Candidate Kim Goldsberry and incumbents Christian Gerig and Bruce Nottke snagged the three seats up for grabs in the Athens City School Board race Tuesday night.
Goldsberry, a former president of the East Elementary School Parent Teacher Organization, led all candidates, unofficially tallying 2,249 votes, compared to Gerig and Nottke’s totals of 1,801 and 1,511, respectively.
Candidate Alan Swank finished last with 1,199 votes.
Goldsberry and Gerig both agreed the campaign was a positive move for the school system.
“I don’t think anyone could go wrong,” Gerig said.
But Elizabeth Goldsberry, Kim’s 11-year-old daughter who began campaigning with her mother over the summer, said she was partial to her mother.
“In the past, some of the (school board’s) choices haven’t been in my favor,” said the sixth grader at East Elementary. “But I think she’ll do a really good job.”
Elizabeth added that her mother’s best attribute is her ability to relate to children enrolled at the schools.
Agreeing with her daughter, Goldsberry said she looks forward to being a liaison between the schools and the board during her four-year term.
She added, her goal is to “be the sounding board for the schools to make them the best city schools in Ohio.”
Despite overseeing the closing of Chauncey Elementary School less than two years ago, Gerig said he wasn’t surprised when voters chose to re-elect Nottke and himself.
“I think that decision lives on vividly in many voters’ minds,” said Gerig, who’s also a local attorney. “But … I think as difficult as some of the times in the past four years have been, I think the people understood the effort the board made.”
Looking ahead over his next four-year term on the School Board, whose members make about $1,500 each year, Gerig said he is already planning ways to administer additional funding that might come to Athens from the state.
“We’re going to have opportunities to get some matching state funds for our physical facilities,” Gerig said. “I’m looking forward to working with teachers and administrators to seeing those implemented.
“I’m very positive for the future of our district.”
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