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Voters Nov. 6 returned three incumbents to the Cincinnati Board of Education, but newcomer Melanie Bates beat them all.
Bates — perhaps getting a boost from her experience on the Ohio Board of Education — received 43,783 votes, or almost 3,000 more than second-place finisher Sally Warner, according to unofficial totals. Incumbents Catherine Ingram and Harriet Russell weren’t far behind, with 39,807 and 38,183 votes respectively, filling the last two of four open seats.
G.R. “Sam” Schloemer, who raised $47,040 — more than any other board candidate — finished fifth, with 33,163 votes.
Schloemer received thousands of dollars in contributions from business donors, according to campaign finance reports filed Oct. 25. Warner was about $11,000 behind, and Bates trailed by about $22,000.
Watching returns at the board of elections, Bates seemed to have been caught off guard by her first-place performance.
“Yes, I’m very surprised,” she said.
Bates said she believed her emphasis on teacher quality and training — her No. 1 issue — caught people’s attention and attracted votes.
Warner said her 1-2 finish with Bates was a mandate for board members who came out as strong supporters of Superintendent Steve Adamowski.
Warner said she wasn’t disappointed in the finish.
“I’m thrilled to come in second to Melanie,” Warner said, adding that it can be more difficult for incumbents to finish high in the standings because they have records to run against.
Warner subtly cast Russell and Ingram as board members who didn’t support the superintendent because of their votes against pay increases for Adamowski and their questioning of reforms he’s proposed.
Ingram dismissed that criticism. If it were true, she said, voters would have elected all four staunchly pro-Adamowski candidates, including Schloemer. Ingram also said incumbency isn’t necessarily an automatic burden — it just depends on how people feel about your performance in office.
Unofficial results showed the other candidates, in order: Frederick Suggs Sr., who emphasized back-to-basics education with more vocational training; Ed Rothenberg, who talked about starting high schools later in the morning and requiring teachers to regularly visit students’ homes; and Roy McGrath, who said the teachers’ union has a strangle-hold on the district, among other criticisms.
In any case, it was a race of teamwork — Schloemer, Bates and Warner shared advertising and fundraisers in various combinations. Ingram and Russell split 30-second TV ads, held joint fundraising parties and shared mailings.
“We’ve worked well on the board,” Ingram said. “It just seemed a natural fit.”
It also makes financial sense to share TV time, as opposed to radio, on which most of the candidates advertised alone.
Russell said she and Ingram both believe board members need to ask questions to make sure the end result is a good one.
Hours later at her home, Ingram said she was a little disappointed in her turnout. She had hoped money wouldn’t have as much of an influence as it apparently did.
Ingram also said Bates probably benefited from her seat on the Ohio Board of Education. But there’s a big difference between what the state board does and what the local board handles, Ingram said.
“I think she’s in for a very steep learning curve as far as what needs to be done here,” Ingram said.
The new school board — Bates replaces Lynn Marmer, who declined to run for re-election — has a full plate. The first part of the massive facilities renovation plan is due in weeks. It will set a course for which schools will stay, which will go and which communities will get new schools.
High schools also are at the beginning of a restructuring, and the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers is expected to take a final vote this spring on whether to tie teacher pay to the Teacher Evaluation System. ©
This article appears in Nov 7-13, 2001.