RAYMOND — The incumbent and one newcomer were elected to the Raymond School Board.
In Tuesday’s spring election, voters chose Audrey Kostuch and Ed Robinson to serve three-year terms with salaries of $2,350 per year on the School Board.
There were four candidates running for two seats on the board, which has faced intense scrutiny in the past several months.
According to unofficial results, incumbent Kostuch, who is the board president, received 568 votes, and Robinson received 562 votes.
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Shelly Kurhajec and Dorrae Moonen were the other candidates. They received 457 and 383 votes, respectively.
Kurhajec could not be reached for comment. Moonen declined to comment.
Robinson said he was “pretty pleased” to be elected and said he and Kostuch were de facto running mates.
“Her and I have kind of the same views about everything, so that worked out well,” Robinson said.
Robinson, a retired engineer, said he has lived in Raymond for nearly 30 years. He said some of his children attended Raymond School and some of his grandchildren are attending the school.
He hopes to be a “fresh face” on the School Board.
“I just want to bring some harmony back to the board and with the school and with the community,” Robinson said. “It’s about the kids.”
As a board member, Robinson plans to take in information and analyze the district’s situation before prioritizing what to do.
“Emotions are not part of this,” Robinson said. “That’s how I’m going to approach it.”
In an email, Kostuch said she “ran on the issue of offering only excellence in academics.”
“Providing our students with quality courses of study that would provide them for their futures was of the utmost importance to me,” she wrote. “Values and morals should be taught at home. Our students should never be experimented on and we, as parents or grandparents, should never have to worry about the ideology of the person teaching them. I think Raymond voters agreed with my stance on these subjects.”
Kostuch wrote that she looks forward to working with the new board.
“We have a rigid agenda ahead of us, and with new leadership being put in place soon, we can tackle those issues,” she wrote.
In the next several months, the board is expected to hire a permanent superintendent.
James Heiden will be Raymond School interim superintendent through the end of the school year.
Heiden replaced Michael Garvey, who resigned at the end of 2023.
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Residents voted Tuesday in a Raymond School Board recall election.
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Election worker Diane Nameth checks in a voter Tuesday during voting for a Raymond School Board recall election at Raymond Village Hall, 2255 …
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Election worker Gail Rygiewicz checks in a voter Tuesday during voting for a Raymond School Board recall election at Raymond Village Hall, 225…
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Tammi Kortendick submits her ballot Tuesday during voting for a Raymond School Board recall election at Raymond Village Hall, 2255 76th St.
Raymond School Board recall voters
Voters check in Tuesday during voting for a Raymond School Board recall election at Raymond Village Hall, 2255 76th St. Janell Wise defeated J…
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A sign directs voters Tuesday during voting for a Raymond School Board recall election at Raymond Village Hall, 2255 76th St. Janell Wise defe…
Raymond recall election
A sign informs voters Tuesday during voting for a Raymond School Board recall election at Raymond Village Hall, 2255 76th St. Janell Wise defe…