Just 1 Mishawaka school board seat is up for election this fall. Here's who's running.

MISHAWAKA — An experienced educator is pitching her challenge against Mishawaka school board President Holly Parks.

Parks’ seat is the only one up for a vote this fall in the School City of Mishawaka.

Unlike many Indiana districts, Mishawaka’s school board is hybrid in composure. Three of five seats in Mishawaka are elected and two are appointed — one by the city’s common council and another by the mayor.

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Other elected seats — occupied by board Vice President Angela Layman and Secretary Mellissa Johnson — will appear on ballots in 2024. The common council appointed Dave Weber — a longtime, now retired Mishawaka teacher — to the board in July after Amanda Roberts left her seat early to pursue a job opportunity in Indianapolis.

Parks is running for her third term as a Mishawaka trustee. She is being challenged this year by Heather O’Connell, a Mishawaka parent and teacher in New Prairie schools.

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Parks joined the board eight years ago and has been president for a year. In that time, Parks said she’s prioritized transparency, parental engagement and school safety.

Serving through the district’s 2016 referendum campaign, the onset of the coronavirus pandemic and the district’s subsequent school reopening, Parks says she’s grown in her role as a community leader and hopes tocontinue making decisions in the interest of both her own family and the greater Mishawaka community.

Parks, a mom of nine, has three students at Mishawaka High School this year.

“We don’t always agree on everything, but we can come to an understanding and we can understand the compromise that needs to be made for the greater good,” Parks said of her work on the board. “We need board members who don’t have a single agenda, but have School City of Mishawaka agendas.”

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In addition to changes brought by the pandemic, the district’s gone through a major shift in leadership this year. Wayne Barker, the district’s former superintendent, unexpectedly announced his resignation last spring to take the top job at Northwest Allen County Schools in Fort Wayne.

The Mishawaka school board reacted quickly and publicly named its preferred successor to replace Barker a day after the superintendent shared news he would be leaving.

New Superintendent Theodore Stevens has been at the helm since July and the district’s leadership is now exploring what it needs in a future referendum, as its past tax increases near an end.

Parks says she believes her experience with the district’s last referendum has prepared her for the district’s next attempt, expected this spring.

“We have a brand new superintendent , we have a new board member and we have a referendum coming in May,” Parks said. “I feel like it would be my job to see it all the way through.”

Career educator pitches challenge to join board

O’Connell, a 16-year educator who currently teaches elementary music classes, said she is running this fall as a strong supporter of public education

She said she applied twice for a common council appointment — most recently this spring for the seat left open by Roberts, which drew interest from as many as 10 other candidates.

“My biggest qualification is that I’m an educator,” O’Connell said. “I know what things feel like when … a board says this is the direction we’re going towards. I know what gets felt with teaching staff and administrators and how it impacts students.”

O’Connell says her family draws out her commitment to the Mishawaka district. She currently has a kindergarten student at Beiger Elementary and a 3-year-old who will enter the district in a couple of years.

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She praised the district for its family-oriented activities and said, if elected to the board, she’d like to prioritize working with trustees to set budget priorities for facilities needs and academic support as students readjust to in-person learning.

As the district approaches a spring referendum, O’Connell said she would like to play a role in educating the public about local taxing mechanisms and why the district is seeking local support. She said she would also like to learn more about what learning interventions are currently in place to assist students academically and put forward suggestions for additional resources where needed.

“I want to be a part of that decision-making process and just be a part of pushing Mishawaka and championing their future and championing their students,” O'Connell said.

Election time:How to vote early, in person or by mail, in St. Joseph County. And what candidates have to say

Election day is Nov. 8 and early voting begins Oct. 12. For more information on how to vote in St. Joseph County, see The Tribune’s website at southbendtribune.com.

Email South Bend Tribune education reporter Carley Lanich at clanich@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter: @carleylanich.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Here's who's running for the only Mishawaka school board seat open