Candidate Profiles: Yantis ISD Board Of Trustees

Early voting by personal appearance in the May 1, 2021, Yantis Independent School District school board election will begin Monday, April 19. Voters will be asked to choose up to three of the four candidates for full-term seats on Yantis ISD Board of Trustees

Early voting will be conducted from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. April 19-20, and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 21-27, at Wood County Annex, 200 West Bermuda St. in Quitman. Voting in the Yantis ISD school board election on Election Day, May 1, will be conducted from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the front lobby of Imogene Glenn Elementary, 105 West Oak in Yantis.

Applications for ballots by mail must be received no later than the close of business on Tuesday April 20, 2021, by Wood County Elections Administrator Laura Wise; mail ballot requests to Wise at PO Box 970, Quitman, Texas 75783.

To help voters learn a little more about the people seeking office, each school board candidate was asked to provide information about themselves and their candidacy, including their reasons for seeking a seat on the school board. Those responses are shared in ballot order below:

Trustee Candidates

• Name and office sought: Carrie Hurley, Trustee on Y.I.S.D school board
• Family information: 3 daughters; Kinley Hurley a junior at Y.I.S.D, Presley Hurley 8^th grader at Y.I.S.D, Claudia Hurley 3 ½ attends Lake Fork Wee School
• Occupation, brief job description: Owner of Thee Treehouse of Yantis, Works at Hidden Lakes Hunting Resort, and Full time student at PJC Radiology Technologist program
• Education, training, special skills, experience: Bachelors in Interdisciplinary Sciences, Public Educator for 4 years, 2003 Teacher of the Year at A.E. Butler, Owner/Teacher at Thee Treehouse private tutoring in Yantis for the past 9 years.
• Why are you seeking this office? I would love the opportunity to work with our community and Y.I.S.D. as we look to provide programs that can benefit our students in finding their talents and gaining the skills and confidence necessary for a positive and productive career path.
• What do you feel are the top areas of concern, need or challenges in the office you are seeking, and your plan to address them? I believe there are many benefits of vocational education in high school. I would like to see our students offered more Vocational training programs ranging anywhere from Healthcare and Electronics Technology to Carpentry and Plumbing. Incorporating more of these programs will ensure all types of intelligences are equally valued at our campus. I am sure funding for these programs would be one of our largest challenges. I believe by working with local businesses in seeking out scholarships as well as applying for federal and state funding to aid in the implementation of these programs will be a big first step in a positive direction of accomplishing this task.
• What do you feel is most important for the public to know about you and your candidacy? I am deeply invested, as 2 of my daughters are already students at Yantis I.S.D. I believe Y.I.S.D. is looking for innovative ways to continue to help our students, and I would love the opportunity to be a part of that team. My experience in the public and private sectors of education have helped me develop unique problem solving strategies as well as effective implementation techniques that would be a valuable asset to our board.

• Name and office sought: Ashly Vivion – Yantis ISD School Board Trustee
• Family information: Married for 16 years, 2 boys – Seth, Senior and Justice, 7th Grade
• Occupation, brief job description: Accounting/Office Clerk for a utility corp. for 12 years
• Education, training, special skills, experience: Yantis Little Dribblers Board – 8 years (7 years as President)
• Why are you seeking this office? To help Yantis ISD continue on the current path of improvement for the students and staff.
• What do you feel are the top areas of concern, need or challenges in the office you are seeking, and your plan to address them? I would like to try to help bridge the gap between school and community and help the school district continue with the improvements that are currently being made.
• What do you feel is most important for the public to know about you and your candidacy? I want each child within the school district to have the opportunity for the best education possible. I would love to be a voice not only for the kids but also the community.

• Name and office sought: Stacey Batchelor – YISD Trustee
• Family information: I am have been married for 16 years to Paul Batchelor. We have 4 kids between the 2 of us. Our 2 youngest are still attending Yantis ISD.
• Occupation, brief job description: I work at At Home Healthcare in Sulphur Springs as an Adult Care Therapy Coordinator. Our team coordinates all adult care therapy for the companies 10 branches across Texas.
• Education, training, special skills, experience: I am a Yantis ISD alumni. I served for 2 yrs on the Yantis Baseball association board, 5 yrs on the Yantis Little Dribblers board and 2 yrs on the Yantis PTO board.
• Why are you seeking this office? My goal is to uphold, serve and promote educational opportunities for all the students in our district.
• What do you feel are the top areas of concern, need or challenges in the office you are seeking, and your plan to address them? The students of YISD are my top priority, so my interest is the success and achievements of our students with fair and open-minded deliberation.
• What do you feel is most important for the public to know about you and your candidacy? I am honest, loyal and value fairness for everyone. I have a strong dedication and will work tirelessly to tackle any job with the best of my abilities. I have lived in Yantis for 35 years. I love this community and will strive to do my best for our district. I appreciate your votes.

• Name and office sought: Tyra Gilbreath Kenemore, candidate for election on the Yantis ISD Trustees.
• Family information: Married to Tommy Kenemore, and have two sons, Keith and Traityn, who both attend Yantis ISD; father Keith Gilbreath was on the Yantis ISD Board of Trustees for 18 years.
• Occupation, brief job description: A Deputy Clerk at the Hopkins County Clerk’s Office
• Education, training, special skills, experience: I have lived in Yantis all my life and attended Yantis ISD my entire school years. Then, graduated from Northeast Texas Community College with an Associate Degree in Farm & Ranch Management; attended Kilgore Police Academy, receiving peace officer certification and served as class president.; member of the Hopkins County Rodeo Board for 8 years.
• Why are you seeking this office? I am seeking re-election because I want to continue helping make Yantis ISD the best it can be.
• What do you feel are the top areas of concern, need or challenges in the office you are seeking, and your plan to address them? I feel it is important for the District to provide the best education possible. Academics, as well as extra curricular activities, make a well rounded education.
• What do you feel is most important for the public to know about you and your candidacy? I will work with the rest of the board and the superintendent to ensure the students get a well rounded education. I ask for your vote in the upcoming Yantis ISD Board of Trustees Election.