School Boards Offered Only Contested Races In County Election

November 9, 2016 at 7:43 p.m.


Tippecanoe Valley, Wawasee and Whitko had some contested races Tuesday, with some new faces going on the school boards in 2017.
Aaron Zolman won the Tippecanoe Valley School Board District 1 race, receiving 1,282 votes in Kosciusko County and 657 in Fulton County for a total of 1,939 votes. He beat Tyler Bouse, who had 1,050 votes, and incumbent David O’Brien, who had 927.
In a telephone interview this morning, Zolman said, “I’m excited for the kids and the future of our schools.”
He said he was ready to get going. There are some younger members on the board, and he was ready to get serving with them.
Zolman credited the candidate forum as being very helpful with the election.
“It’s a great way for everyone to see our views and what we’re about,” he said.
For District 2 at Valley, Adam Heckaman won with a total of 2,057 votes. Challengers Stephanie Overbey and Matt Smith received 1,094 and 819 votes respectively.
Heckaman could not be reached this morning for a comment.
In the Wawasee School Board District 1 race, incumbent Mike Wilson received 4,102 votes over Gerald Coy’s 2,612 votes.
“I appreciate everyone that supports me, and I’m ready to go back to work,” Wilson said.
He said Wawasee did a climate audit and that gave the school board some ideas of things people said the board needs to take a look at.
Donald Bokhart won the District 2 Wawasee race with 2,732. Michael Lamle got 1,732 and David Rosenberry received 2,171.
Bokhart could not be reached this morning for a comment.
The only contested race at Whitko School Board was for District 3, where Joseph Begley received a total of 1,963 votes in Kosciusko and Whitley counties. Stephen Smith received 1,499 votes.
“I’m glad that I did, and I appreciate the support of the people from the community,” Begley said.
The big thing for the Whitko School Board to work on for the next four years, he said, is getting funding increased from the state.
Georgia Tenney was unopposed in District 1, and Carrie Lynn Hoffman was unopposed in District 2.
The three Warsaw School Board races were uncontested.
Randy Polston was re-elected to serve another term for District 4, while Jay Baumgartner will continue to serve District 6. Warsaw School Board members cannot seek more than two consecutive four-year terms, so Polston and Baumgartner will not be able to run again for the seats in 2020.
Elizabeth D. “Elle” Turley won in District 3. She replaces Curt Hermann, who did not seek re-election.
At Triton, Kevin Boyer and Amy Middaugh were uncontested for the at-large and District 3 seats respectively.
The two Wa-Nee School Board at-large winners were Christina Eshelman and Shawn Johnson, who were unopposed. Eric Brown was unopposed for the Wa-Nee Olive Township Elkhart County seat, while Don Lehman was unopposed for Scott and Jefferson Township.

Tippecanoe Valley, Wawasee and Whitko had some contested races Tuesday, with some new faces going on the school boards in 2017.
Aaron Zolman won the Tippecanoe Valley School Board District 1 race, receiving 1,282 votes in Kosciusko County and 657 in Fulton County for a total of 1,939 votes. He beat Tyler Bouse, who had 1,050 votes, and incumbent David O’Brien, who had 927.
In a telephone interview this morning, Zolman said, “I’m excited for the kids and the future of our schools.”
He said he was ready to get going. There are some younger members on the board, and he was ready to get serving with them.
Zolman credited the candidate forum as being very helpful with the election.
“It’s a great way for everyone to see our views and what we’re about,” he said.
For District 2 at Valley, Adam Heckaman won with a total of 2,057 votes. Challengers Stephanie Overbey and Matt Smith received 1,094 and 819 votes respectively.
Heckaman could not be reached this morning for a comment.
In the Wawasee School Board District 1 race, incumbent Mike Wilson received 4,102 votes over Gerald Coy’s 2,612 votes.
“I appreciate everyone that supports me, and I’m ready to go back to work,” Wilson said.
He said Wawasee did a climate audit and that gave the school board some ideas of things people said the board needs to take a look at.
Donald Bokhart won the District 2 Wawasee race with 2,732. Michael Lamle got 1,732 and David Rosenberry received 2,171.
Bokhart could not be reached this morning for a comment.
The only contested race at Whitko School Board was for District 3, where Joseph Begley received a total of 1,963 votes in Kosciusko and Whitley counties. Stephen Smith received 1,499 votes.
“I’m glad that I did, and I appreciate the support of the people from the community,” Begley said.
The big thing for the Whitko School Board to work on for the next four years, he said, is getting funding increased from the state.
Georgia Tenney was unopposed in District 1, and Carrie Lynn Hoffman was unopposed in District 2.
The three Warsaw School Board races were uncontested.
Randy Polston was re-elected to serve another term for District 4, while Jay Baumgartner will continue to serve District 6. Warsaw School Board members cannot seek more than two consecutive four-year terms, so Polston and Baumgartner will not be able to run again for the seats in 2020.
Elizabeth D. “Elle” Turley won in District 3. She replaces Curt Hermann, who did not seek re-election.
At Triton, Kevin Boyer and Amy Middaugh were uncontested for the at-large and District 3 seats respectively.
The two Wa-Nee School Board at-large winners were Christina Eshelman and Shawn Johnson, who were unopposed. Eric Brown was unopposed for the Wa-Nee Olive Township Elkhart County seat, while Don Lehman was unopposed for Scott and Jefferson Township.
Have a news tip? Email [email protected] or Call/Text 360-922-3092

e-Edition


e-edition

Sign up


for our email newsletters

Weekly Top Stories

Sign up to get our top stories delivered to your inbox every Sunday

Daily Updates & Breaking News Alerts

Sign up to get our daily updates and breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox daily

Latest Stories


Public Occurrences 04.28.25
County Jail Bookings The following people were arrested and booked into the Kosciusko County Jail:

Final Day Of Grace’s Regular Season Full Of History
The final day of the regular season was special for Grace’s baseball team. The Lancers picked up two wins against Bethel with each one representing a historic achievement.

Laurel Jean Mitchell Memorial Bench Unveiled During Ceremony In North Webster
NORTH WEBSTER - Though it’s been 50 years this August that Laurel Jean Mitchell was taken away from her family and friends, she has never been forgotten.

Echoes Of The Past Participate In Plow Day
It was brisk and windy, but the Echoes of the Past members and guests plowed through the weather to enjoy a day at the field owned by Dennis Boggs.

Madeleine M. Fisher
MENTONE – Madeleine M. Fisher, 91, rural Palestine, died Thursday, April 24, 2025, at her residence.