Ames citizens will go to the polls Tuesday to select four new members for the Ames school board.

Of the seven candidates in contention for school board positions, six are running for three-year terms, with the top three vote-getters earning seats, and one candidate is running unopposed for a one-year term.

Brian Agnitsch (3-year-term)

Occupation: Assistant professor of social sciences at Marshalltown Community College

Top priorities: Aside from high achievement for all students, Agnitsch said he would try to implement a philosophical and structural change on the board that would require members to explore all possible options before finalizing any decision.

Textbook fee: Agnitsch said although he thinks the school district is in need of a textbook fee, the proposed measure troubles him.

“I’d like to see a more comprehensive plan of what they’ll do with the money,” he said. “Short of that, I have a hard time voting for it.”

Roy Cakerice (3-year-term)

Occupation: Independent contractor supervising ISU student teachers and former sixth- and seventh-grade math teacher

Top priorities: Cakerice, who has served on the board the last three years, said a balanced budget ranks among his top priorities. Budget cuts, he said, have the potential to negatively impact the quality of education students receive in Ames. He also emphasized the importance of keeping students from dropping out of high school.

Textbook fee: Cakerice said he supports the textbook fee and encouraged citizens to vote in favor of it.

“I know there’s a lot of fees, but if you want to keep up with the textbooks in all areas, you can’t have students using books that are 10 years old,” he said.

Jeffrey Hart (3-year-term)

Occupation: Math teacher at Southeast Polk High School

Top priorities: Hart said he would work to guarantee that the Ames Community School District doesn’t close neighborhood elementary schools, which are key to the development of students’ senses of community.

“I want students going to the school nearest their neighborhoods,” Hart said, “so as many children as possible are walking to school and as few as possible are being bussed.”

Textbook fee: Hart said he would vote against the measure, because he said he fears the funds generated by the fee would be spent in other areas.

Gail Johnston (3-year-term)

Occupation: ISU senior lecturer in mathematics

Top priorities: Johnston, who has served on the board for three years, stressed the importance of developing a curriculum that helps students succeed in an increasingly global world.

“The skills our kids will need are very different than those of 50 years ago,” she said.

She said today’s students must focus on mathematics, technology and foreign languages to keep up with global trends.

Textbook fee: She said she plans to vote in favor of the fee.

“Public education should be free and properly funded,” she said. “But the state Legislature hasn’t properly funded education. I’m voting for it and I hope others will, as well.”

Anita Rollins (3-year-term)

Occupation: ISU program coordinator for the Institute for Physical Research and Technology

Top priorities: Rollins said she would pursue an organized strategy to meet the district’s facilities needs.

“We do have some facilities issues,” she said.

“I want to determine what the needs are and formulate a strategy to best meet those needs.”

Textbook fee: She said she was in favor of the fee, but she said she was cautious about imposing any new fee without exploring all other options.

John Stafford (3-year-term)

Occupation: Vice president of marketing for Magnalynx Inc.

Top priorities: Stafford said he would emphasize the importance of globalization in the curriculum and build a unified vision for the future of the district that would include input from the community.

“I’m very passionate about education and providing opportunities for students,” he said.

Textbook fee: Stafford said he supports the proposed textbook fee but said he would like a more clear explanation of what the funds generated by the fee could be used for.

Francis Todey (1-year-term)

Occupation: Civil engineer for the Iowa Department of Transportation

Top priorities: Todey, who is running unopposed for a one-year term on the board, said he would encourage community discussion about the future of the district.

“I think my first goal would be to start a community conversation about the direction of the school district,” he said.

“We have some opportunities to share input, and we need to be working together to accomplish the goals of the district and the community.”

Textbook fee: Todey said the proposed fee concerns him because he doesn’t think the fee alone would generate enough funding to replace all textbooks.

“It seems like they’re not being clear where the money is coming from,” he said.

Residents to vote on textbook fees

Tuesday’s Ames school board election ballot will include a measure that could allow the Ames Community School District to charge students for textbooks for the first time since the Great Depression.

If approved, parents and guardians would be charged between $15 and $25 per student for the use of school district textbooks, beginning in the 2007-08 school year.

Families that qualify for free or reduced lunch prices would also qualify for a partial or full waiver of the fee.

The Ames Community School District has provided textbooks to its students without cost since Ames residents approved a referendum in 1934.

– Compiled from the Ames Community School District Web site

Where to vote in Ames school board election

*Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

– State Forest Nursery, 2404 S. Duff Ave.

– Human Services Center, 126 S. Kellogg Ave.

– Ames Public Library Auditorium, 515 Douglas Ave.

– St. Paul Lutheran Church, 1435 Wilson Ave.

– Meeker Elementary School, 300 20th St.

– Bethesda Lutheran Church, 1517 Northwestern Ave.

– Hawthorn Cafe at Frederiksen Court, ISU campus

– St. Cecilia Catholic Church, 2900 Hoover Ave.

– Stonebrook Community Church, 3611 Eisenhower Ave.

– Somerset Clubhouse, 2400 Aspen Road

– Willow Creek Church, 1114 S. Dakota Ave.

– Memorial Lutheran Church, 2228 Lincoln Way

– Collegiate United Methodist Church, 2622 Lincoln Way

– ACTORS Building, 120 Abraham Drive

– University Baptist Church, 2400 Mortensen Parkway

– St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church, 209 Colorado Ave.

– Trinity Christian Reformed Church, 3626 Ontario St.

– Collegiate Presbyterian Church, 159 N. Sheldon Ave.

– Maple-Willow-Larch Commons, ISU campus

– Room 136 in the Union Drive Community Center, ISU campus

– Compiled from the Story County Auditor’s Web site