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Interested in Running for a Board of Education Seat

Running for the Belleville Henderson School Board

There is one board member seat up for election on May 19, 2026
This seat is a five-year term (July 1, 2026- June 30, 2031)
The seat is currently occupied by Dennis Jerome

Commitment to Public Education
A school board member takes on one of the most important citizen responsibilities: overseeing the education of the community’s youth. In these challenging times for public education, school boards are seeking men and women who find excitement and satisfaction in confronting tough challenges and working collegially to rise above them and help students in their communities succeed.

The board of education is a uniquely American institution. It oversees and manages the community’s public-school system. It ensures the public schools are flexible and responsive to the needs of the community.  School boards are comprised of volunteers within the community who dedicate their time to better public education.

The Belleville Henderson Board of Education is made up of 7 members.  Members serve a term of five years, beginning July 1 of the year they are voted in and ending June 30 of their fifth year.

Responsibilities of a Board Member
With schoolchildren always their ultimate focus, school board members act officially at the board table, working with other board members to serve students and accomplish the following:

  • Create a shared vision for the future of education
  • Set the direction of the school district to achieve the highest student performance
  • Provide rigorous accountability for student achievement results
  • Develop a budget and present it to the community, aligning district resources to improve achievement
  • Support a healthy school district culture for work and learning
  • Create strategic partnerships with the community stakeholders
  • Build the district’s progress through continuous improvement
  • Adopt and maintain current policies
  • Hire and evaluate the superintendent
  • Ratify collective bargaining agreements
  • Maintain strong ethical standards

Characteristics of a Board Member
Below are attributes that all effective board members should possess:

  • Effective Communicator: Can describe what he or she wants and describe what others want; a good listener
  • Consensus Builder: Capable of working toward decisions that all can support and willing to compromise to achieve goals
  • Community Participant: Enjoys meeting a variety of people, can identify the community’s key communicators and reaches out to the community
  • Decision Maker: Is comfortable making decisions and can support group decision-making
  • Information Processor: Can organize priorities and schedules to handle large amounts of verbal and written information
  • Leader: Willing to take risks, be supportive of board colleagues, district staff and community
  • Team Player: Helps promote the board’s vision and goals

Running for Your Local School Board
Once you have made the commitment to run for your local school board, there are requirements, deadlines, and processes that must be adhered to.

Eligibility Requirements

  • School board candidates must be a U.S. citizen, at least 18 years old, qualified voters in the school district and able to read and write
  • They must be residents of their districts continuously for one year before the election
  • They cannot be employed by the board on which they serve or live in the same household with a family member who is also a member of the same school board

Nominating Petitions
The requirements for filing nominating petitions for the Belleville Henderson School Board:

  • Candidates must submit a nominating petition to the school district clerk
  • The petition must be signed by at least 25 qualified district voters

The petition must include the following:

  • Candidate’s name and residence
  • Vacancy in question
  • Incumbent’s name (if any)
  • Residences of the persons who signed the petition
  • Length of the term of office for which the candidate is being nominated

Blank petitions, other forms, and information to run for the Board are available for pick up by contacting Mrs. Sally Kohl, District Clerk.

Email: skohl@bhpanthers.org
Phone: 315-846-5826

Important Deadlines:

  • Petitions must be filed with the District Clerk on or before 5pm on Monday, April 20, 2026
  • First expenditure contribution statement due on or before the 30th day preceding the election
    • Due Date:  April 20, 2026
  • Second expenditure/contribution statement due on or before the 5th day preceding the election
    • Due Date:  May 14, 2026
  • Third expenditure/contribution statement is due on or before 20 days after the election (regardless of election outcome)
    • Due Date:  June 8, 2026

For additional information please visit the New York State School Board Association's (NYSSBA) webpage: https://www.nyssba.org/clientuploads/nsbmx/