on how to bring new ideas to the district ... Specifically, I’m very familiar with the fiscal challenges that the district is facing, which is compounded by our state legislature’s failure to fully and fairly fund the public school systems in Ohio. I have also attended board meetings of other districts to get a better understanding of how other communities are handling similar issues.”
Holly Herbst
Herbst said she’s running for re-election to continue to ensure every student has access to a high-quality education in a safe and supportive environment.
Her top three priorities include “protecting student learning” by ensuring financial challenges do not compromise classroom instruction or programs, ensuring fiscal responsibility and transparency and supporting teachers and staff with adequate tools, training and respect.
Herbst said she has the specific goal to responsibly handle the district’s finances in such a way that there is no need to request an additional levy.
“I will continue advocating for balanced budgets that prioritize student’s needs. I will continue to explore alternative funding sources to stretch district dollars. And I will continue to make sure we build multi-year budget plans to prevent ‘crisis budgeting’ year to year and to keep the district off the ballot,” she said.
Mary Kay Smith
Smith said she is seeking re-election because she believes public schools are vital to strengthening communities by providing equal access to education and programs despite differences in socio-economic backgrounds.
Her top three priorities include developing a strategic plan to address infrastructure needs, advocating for the district’s “fair share” of state funds and maintaining “fiscal solvency.”
Herbst said these priorities would involve keeping constituents well-informed and creating “lobbying avenues” to encourage community involvement, along with analyzing areas in which services can be brought “in-house.”
“I have spent the last six months on the board training and familiarizing myself with policies, contracts and agreements. I have also developed a strong working relationship with the incumbent board members and administrators,” she said. “I believe the upcoming challenges we will face as a district will require, at minimum, the experience I bring and the collaborative work environment we have fostered.”
Scott Fullam
Fullam said he is seeking re-election to continue the forward momentum the district has experienced over his time on the board.
His top priorities include working to increase district funding, to create a strong strategic plan and to continue to hire the best possible staff.
Specifically, Fullam said he will continue to “put pressure” on elected officials to urge fair funding for the district. He also plans to promote the securing of additional funding sources, like tax revenue from business development.
“I have served for six years now and feel in that time our board members have developed a strong and positive relationship with school administrators, teachers and staff, the city of Vandalia and Butler Twp.,” Fullam said. “We have have accomplished many great things together but there is still more work to be done, and I feel I can add value to those needs.”
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