By KARI BLURTON
Hays Post

Miranda “Mandy” Fox said she is running for a  seat on the USD 489 school board because she wants to make a positive difference in a system she believes is vital to any community.

Fox was in the running for the USD 489 school board last April when Darren Schumacher’s seat was vacated due to a job relocation. Though Sarah Rankin eventually was appointed to the position, Fox said it was a “positive experience” and believed it was time to give it another try.

“I really feel schools are the foundation for community growth and development,” Fox told Hays Post last week. “If you want to continue to grow Hays and continue to attract professionals … new business owners and professors and doctors, you have to have really good schools, because they will not come to a place that does not have a good support system for their family to grow and develop as well.”

Fox is Kansas State University graduate with a bachelor’s degree in agronomy, is owner of Fox-Z Consulting, an environmental consulting business, and has worked for K-State, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Texas A&M University, where she earned her master’s degree in soil science.

Current board members Sarah Rankin and Greg Schwartz have filed for the election, along with Luke Oborny, Jerald J. Braun and Leslie Blagrave.

Current USD 489 Board President James Leiker and vice-president Marty Patterson had not filed for re-election as of Friday afternoon.

The 2015 Ellis County city/school election is April 7. For a list of candidates and open seats, click HERE.