Portland Public School Board has Three Seats Up for Election in November

If you have ever been interested in serving on the local school board your opportunity is here. Potential Portland School Board members have until 4:00 PM on July 21st to submit their intent to seek election for a six-year term for the Portland School Board. All interested candidates must apply to the Ionia County Clerk’s Office by that deadline for their name to appear on the November 3rd ballot. All school board positions are non-partisan.

Interested candidates must provide an “affidavit of identity”, and a signed petition with 40-100 signatures or a $100 non-refundable fee. One local school board member told the Beacon that most candidates forgo the collection of signatures and pay the $100 fee instead. Ionia County Clerk Greg Geiger has informed the Beacon that he is more than willing to assist any candidate with completing the necessary paperwork as long as they contact him prior to the July 21st deadline. “It looks a lot more complicated and intimidating than it actually is”, Geiger said. Geiger can be reached at 616-527-5322 or clerk@ioniacounty.org

The Portland School Board meets on the 2nd and 4th Monday nights of the month, with additional sub-committee meetings scheduled by the Board. Most Board members are assigned to two sub-committees. Board Members receive a per diem of $30 per meeting.

Current Portland School Board Members include Doug Logel, Linda Hoxie-Green, Brian Pohl, Kathy Foote, Beth Goodman and Patrick Duff. Foote and Goodman are up for re-election this November. The 3rd seat up for election is that of recently retired Board Member, Jami Schneider who is not seeking re-election. The School Board will be interviewing potential candidates to replace her in the next few weeks. All three School Board seats will be on the ballot in November and begin their term on January 1, 2021.

The Michigan Association of School Boards website (www.masb.org) is an excellent resource for potential candidates to learn about the roles, rights and responsibilities of school board members. There are currently about 4000 Michigan citizens serving on their local school boards.

Interested potential school board members are also encouraged to contact Portland Superintendent Will Heath to discuss in more detail the responsibilities of School Board members. His phone number is 517-647-4161 and his email address is wheath@portlandk12.org.