Three candidates are running for two seats on the Mehlville Board of Education: Ben Droney, Scott Huegerich and Sarah Grace Wright. All three candidates are new to public office. 

While there were several issues this year that could be considered “contentious” we still consider it a testament to the district and its engagement seeing parents wanting to serve, particularly those new to office. 

The district is currently being forced to reevaluate the project list for Proposition S, the $35 million no-tax-rate increase bond measure passed by voters in April 2021 to fund facility and security improvements. Rising construction costs and supply chain issues means the district will no longer be able to address everything it originally wanted to under Prop S. In a time like this, we believe that Wright’s background in engineering and experience planning and building taxpayer-funded public infrastructure projects would make her a valuable asset to the board. The Call endorses Wright.

In both his questionnaire and endorsement interview, Huegerich comes across as someone willing to hear both sides of an argument while trying to find a middle ground that would benefit the majority of students. It is easy to get distracted by politics or the need to be right, but at the end of the day, serving on the school board is about serving students, not pushing an agenda. The Call endorses Huegerich.  

The Call reached out to Droney multiple times to set-up an editorial interview ahead of the election, and to give us the chance to get to know him better, since all three candidates are new to office. Droney declined an interview with us, claiming that between his job and other commitments he was too strapped for time. We certainly respect any career and other life demands a candidate may have, but we have to question how well someone would be able to effectively serve on a public board, with at least one multi-hour meeting a month, in addition to committee meetings and other obligations, if they are unable to find time for a 30-minute interview with their local paper.