The school and city election is scheduled for November 7 and this election cycle we have 2 seats on the school board up for election. There are 3 candidates running for these seats and include incumbents Dave Ball, who is seeking his third term on the board, and Amy Thole who is seeking her first full term after being appointed to fill a vacancy. Jared Seliger, who is running for his first term on the board rounds out the slate of candidates for this election. I encourage you to take a few minutes to read about these candidates and be ready to case your vote on November 7!
Dave Ball, (Incumbent President of the Board)
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Dave is finishing his second term on the Hudson Board of Directors and is excited to be running for a third term and continue to be involved in the great progress the district is making. Originally from Dubuque, Iowa Mr. Ball graduated from Wahlert Catholic High School and served 3 years in the U.S. Army. Post-secondary education includes: Associate of Arts from Kirkwood Community College, Bachelor of Arts in Sociology/Political Science from Mount Mercy University and Master of Arts in Educational Leadership and Public Policy from Iowa State University. Dave has worked over 33 years in higher education with 16 of those years spent at Hawkeye Community College as the Director of Admissions, Student Life and Athletics. Dave is semi-retired and currently teaches adjunct classes at Kirkwood community college and performs consultant services as well.
Dave and his wife Lisa moved to Hudson 14 years ago and have three adult children and 4 grandchildren.
Dave believes equitable and sustainable funding continues to be a challenge and one that doesn’t appear to be going away anytime soon. Integrating technology into the curriculum continues to be a topic schools districts need to stay on top of as well. Dave hopes to continue offering an objective and unique point of view. He has experience working with numerous K-12 schools across the state. His overall vision and agenda for Hudson schools is to support and advocate for our teachers, administrators, and most importantly our students.
Dr. Jared Seliger
Originally from Jesup, Dr. Seliger is a graduate of Don Bosco High School and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Loras College; a certificate in nuclear medicine from the University of Iowa, an MBA from the University of Northern Iowa, and a PdD in Educational Leadership from Iowa State University. He has worked at Allen College in Waterloo where he started as program director in the Nuclear Medicine Technology program. In 2018, he was named President of Allen College.
Dr. Seliger and his wife Miranda have lived in Hudson since 2010 and are raising one daughter, Tenley who is currently in 2nd grade. He is excited to be running for a seat on the school board and is eager to give back to the community. Jared believes our public school system is the catalyst and foundation to success in life and wants to ensure that Tenley and all children in our community continue to receive an exemplary education. He hopes that by serving on the board, he will be a strong advocate for children in Hudson and work to ensure the education they receive is among the best in the state and country.
From a statewide perspective, he believe the greatest challenge to be an ever shrinking pipeline of young people pursuing education as a career. Dr. Seliger points out that Iowa has numerous small, rural districts that can make it difficult to compete for talent. The inability to attract strong teachers to smaller school districts will make it even more difficult to adequately serve the needs of students in those districts.
On the other hand, he believes the greatest challenge facing the Hudson Community School District is rapid growth. As more students move into the district, the current infrastructure is not sufficient to meet the needs of a growing student population. While he applauds the current expansion and renovation at the high school, he recognizes that continued student growth will create additional infrastructure challenges.
Amy Lichty Thole (Incumbent)
The daughter of Tom and Christy Lichty, Amy Lichty Thole grew up on a farm outside of Hudson. Amy and her siblings open enrolled to Hudson Schools and graduated in 2008. Amy holds degrees from Hawkeye Community College and the University of Northern Iowa with a Bachelor's degree in Business Marketing. For the past six years, Amy has been employed at Hawkeye Community College where she serves as the Associate Director of Athletics.
Amy and her husband Michael Thole have a three year old daughter, Charlotte and a 8 month old son, Eli. She is drawn to board service in Hudson because of the way Hudson shaped her life during her formative years. Amy believes in the quality of education she received at Hudson schools and wants to be engaged and involved in ensuring successful outcomes are accomplished for all Hudson students. Amy also believes strongly in extracurricular activities as it builds community amongst peer students and leadership roles and provides them with exposure to things such as sports, music, drama, FFA, and much more. Amy's current employment sees the value that athletics plays in collaboration with all the skills and knowledge that are accomplished and the relationship to success in the classroom. She hopes to continue sharing her knowledge and expertise in that area with the board.
As an administrator at a postsecondary institution, Amy recognizes that mental health is one of the greatest challenges facing educators in Iowa. She feels that it is paramount that we do all we can to connect students with services that will enable them to be successful in life.
At the local level, Amy is interested in helping address the challenges Hudson will face in the near future as district enrollment grows. As class sizes increase, it will be important to ensure that we continue to provide the smaller class sizes that make our school district so appealing. Amy also realizes that it will be important to ensure we have the programming necessary to meet the needs of our growing community, ranging from early childhood education all the way to college and career readiness. She hopes her service to the board will add a solution oriented voice to address the complex issues facing the district while planning for the future.
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