On Tuesday, voters will elect four Ames Community School Board Members, two incumbents and two newcomers. 

The current Board President, Kelly Winfrey, and newcomers Jennifer Tipton and Arthur Baumgartner run unopposed for three at-large seats. 

Aaron Rodriguez began serving last year, filling a vacant seat by appointment. Now, he runs unopposed for an at-large seat, as his candidacy is listed as an individual ballot item. 

Arthur Baumgartner 

Baumgartner began his career as an architect. 

“I designed primarily K-12 schools for 15 years,” Baumgartner said. “I worked with probably 20-21 school districts across the state, of sizes ranging from Ames all the way down to 1A.”

Applying his career background, Baumgartner noticed differences in school design that could increase collaboration and workforce readiness. 

“As elementary kids graduate to middle school and go towards different classes instead of staying in their own cohort, you start to see more collaborative spaces. That’s even more so in high school, and the reason for that is preparing students to be college and career ready,” Baumgartner said.

“With the creative economy that we have, we need to teach kids not just how to learn and work, but also how to learn and work with other people effectively,” Baumgartner said. 

Baumgartner launched his campaign because both of his children attend Ames Community Schools. 

“I want other community members to have the same benefit as my kids,” Baumgartner said. “Ames is a great community.”

Aaron Rodriguez 

Rodriguez began serving as an appointed board member, filling a vacant seat, last year. 

“I’d like to see us keep moving forward with a lot of our goals,” Rodriguez said. “Making sure kids feel like they belong, increasing performance in groups that have struggled in the past, and addressing chronic absenteeism.”

Looking at another full term, Rodriguez feels most proud about the district’s fiscal choices. 

“We’ve made some fiscal decisions over the last year that have been the right move for the district,” Rodriguez said. “With state funding being a challenge and being asked to do more with less, a good example is changing our busing provider, and it saved over a million dollars.” 

In May, Rodriguez experienced his most fulfilling moment as a board member. 

“I never realized that school board members got to hand out the diplomas to students as they graduate. I handed diplomas to students I coached through Lego League throughout the years, and it was one of those full-circle moments,” Rodriguez said. 

Kelly Winfrey 

Winfrey began her first term on the Ames School Board in 2021. Additionally, she serves on the Iowa Democratic Women’s Caucus Board. 

Winfrey works as a professor and researcher of gender studies, communication and politics at Iowa State University. Winfrey was unavailable for an interview. 

Jennifer Tipton 

Tipton, a newcomer running for election, believes in the importance of public education, as she grew up with both of her parents working in public education. 

Tipton works in Student Affairs at Iowa State University. Tipton was unavailable for an interview.