Six seek Fort school seats (10/25/03)

The Fort Recovery School district will undergo a change in leadership next month when the school board decides on a new superintendent, and voters will have an opportunity shape the leadership of the school board as three seats are open for the November election.

A total of six people are running for the three open seats on the board, and all three of the incumbent candidates are running for re-election. Cy Brunswick, Richard F. Wellman and Steven E. Wendel will be on the ballot for re-election; and they are opposed by Susan Homan, Steven F. Wendel, and Kim J. Day.

It is important for voters to notice that there are two candidates named Steve Wendel running for the school board. Steven E. Wendel is an incumbent candidate and Steven F. Wendel is running for school board for the first time.

Listed below are each of the candidates with some biographical information in addition to their comments about what motivated them to run for school board and what they see as some of the top priorities facing the school system in the next few years.

•Cy Brunswick, 1437 Philothea Road, has been a Fort Recovery School Board member since January of 1992. He works at Crown Equipment Corporation in New Bremen, Ohio.

He is the father of six children, the youngest of which is a junior at Fort Recovery High School.

“I’m running for my fourth term, so what motivated me (to run) was to try and continue to be involved in the community,” he said. “There’s certainly going to be some financial challenges, and the other thing I see is higher than normal turnover of staff due to retirement.”

•Richard F. Wellmann, 3606 Ohio Route 46, will complete his ninth year on school board in December. His wife Jan is a teacher at St. Henry Middle School in St. Henry, Ohio, and three of his five children are still attending Fort Recovery Schools. Wellman works at North Star Hardware and Implement in North Star, Ohio.

“I just enjoy working with the administration and staff,” he said. “The No Child Left Behind (Act) is going to be a real challenge for the future board members, and there are going to be some major staff retirements in the upcoming years. So it’s going to be a challenge for a new board to replace those key people, while maintaining our current status and the high expectations that we have.”

•Steven E. Wendel, 302 Wiggs Street, currently teaches engineering and industrial technology at Sinclair Community College in Dayton, Ohio. Four of his five children are students at Fort Recovery Elementary School. Wendel is wrapping up his first term on the board.

“I’m just interested maintaining and improve upon the excellent job the school has done so far and continue to focus on learning achievement and leadership,” he said. “Hiring, retaining and training the best people is going to continue to be an issue for this district ... We’ve already experienced budget cuts, so trying to maintain and improve what we’re doing here with the same amount or less (money) is going to be a challenge.”

•Kim J. Day, 1720 Union City Road, says he has been thinking about running for school board for the last couple years. The owner of NAPA Auto Parts in Fort Recovery says he “feels like now is a good time to run.” Day is also the fire chief for Southwest Mercer Fire District, a position he has held the last five years. He has spent a total of 18 years with the department.

“I have a business background, and I’ve worked with the public for over 25 years, and that would help me put different points of view into certain issues,” he said. “The biggest thing facing schools right now is funding cutbacks. The budget is going to be a big issue in the next couple years.”

•Steven F. Wendel, 514 Union City Road, is the co-owner of 3W Construction in Fort Recovery and also works part-time as farmer in the area. He is the father of three kids, all of which are students at Fort Recovery.

“The main reason I’m running it because I don’t think every voice is being heard, and the second thing is going to be the budget and the government cutting a lot of school funding,” he said. “(The administration) kind of does what they want, and they’re not listening to the public, and that’s a major concern. They’ve got some major problems; I’ve been hearing that a lot of public out there are pretty well disgusted.”

•Susan Homan, 746 Watkins Road, has been employed at Kaup Pharmacy in Fort Recovery for more than 15 years. She graduated from Fort Recovery High School in 1985 and Ohio Northern University in 1990.

“I’ve got five kids, so that’s a big motivator,” Homan explained about her decision to run for school board. “Right now the board consists of five fathers, and I feel that a mother’s point of view (will help). I feel God has put man and woman on earth to work together. And I feel like when they work together, they solve problems better. I think communication is a big key.”[[In-content Ad]]