JACKSON VOTERS TO CHOOSE SCHOOL LEADERS

JACKSON -- Jackson voters will go to the polls Tuesday to choose three school board members.

The three incumbents whose seats are coming open, Darrell Hanschen, Dr. T. Wayne Lewis and Vicky McDowell, filed for re-election, along with challengers Tom Ludwig and Ron Lowes.

Those elected will face serious issues, including the district's need for more facilities and an upcoming Missouri School Improvement Review.

Elected in 1987, Lewis, a dentist, has been on the board the longest of any incumbent. He holds his advanced certification from the Missouri School Boards Association.

Lewis and his wife, Linda, have a blended family of five grown children. All went through Jackson Public Schools.

"More than anything else, I hope to see the strong values of this community continue," Lewis said. "If there is any way I can be a part of that, I'd like to. I want to make a difference."

McDowell, a community health nurse and communicable disease coordinator at the Cape Girardeau County Health Department, has served one term on the board. In that time, she worked on several projects, including the completion of Jackson Middle School.

McDowell and her husband, Harold, have two sons, Zaughn, 23, and Reagan, 18.

"The reason I ran in the first place was that I wanted to serve the community, and I still want to do that," McDowell said.

Incumbent Hanschen said that, with a wife who teaches at Jackson Middle School and three teen-agers, he "lives school" at home. He was elected in 1990 after being encouraged to run by people who felt he kept up with school happenings.

Hanschen has lived in the Jackson school district his entire life except for a few years of pharmaceutical training and time in the Air Force. He works at Medicap Pharmacy in Jackson and lives in Fruitland.

"I really want to see the science and math lab built at the high school," Hanschen said. "We have really been working hard to get this going, and it looks like we will finally get to put something on the ballot."

Challenger Thomas Ludwig, a Jackson attorney for 18 years, said he feels his children's ages make 1996 the year to run. He and his wife, Christina, have two children, Matt, 18, and Sarah, 16.

Ludwig said his teen-agers require less time now but would help keep him involved in district events.

He currently serves as Jackson's city prosecutor and on the Jackson Planning and Zoning Board. If elected, it would be Ludwig's first public office.

"I want to leave the nuts and bolts of educating children to the educators, but there are other things I feel I can help with," he said.

A retired teacher, businessman and juvenile officer, Ron Lowes said his experience would help him make good decisions for Jackson Public Schools.

"The district has some really challenging times ahead with its growth," he said. "There's a need for some common-sense planning."

Lowes and his wife, Marilyn, have three children: Tracy Myer, who graduated Jackson High School in 1989; Jill, who is a senior; and Holly, a sophomore.