Monday, September 19, 2011
Four new members were sworn in to the Ankeny school board Monday night. The new board also chose its new president and vice president.
Four new members of the Ankeny school board were officially sworn in at Monday night's school board meeting. Dustin Graber, Brad Huss, Mike Rooney and Stephanie Jorgensen were sworn in at the board’s 5 p.m. meeting Monday. The four individuals defeated incumbents Trent Murphy, Aaron Johnson, Andrew Martin and Leslie Petersen in the Sept. 13 school board election. The district’s chief financial officer, Craig Hansel, administered the oath to the new members. Graber said he's looking forward to working with his fellow board members. "I want to continue moving this school district in the direction it needs to go," he said. Board member George Tracy thanked the four outgoing board members for their years of service. "They've provided countless…
Friday, September 16, 2011
Among the agenda items for the new board is discussion of a possible February 2012 bond referendum to complete the second phase of Southview Middle School.
The Ankeny school district will hold two meetings on Monday, one of which will feature the swearing in of four new school board members. Newcomers Dustin Graber, Brad Huss, Mike Rooney and Stephanie Jorgensen will be sworn in at the board’s 5 p.m. meeting on Monday. The four individuals defeated incumbents Trent Murphy, Aaron Johnson, Andrew Martin and Leslie Petersen in Tuesday’s school board election. The district’s chief financial officer Craig Hansel, who will be acting as temporary board chairman, will swear in the four members. Following the ceremony, board members will nominate and choose a board president and vice president, as well as re-appoint Hansel as board secretary and treasurer, said Ankeny Superintendent Matthew Wendt. …
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The eight candidates on Tuesday’s ballot spent more than $43,000 on their campaigns, according to financial reports filed with the state.
The Ankeny school board candidates could have bought a couple brand-new cars for the amount of money raised in their election campaigns. The campaign leading up to Tuesday’s school board election in which four newcomers ousted the four incumbents seeking re-election to the board cost the candidates more than $43,000. The eight candidates — newcomers Dustin Graber, Brad Huss, Mike Rooney and Stephanie Jorgensen, as well as incumbents Aaron Johnson, Trent Murphy, Andrew Martin and Leslie Petersen — raised more than $50,000 total for their campaigns. This year’s campaign finances made quite a jump from the last school board election in 2009. Contributions in 2009 totaled about $6,500. Current board members George Tracy and Todd Shafer were …
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Some Ankeny polling locations are anticipating close to three times more voters than past school elections.
Polling locations in Ankeny have seen a steady stream of people coming in and out all day, casting their votes for the next four members of the Ankeny school board. Karen Deters, an election official at Ankeny United Church of Christ, said voter turnout has seemed higher than normal today. She said she anticipates the precinct will easily triple the amount of voters it saw during the 2009 school board election. “This has been a contentious election,” she said. “I know we will be well over last year’s count by the time we close at 8 p.m.” Deters was supervising one of Ankeny’s 14 precincts. Eight candidates – four incumbents and four challengers – are vying for four open seats in the election. The polls will close at 8 p.m. As of 6 p.m. …
Voters have different reasons for casting their ballots in today's school board election, but many are turning out to do just that.
Ankeny residents turned out this morning to participate in what some are calling “one of the most important opportunities to vote in their lifetime.” At least those were the words used by 39-year-old Ankeny resident Jeff Breeding after he cast his votes in the Ankeny school board election at Cornerstone Baptist Church Tuesday. “We both grew up in this school system, and we moved back nine years ago,” Jeff said. “In that time, we’ve seen a lot of change.” Residents have until 8 p.m. tonight to vote. Eight candidates – four incumbents and four challengers – are vying for four seats on the board. His wife, Jonnah, accompanied Jeff this morning. Both are Ankeny High School graduates, and both were looking for different things when choosing …
When the polls close at 8 p.m. tonight, Ankeny Patch will keep you up to date with the latest results from the city's voting precincts.
Ankeny Patch has been there every step of the heated contest between eight candidates seeking four spots on the Ankeny school board. Today will be no exception. Tonight, we will begin a live blog at 8 p.m., updating the blog as soon as results are available on the Polk County auditor’s website. Heading to the polls today? Here are some things you should know. Stay with Ankeny Patch and don’t miss a moment of today’s election.
Monday, September 12, 2011
Here’s your last chance to find out who's on the ballot, where to vote and how to register.
1) What time do the polls open? Polls in Ankeny will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday. 2) Who exactly am I voting for? Eight candidates will appear on the ballot. They are vying for four seats on the Ankeny school board, which means you can vote for four individuals. Incumbents running include Trent Murphy, Aaron Johnson, Leslie Petersen and Andrew Martin. Challengers are Dustin Graber, Brad Huss, Stephanie Jorgensen and Mike Rooney. There also will be one spot on the ballot reserved for individuals seeking a position on the DMACC Board of Directors. Ben Norman is the only name appearing on the ballot for the position. 3) Where can I go to vote? Voters are assigned a specific polling location depending on the precinct in which they …
The president of the Ankeny Taxpayers Association details his reasons why the ATA endorsed the incumbents seeking re-election to the Ankeny school board and why voters should support them as well.
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Monday, September 12, 2011
As you may have heard, Ankeny Taxpayers Association has decided to endorse the incumbent Ankeny school board directors Trent Murphy, Andrew Martin, Leslie Petersen and Aaron Johnson. There are a variety of reasons that we felt this endorsement was important. The incumbents have an existing knowledge of how school finance works, an exceptional record of fiduciary responsibility and a willingness to “put a number on it”. These are all things that we as an organization support. During interviews either in public forums or on the phone, the candidates that performed the best, specifically on school finance issues, were the incumbents. You could tell they had a grasp of how school financing worked. Luckily I was invited to a press conference by…
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
The Ankeny Area Chamber of Commerce will host a forum for candidates running for Ankeny school board. Keep up with the debate as Ankeny Patch live blogs from the event.
Ankeny school district residents will have another opportunity Wednesday to help them decide which school board candidates to vote for in the Sept. 13 election. The Ankeny Area Chamber of Commerce will host a candidate forum on Aug. 31. The forum will be held at 6:30 p.m. at the Ankeny High School auditorium. Ankeny Patch will host a live blog throughout the forum to provide minute-by-minute coverage of the event. Readers are allowed to contribute comments to the blog. The eight candidates vying for four seats on the board include incumbents Leslie Petersen, Trent Murphy, Aaron Johnson and Andrew Martin. Challengers Dustin Graber, Brad Huss, Mike Rooney and Stephanie Jorgensen join them on the ballot. All were invited to the chamber’s …
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
A public forum hosted by the Ankeny Parents Association and the Elementary Parent Teacher Organizations posed a series of questions to Ankeny school board candidates.
The construction of a second high school in Ankeny is not in jeopardy if district residents choose to elect them, said candidates vying for a spot on the Ankeny school board. The topic was one of several discussed at Sunday's candidate forum hosted by the Ankeny Parents Association and the Elementary Parent Teacher Organizations. Each day this week, Ankeny Patch will publish a question asked of candidates, as well as excerpts from their responses. Incumbents Aaron Johnson, Andrew Martin, Trent Murphy and Leslie Petersen faced off against challengers Dustin Graber, Brad Huss and Mike Rooney. A fourth challenger, Stephanie Jorgenson, was unable to attend the forum. The candidates are vying for four seats on the Sept. 13 ballot. Ankeny school…
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7:25 pm on Monday, September 19, 2011
What a wonderful day! more ›