On Tuesday, April 5, the FHSD community elected new Board of Education members. The finals results were Michelle Walker, 6,181 votes with a leading 28.48%; Mike Hoehn, 5,208 votes making 24.84%; KimberyAnn Granger, 4,960 votes, 23.66%; and lastly Cynthia Bice, 4,550 votes resulting in 21.70% of the votes.

This means that candidates Mrs. Walker and Mr. Hoehn won the seats on the Francis Howell Board of Education; according to fhsdschools.org, it will be Mrs. Walker’s first term on the Board, and Mr. Hoehn’s second term, as he served the Bard in 2008-2014.

Candidate-elect Walker feels very surprised to have been selected as a Board member, and reacted very positively to the situation.

“I was pleasantly surprised by the result,” Mrs. Walker said “I was glad that the campaign was over.”

In agreement with Mrs. Walker, Mr. Hoehn feels ecstatic towards the whole situation and was happy to be chosen.

“I was excited to be back on the board to start providing service for the kids like I did in the past,” said Hoehn.

Given that it is Walker’s first time on the board, she feels that she was elected because of her honesty and her credibility in the community. She has a list of priorities she plans to cover/enact as she takes her position as a Board member

“[I want to work on]Increasing community engagement and community involvement in the district,” said Walker. “[I want us to] work together as a board to figure out what we need to do to get our financial situation under control.”

As Hoehn returns to the Board, he feels he was re-elected because he was last on the ballot and the only man on the ballot, giving him the few hundred more votes than Granger. He too has goals and priorities for the upcoming school years such as fixing the budget, and improving communication.

“Number one is I went to solve the financial crisis that we have created and that we have in the district,” said Hoehn. “I’d like to improve communication with the district, the community, the patrons, the students and everybody at whole, I feel that is something we are lacking in.”

According to fhsdschools.org, at the April 7 Board meeting, Walker and Hoehn were sworn in, and the Board officers are:  Mr. Mark Lafata- president, Mrs. Rene Cope- Vice-President, Chad Lange- Treasurer, Sandra Ferguson- Director, Mr. Mike Hoehn- Director, Mr. Mike Sommer- Director, Ms. Michelle Walker- Director.