LEXINGTON — M. Lore’ Whitney is picking up where her father left off.
The younger Whitney was selected to finish her late father’s term on the Lexington Local Schools board of education during a special meeting Wednesday night. She will serve through the end of 2025.
Board president Keith Stoner and board members Martin Gottschling and David Roberts voted to appoint Whitney to the vacant seat.
Board member Rob Schuster abstained from the vote since Whitney is his aunt.
Whitney will be sworn in at the next regular school board meeting on Feb. 21.
Robert “Bob” Whitney served on the school board for almost 60 years, making him the longest-tenured school board member in the state. He spent more than 40 years as the board’s president. He died Jan. 1 at the age of 88.
“I applied for the vacant seat on the Lexington Local School Board because I want to continue the commitment my father started in 1964 when he filled a vacant seat in the school board,” M. Lore’ said.
“I believe I will be able to work together with the current board members and to answer the needs of the parents, students and staff.
“The school district is very successful and I attribute that to the administration, teachers, maintenance, staff — everyone that is an employee of the district,” she added.
The younger Whitney is a graduate of Lexington Local Schools and has been treasurer of the Lexington Athletic Booster Club since 2009. She is a part-time magistrate at Mansfield Municipal Court and maintains a private practice with the firm of Inscore, Rinehardt, Whitney and Enderle.
“Volunteering is my passion and to see to it the school has top-notch facilities for the student-athletes,” she said. “Becoming a member of the school board will undoubtedly broaden that outlook to further enhance the needs of the district.”
Gottschling said what set Whitney apart was involvement in the school system.
“I don’t know that there’s ever been a time that she said no to anything that was asked of her,” he said.
Supt. Jeremy Secrist said Whitney has a history of generosity both in and outside the school system.
“She puts in so much time and effort and money giving to people in the community who need it and kids who need it,” he said.
“I’m pleased. I think she’ll be a great addition to the board. I think she loves this place.”
25 residents applied for vacant school board seat
The school board received a total of 25 applicants to fill the elder Whitney’s term.
The full list included Rose Abruzzi, Gavin Bazley, Alex Boyd, Danielle Bussell, Alyssa Cassabaum-Smith, Emily Cockley, Lori Cope, Karrie Davisson, Katie Getz, Josh Grund, Jeff Heck, Dave Kaple, Eric Lehnhart, Ryan Leynaud, Joe Logan, Sarah Mumford, Charlene Parkinson, Dawn Pigg, Erich Schroader, Tiffany Snyder, Karyanne Spangler, Clay Sturts, Matt Trittschuh and Josh Wendling.
Stoner said he was pleased to have so many qualified, dedicated community members apply for the position.
“It was very gratifying to see that there were that many people who were interested in serving our community,” he said.
Stoner said the board narrowed the pool of candidates in three rounds. The board did not conduct interviews, but evaluated each candidate based on the same set of criteria.
“We actually reviewed every candidate and the input of all the members; if a member felt strongly about it, we put that candidate through to a second round. Then we did the same for third round,” he said.
“After we got to the third round, we were into a fairly small group of candidates.”
Stoner said the board considered each candidate’s school district and community involvement, relevant experience, familiarity with the duties and responsibilities of a school board member as well as their motivation and demeanor.
“We also had conversations about things like the perspective they might bring to our board. I’m pleased that we’re going to have a woman on the board again,” he said.
“It’s been a while since we had a woman on our board and I think that’s a nice perspective for us to have.”
