Incumbents keep seats on Columbia Public School Board

UPDATE: 11:30 p.m.: The Columbia Public School Board will see no changes after the three incumbents running for reelection won their seats for another three years. Jonathan Sessions, Helen Wade, and Paul Cushing will be returning to the board.

Challenger Robin Dianics won just under 14 percent of the vote.

The three incumbents said they were grateful to voters for allowing them another three years to serve on the board and are looking forward to continuing the work they have accomplished.

Sessions, a third-generation Columbian, said he is happy and thankful to continue to serve the community that has led to his successes.

“I grew up here in Boone County. I’m a graduate of the Columbia Public Schools. I’m a graduate of the University of Missouri. This is the community that I’ve chosen to stay in, I continue to want to serve, and I continue to want to be a part of supporting the organizations that were integral to my success. I’m so happy to be back.”

Sessions also talked about his desire to finish the current 10-year plan and eliminate trailers at all Columbia public schools by 2020.

“I want, over the next three years, make sure that we accomplish that and keep our promises,” he said.

He also said it’s important to him that as the board wraps up the current 10-year plan ending in 2020, there’s another 10-year plan ready to go to lead them to 2030.

“We’re going to be out from behind eight-ball, we’re not going to be a district with overcrowded buildings. We’re not going to be a district where we’re frantically trying to catch up. We’re going to be in a place where we’re going to be able to plan and prepare and continue to work with city and county organizations on future school locations,” he said.

Wade said she believes the district has handled growth fairly well in recent years but also wants to be ahead of the curve when it comes to planning future school locations. She said a shifting funding formula and population growth makes it difficult to plan accurately.

“I think going forward we’re well aware of the challenges that we face and are in a position to meet those challenges in an effective and forward thinking way rather than being as reactive as we may have been in the past,” she said.

Wade said she’s excited to be working with the same group of board members and that they have a good understanding of each other’s opinions.

“We’re pretty good at analyzing issues from different perspectives because we all bring something different to the board. I think ultimately that serves the community really well because they can expect that we have all of their voices in mind when we make decisions going forward,” she said.

Wade also said a good school district is not just a benefit to the students attending Columbia schools but that it can also be an economic driver.

“The strength of our district is a driver of our economy, it is really something that draws people to Columbia. That can be a blessing and a curse at the same time because certainly that drives the growth that we’re dealing with now. But our district and what we do here is creative, it’s forward thinking, it’s different than what other districts are doing in some ways and in very positive ways. I think those things are the things that set us apart as a district and ultimately set us apart as a community,” she said.

Cushing, elected now to a second full-term, said he’s excited to be working with the same group of board members and continue the work they’ve laid out ahead of them.

“We’ve mapped out a bunch of work that needs to be done and I hope we can continue working on all of that. We’re going to build a new middle school and we’re working on Lee Elementary. Then I think we want to work on the achievement gap and test scores and all those things and we all know what we need to do and I think that’s very important,” he said.

Cushing said he was worried about the race and thought challenger Dianics would be able to take his spot on the board.

“She did a great job presenting what she wanted and I was kind of worried throughout the race that I may not get reelected. You never really know what people want or need. I just had to be honest and present my case and hope for the best,” he said.

ORIGINAL STORY: Four candidates are vying for a spot on the Columbia Public School Board. Three will be elected to the board.

Helen Wade, Paul Cushing, Jonathan Sessions and Robin Dianics are on the ballot.

Wade was first elected to the board in 2011. She has lived in Columbia since the mid-90s and has a bachelor’s degree from Columbia College along with a law degree from University of Missouri. She works locally as a lawyer.

Cushing was elected to the board in 2014 and serves on the board’s finance committee. He studied robotic systems at a vocational school in Florida and works as a senior software engineer.

Sessions was elected to the board in 2010 and is a third-generation Columbian. He has a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from University of Missouri.

Dianics retired from insurance-sales management in 2012. She lived in Columbia from 2007 to 2010 and moved back in 2012. She is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in human-resource management.