Four seek seats on Trimble board

by Hillary Copsey and Kelly Smith
Staff Writers

Four area residents are competing for the three available seats on the Trimble Local School District Board of Education.

Trimble is the poorest of Ohio's 611 school districts, said Cindy Rhonemus, Trimble treasurer. Last year, the district went into fiscal emergency and borrowed $945,000 from the state.

Insufficient state funding is Trimble's biggest problem, Rhonemus said. But problems increased when an income tax levy the district was dependent upon was not renewed a few years ago, she said.

Although no candidates had immediate answers for the financial crunch, each had ideas to start the problem-solving process.

This financial status is the main concern of Cindy Irwin, current school board president, who is running for another term. Irwin said she would like to see a financial recovery of the district by working with state legislatures for more school funding.

Candidate Marvin Shamhart also has experience on the Trimble School Board and has addressed the funding issue. Shamhart served for eight years as a school board member and decided to run again after a four-year absence. He said the district needs board members willing to push state legislature to support increased funding.

Also running is Sherry Downs, who was treasurer for Trimble for five years. She said not only would she like to see an increase in technology available to students, but also more community awareness of the financial situation of the district. Her experience as treasurer and her involvement with the school as a parent has prepared her for a position on the board, Downs said.

Fourth candidate, Ruth Carano, has spent time volunteering at the schools with the Ohio Reads program and said, as a school board member, she would like to help the district get out of its financial bind. Carano said she has seen, as a volunteer, how hard teachers in the district work and how much they try to do with small resources.