Washington County Enterprise-Leader
Voters Choose Warren, Davis In School Elections
FARMINGTON — Voters returned an incumbent to Farmington School Board, and a newcomer will take a seat on Prairie Grove School Board, according to unofficial results released by Washington County Election Commission for the May 24 school elections.
Fa rm ing ton School Board President Travis Warren was reelected to the board but now will serve in the Zone 2 position instead of an at-large position.
Warren received 288 vote s , or 63.16%, and his challenger, Atina King, received 143 votes, or 31.36%.
According to the Washington County Clerk’s office, 1,737 people in Farmington School District’s Zone 2 had registered to vote in the school election, a turnout of about 25%.
For Prairie Grove School District, two newcomers, Cassie Davis and Trenton Dunn, sought the Zone 1 position on Prairie Grove School Board. Board member Shawn Shrum did not run for reelection.
Davis was elected to the Zone 1 position with 268 votes, or 54.69%, to Dunn’s 192 votes, or 39.18%.
About 26% of registered voters in Zone 1 for Prairie Grove School District cast ballots in the election. According to the county clerk’s office, Zone 1 had 1,743 registered voters for the school election.
With the May 24 election, both Farmington and Prairie Grove school boards now will be zoned school boards, instead of boards made up of at- large members. School board members must live in their respective zones and are elected by registered voters in those zones.
State law requires any board of a community having a combined minority population of more than 10% to create zones.
According to the 2020 census, Farmington School District has a 19.6% minority population. The 2020 census reported Prairie Grove School District with a 17.6% minority population
Wa r ren l ast we e k expressed appreciation for those who supported him in the election.
“There’s a lot of good people that think I do things right. God bless them for thinking that because I don’t do everything right. I try,” Warren said.
Warren, who has served on Farmington School Board since 2013, has not face opposition in past elections.
“This is the first time I had to campaign,” he said. “I’ll be candid. I’m not very good at it. I’m not a social media person. I was kinda coached on what to do. That helped a lot.”
He said King ran a good campaign and worked really hard.
“I appreciated it,” Warren said. “I know that she has some concerns that we probably as a district should look harder into. The one thing this campaign did was that it opened my eyes that not everything is wine and roses.”
King has advocated a public comment period at school board meetings. Warren said he believes the school board will review this policy, though he didn’t know if board members would decide to change it or not.
Warren said he was standing outside on election day holding a campaign sign when his phone buzzed with a news alert about the tragic, fatal school shooting in Texas. He said that’s one thing he will recommend the school do, is to review and assess its safety protocols for school buildings.
Another issue facing the school district, he said, is providing for student growth and maintaining excellence with growth.
Warren, who has served as board president since 2019, is supply chain manager for
Twin Rivers Foods, a locally owned processor of food products.
Davis also expressed her appreciation for those who supported her in the election.
“I’m very thankful for those who believed in me and voted for me,” Davis said, adding she was proud of the voter turnout in Zone 1.
Davis, a graduate of Prairie Grove High School, is co-owner of Davis Riverview Farms with her husband and a substitute teacher in the school district with Kelly Services.
Davis said she plans to continue to substitute in the district, noting she hopes to be able to “bridge a gap” between students and teachers and the administration and school board.
She usually has substituted at the high school but said she plans to substitute at other schools in the district to learn more about those buildings.
Davis and her husband have two children in the district.
Davis said she does not have any specific goals as a new board member but is “just excited to learn the ropes and get the basics.”
All other candidates for school board positions were unopposed and elected to their positions:
Farmington School Board
• Zone 1: Josh Petree, incumbent
• Zone 3: Amy Hill, incumbent
• Zone 4: Lori Blew, incumbent
• Zone 5: Mark Vaughn, incumbent
Lincoln School Board
• Zone 1: Ronnie Remington, incumbent
• Zone 3: Julie McConnell, newcomer
Prairie Grove School Board
• Zone 2: J.C. Dobbs, incumbent
• Zone 3: Whitney Bryant, incumbent
• Zone 4: Bart Orr, incumbent
• Zone 5: Vacant (Matt Hargis resigned May 13)