Munda, Conway, Drake win in Dist. 121

Warren Township High School's board will have a mix of members.

Unofficial results from Tuesday's election show incumbents Michael Munda and Barb Conway and newcomer Thomas Drake claimed the three 4-year seats. First-time candidate Monika Bobo fell short. With votes counted in all 44 precincts, Conway led the pack with 2,489 votes, or 30.06 percent. Drake captured 2,285 votes (27.59 percent), and Munda totaled 2,160 votes (26.09 percent). Bobo finished out of the running with 1,346 or 16.26 percent of the vote.

One issue that surfaced in the race at Gurnee-based Warren District 121 was the concept of parental involvement to becoming more than a volunteer endeavor. The candidates agreed on possibly wanting an annual mandatory meeting for parents.

Munda, who was appointed as a school board member in 2009, said those who attend parent-teacher conferences typically have children doing well in school. He said he's found parents of students not doing well academically usually are the ones who don't attend such conferences.

To get all parents into the school, Munda said, the required meeting for them could be the solution. Such a session could occur when the teenagers are starting high school, and might lead the parents into becoming active at Warren while their students are there, he said.

Drake said district-related topics could be addressed with the parents at the mandatory session, such as alerting them to a school board election or policies before the elected officials.