TWO FILE FOR JACKSON BOARD OF EDUCATION SEATS

JACKSON -- Jackson Board of Education member Vicky McDowell filed Wednesday for re-election along with Ron Lowes.

McDowell has served on the board for three years, working on several projects, including completion of the new middle school. She serves on the high school science and math facility committee and the teachers' salaries committee.

McDowell and her husband, Harold, have two sons: Zaughn, 23, and Reagan, 18. She is a community health nurse and communicable disease coordinator at the Cape Girardeau County Health Department.

"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. "We've started some projects that I'd like to see completed."

Lowes said he had been considering candidacy for a long time and felt now was the time to put his teaching experience to use. He has been a classroom teacher, a football coach and was a juvenile officer for 20 years. Later, he became a businessman.

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

He and his wife, Marilyn, have three children: Tracy Myer, who graduated from Jackson High School in 1989; Jill, who is a senior; and Holly, a sophomore. Lowes, 52, retired in June.

Three seats on the board will be open in April. Dr. T. Wayne Lewis and Darrell Hanschen already have filed for re-election.

The deadline to file is 5 p.m. Jan. 30 at the Jackson Board of Education office.