Sean C. Morgan
Eight candidates have filed for five seats on the District 55 School Board election set for May 21. Two of the seats are contested.
Incumbent Jan Sharp and Randy Holder have filed for Zone Five, at large.
Incumbent Dale Keene, Monica Sanders and Vernon Tunnell have filed for Zone Eight, at large.
Running unopposed, incumbent Chanz Keeney has filed for Zone One, Holley. Jenny Daniels has filed for Zone Two, Liberty. Chairman Jason Redick has filed for Zone Seven, at large.
Sharp was appointed to her position in 2012. She is a retired educator and has been a principal and director of curriculum and instruction for School District 55. She lives in Sweet Home.
She earned her bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Eastern Oregon State College and master’s degree in education from Portland State University.
Holder, a graduate of Sweet Home High School, is a mill worker with Oremet. He lives in the Holley area.
Keene was appointed to the board in December 2008 and elected in May 2009. He was secretary for two years, and has been vice chairman for the past two years. He was appointed to the Linn-Benton-Lincoln Education Service District Budget Committee in 2012.
Keene is employed at Linn-Benton Community College and Barrett Business Services. He also has worked for Target, Plastec, Advanced Wood Resources, Hewlett Packard, Rainbow Canned Foods and Safeway. He graduated from Sweet Home with an honors diploma and LBCC with an associate’s degree in economics. He attended Oregon State University. He lives in Sweet Home.
Sanders is retired. She worked at Safeway for 12 years before her retirement. She has spent many years volunteering in the schools as her children have grown up. She graduated from Antioch High School in California, attended Los Medonas College in California and is enrolled at Linn-Benton Community College. She lives in Sweet Home.
Tunnell is retired. He was employed by the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Postal Service and Willamette Industries. He attended Sweet Home High School and earned his GED while serving in the Air Force. He is a court-appointed special advocate (CASA) for children in Linn County. He lives in the Pleasant Valley area.
Keeney was elected to the School Board six years ago. He is a forestry equipment operator. He worked as a feller-buncher operator for 10 years, and was a carpenter for three years. He graduated from Sweet Home High School and earned an associate’s degree in general studies at LBCC and associate of applied science in forestry at Central Oregon Community College. He attended Holley Elementary School and Sweet Home Junior High. He lives in the Holley area.
Daniels was elected to the School Board in 2009. She has worked at Cascade Timber Consulting since 1992. She graduated from Lebanon High School and earned her associate’s degree in business management from LBCC. She lives in the Liberty area.
Redick was elected to the School Board eight years ago. He has served as chairman for three. He graduated from Sweet Home High School and is a warehouse worker at Target Distribution Center in Tangent. He also has worked at G&R Ag Products, OPI Supply and Valley Ag Supply.
The Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District Board of Directors has two uncontested races on the May 21 ballot.
Don Hopkins, who serves in position four, has been on the SHFAD board and its predecessor for 30 years. He served three terms on the School Board and was chairman of the Linn County Budget Committee. He is a retired educator, who has served as a superintendent and college professor.
He graduated from Toledo High School. He earned his bachelor’s degree in education and master’s degree in education administration from Oregon State University. He attended the University of Oregon to work on a Ph.D. He lives in the Holley area.
Dawn Marie Mitchell is serving in position five. She is an agent with Sweet Home Real Estate. She was a bookkeeper with Triple T Studs and supervisor with Fleetwood Homes. She graduated from North Marion High School and attended Portland and Chemeketa community colleges.
The Sweet Home Cemetery District also has two uncontested races on May 21.
Laura Mather is serving in position one. She is retired. She worked at Lester Sales and White’s Jewelry as co-owner. She graduated from Dayton Union High School and is a member of the Oregon Mortuary-Cemetery Board of Directors. She lives in Sweet Home.
Mike Melcher is serving in position two. He is a self-employed contract logger. He graduated from Sweet Home High School. He previously served on the School Board for 12 years. He lives in Sweet Home.