Missouri voters elected two new Columbia School Board members on Tuesday.
Jeanne Snodgrass maintains her seat and will be joined by first-time board member Alvin Cobbins. Snodgrass received 41% of the vote, followed by Cobbins with 38%. John Thomas Potter, who also ran for a Republican state representative seat in the 47th District, lost with 21% of votes.
Snodgrass and Cobbins hosted a combined watch party at International Tap House on Tuesday evening. Potter held a separate gathering at CJ’s Hot Wings, a chicken wing restaurant on Broadway.
Snodgrass will begin her second term on the board. She said she aims to build community and foster equal access to education across Columbia. She has served as the executive director of Mizzou Hillel since 2013 and has two children in the Columbia Public School system.
“[I’m] just thankful to be able to serve a second term and that voters trusted me,” Snodgrass said. “And what comes next? Just doing the work.”
Cobbins is a first-time board member, and emphasizes family involvement and retention, improvement of early childhood literacy rates and building trust in the community.
“Together, we can make a difference,” Cobbins said. “And we can only make that difference when we're together.”
Snodgrass and Cobbins received a joint endorsement from the Columbia Missouri National Education Association. They said they both plan to limit book banning, prevent gun-related violence and focus on student advancement.
They hold similar positions on school choice. Cobbins believes parents should maintain a say in where their children attend school but feels that public alternatives detract from Columbia Public Schools. Snodgrass empathizes with parents who have opted out of the public school system but opposes taxpayer’s funding private schools.
Potter campaigned his second bid for the board with goals to remove the district Equity Department, increase school choice and address behavioral issues in the classroom.
Snodgrass and Cobbins will begin their three-year, unpaid terms on Monday.
