One incumbent, two newcomers win District 41 seats

One incumbent and two newcomers secured three spots on the Glen Ellyn Elementary District 41 school board.

With all 32 precincts unofficially reporting, Stephanie Clark, Kurt Buchholz and incumbent Erica Nelson came out on top Tuesday. Clark received 1,705 votes; Buchholz had 1,681 votes and Nelson 1,652 votes.

Buchholz and Clark were part of a three-candidate slate with Kevin Rath, who finished sixth in the seven-candidate race with 1,186 votes. The other candidates were Lori Taylor with 1,511 votes; Kristin Massey with 1,501 votes; and Jeff Cooper with 866 votes.

Nelson, the sole incumbent in the election, has served on the board since 2007. She says it's important to hire and retain highly qualified teachers and to continue community engagement opportunities for parents and community members, specifically for Spanish-speaking parents to help them to participate more in the district.

"I'm very happy to serve again," Nelson said Tuesday night.

Clark, a stay-at-home mom who used to work as an engineer, is a co-chairman of the District 41 Special Education Parents' Support Group and has been an active member of the PTA. She said she believes that "to an extent" the district needs to "get back to basics with what we are teaching our students versus experimenting with the latest and greatest trends in education."

Buchholz, an agency owner for Allstate Insurance, has served on many local boards, including the Glen Ellyn Park District's board of commissioners. He said his slate aimed to bring more accountability, fiscal responsibility and transparency to the board.