Four newcomers and one incumbent running for Upper Adams School Board recently met with voters and collected signatures to run for office during a community meet-and-greet at the Biglerville library.
Four seats are up for election on the nine-member school board. The seats held by Susan Crouse, Kay Hollabaugh, Jim Lady and Gerald Walmer are up for election. The municipal primary is set for May 20.
Upper Adams Community Cares, a group of parents and community members, organized the candidate event at the Harbaugh-Thomas Library on Saturday. Crouse and Lady attended but said they are not running for re-election.
Candidates Rachel Elliott, Hollabaugh, John Lindemulder, Eric Markle and Deb Steckler chatted with voters.
Elliott grew up in Arendtsville and returned when she and her husband started their family. She is a stay-at-home mom with two children in the district and graduated from Biglerville High School.
Elliott’s work experience includes marketing and web design. She recently became involved in Upper Adams Community Cares and has volunteered at school.
Elliott said she feels the current school board is heading in a direction she does not support.
“I think we need to have more transparency,” she said. “I feel like they’ve [the students] gotten lost in a different kind of agenda.”
Elliott said she loves when the community can come together. She said she wants to fight for “all the kids.”
“I think we have a wonderful community, and I want what’s best for our kids,” Elliott said.
With two years on the board under her belt, Hollabaugh is running to keep her seat.
“I would like to continue to fight very hard to keep our district strong and good,” the recently retired business owner said. “I’m a strong advocate for parents’ rights in the education of their children.”
Hollabaugh recently retired from Hollabaugh Bros. Inc. after nearly 40 years in the family business. She has four grandchildren enrolled in the district and a grandson who just graduated last year.
Hollabaugh is involved in the Upper Adams Lions Club, the Adams County Fruit Growers Association, Trinity Lutheran Church, and the Canner Funds. She is a past board member of the Adams County Community Foundation.
If re-elected, Hollabaugh said she would like to continue supporting the Upper Adams faculty, administration, parents, and, “most importantly,” the students.
Lindemulder, a realtor, has lived in Upper Adams for more than 30 years. He and his wife raised four daughters who graduated from Biglerville. He has coached girls’ basketball at every level, from elementary through high school, including for Upper Adams.
Lindemulder said his desire to give back prompted him to run for office.
“I just want to feel like I’m contributing,” he said. “It’s about bringing it all together and doing what’s right for the students.”
In his past career, Lindemulder spent more than 20 years managing Walmart stores. He said he had 500 to 600 employees working under him at any given time.
If elected, Lindemulder said he hopes to work with board members to meet in the middle on decisions.
“It’s not about being right or wrong,” he said. “I think everyone needs a voice at the table, and that’s not happening.”
Markle is a life-long resident of Adams County who has lived in Upper Adams for nearly 20 years. He is an enterprise systems developer at George Washington University with more than 20 years of experience in higher education.
Markle and his wife have a son in elementary school and will soon have a daughter in kindergarten. He has seen his son thrive at Upper Adams and wants to serve on the board to ensure all students continue to have a great experience at the district.
Markle believes the board should support the staff and administration in a fiscally responsible way.
“I want to be there to make sure that they’re able to get what they need,” he said.
Markle said there is a lack of trust between the community and the board, which he wants to rebuild.
In his spare time, Markle coaches tee-ball and volunteers at Strawberry Hill.
Steckler, a realtor, has lived in Adams County for more than 20 years. She and her husband have two children in the district. This marks her second time running for school board.
“I want the children in this district to get a well-rounded education with as many opportunities as they can without it being a huge stress on the taxpayers,” she said.
Steckler feels the current board has not been listening to the community, and she wants to change that. She also believes trained professionals should be in charge of students’ education, not elected officials.
Steckler is involved in the Biglerville and Gettysburg garden clubs, the Land Conservancy of Adams County, the Hanover Area Parrothead Society, the Adams County Parks, Recreation, and Green Space Committee, and the Upper Adams Intermediate School Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO). She is a past president of the Upper Adams Lions Club and the Biglerville Elementary School PTO.
Biglerville Mayor Phil Wagner welcomed attendees to the meet-and-greet and expressed his appreciation for the board. Community members brought donations for the Upper Adams Food Pantry.
The last day to register to vote in the primary election is May 5. The last day to apply for a mail-in ballot is May 13.
If you are running for Upper Adams School Board and would like to be interviewed, please contact Mary Grace at mgkwriter@gmail.com.
Featured image caption: Kelly Pelc.
Mary Grace Kauffman, freelance reporter, worked six years as a full-time reporter for newspapers in Pennsylvania and Maryland. She has covered topics including business, crime, education, government and features. Mary Grace has a bachelor's degree in communication/journalism from Shippensburg University. She resides in Adams County.
Great coverage. Thank you.