Two incumbents, one newcomer seek election
By Robert Cloud
Three candidates are running for three seats on the Waupaca School Board.
Incumbents Pat Phair and Steve Johnson are seeking re-election.
Dmitri Martin is making a first-time bid for a seat on the school board.
Because Connie Baldwin resigned from the board late last year in order to move to the LaCrosse area, her seat is currently vacant.
The two candidates receiving the most votes will serve full three-year terms.
The candidate with the least votes will serve the remaining two years of Baldwin’s term.
First elected to the school board in 2008, Johnson is currently the board president.
He attended Waupaca schools and graduated from the University of Southern California.
Chairman of the board of First National Bank and director of compliance, Johnson had 30 years experience in the insurance industry prior to his current position.
Phair is retired after more than 30 years as a Waupaca High School English teacher.
He has a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh and a master’s degree in English from Minnesota State University.
Phair was first elected to the Waupaca School Board in 2014.
Martin is a 1995 graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Platteville.
He owns a small business, GreenStar Home Performance, which helps homeowners make their dwellings more energy efficient.
Prior to starting GreenStar in 2004, Martin was the district executive for the Bay-Lakes Council of Boy Scouts of America.
He was the Democratic candidate for state Assembly in 2016.