Four New Members Come To Urbandale School Board, President Ousted

URBANDALE, IA. -- Four newcomers will be welcomed to the Urbandale School Board next week after voters selected all rookies and ousted incumbent Graham Giles, who is the current board president. The school board meets at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 25 at Urbandale City Hall, 3600 86th St.

Elected to the four-year terms were Mark Smith with 285 votes, Stacy Andersen with 255 and Sarah Schmitz with 221, according to official results from the Polk County Election Office.

Giles placed fourth for three four-year seats with 214 votes and candidate Tessa Jones received 146 votes. Judy Downs, the lone candidate for a two-year board seat, received 376 votes.

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Incumbent Christopher Gunnare, who joined the board in 2013, did not seek re-election. Also leaving are Adam Obrecht and Mark Wierson, who were appointed to fill terms that expired this month.

After his loss, Giles said via Twitter: “Grateful to have served on the @UrbandaleSchool Board. I'm sure the new appointees will serve the district well.”

The Urbandale school district serves about 3,900 students.