School board candidates in Indiana can now disclose their party affiliation, but in Monroe County, none has filed as a Republican or Democrat so far, though two are listed as independents.
Three seats on the Monroe County Community School Corp. board and two on the Richland-Bean Blossom Community School Corp. board are up for election this fall.
As of Tuesday afternoon, with fewer than 48 hours before the filing deadline — noon on June 18, 2026 — only one of the races, for the Richland District on the RBB board, is contested.
For the MCCSC seats, all incumbents are seeking re-election. On the RBB board, none of the incumbents has filed for re-election yet.
A state law passed last year allows candidates to declare a party affiliation, though they can choose not to disclose one or run as independents.
MCCSC school board election
The MCCSC board has seven members. Three of the seats are up for election this year.
Candidates who have filed so far:
All three are incumbents. None declared a party affiliation in their filings. Wyatt and Pirani were elected in 2022. Jester was appointed by the board in 2024 after the elected member, Brandon Shurr, resigned.
The elections come at a time of financial strain, as the school corporation is being squeezed by slower growth in property tax collections and declining enrollment, which is limiting increases in state funding even as costs continue to rise. MCCSC leaders have allowed dozens of positions to go unfilled and, in May, for the first time in more than a decade, eliminated a teaching position.
None of the three candidates responded to an email asking what additional cuts might be considered if declining enrollment and reduced revenue trends continue.
Wyatt and Pirani also did not answer a question about transparency. Both participated in a 48-second meeting in 2024 in which board members agreed to a $229,000 buyout of the superintendent’s contract — but didn’t say during the meeting that’s what they were doing.
Public access experts criticized that meeting as “perfunctory,” with Luke Britt, then the state’s public access counselor, saying that school board members should not only explain what they are doing but also should have a “robust discussion” on their votes, especially when they are making a decision on the contract of the corporation’s highest-paid employee.
RBB school board election
The RBB board has five members. Two seats are up for election this year.
Candidates who have filed so far:
Curtis did not declare party affiliation. Scholl and Adams both listed as independents. None of the candidates who have filed so far is an incumbent. Incumbent Dana Robert Kerr, the current board president, did not reply to a voicemail. Incumbent Angie Jacobs could not be reached.
RBB Superintendent Jerry Sanders did not reply to an emailed inquiry.
Neither the Democratic nor Republican parties’ leaders replied to an email asking whether they had conversations with candidates about declaring their party affiliation.
State law limits school board member pay to $2,000 per year plus a per-meeting stipend capped by the rate set for Indianapolis school board members.
Boris Ladwig can be reached at bladwig@heraldt.com.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Few candidates, no party labels in Monroe school board races so far
Reporting by Boris Ladwig, The Herald-Times / The Herald-Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Boris Ladwig, The Herald-Times | USA TODAY Network
