Retired educator wins election to Chester County school board

A retired educator was elected to the Chester County school board’s at-large seat in a special election Tuesday, defeating a local minister who had previously served on the board.

Anne Holladay Collins was elected to the school board by almost a three-to-one margin over the Rev. Bill Stringfellow, according to unofficial results from all 21 precincts and absentee ballots.

Collins received 1,351 votes, or about 74 percent of the total ballots cast, compared to 473 votes for Stringfellow, or about 26 percent, said Terry Graham, Chester County elections director. He said there were three write-in ballots.

Graham said only about 9 percent of Chester County voters cast ballots in the special election.

Collins and Stringfellow sought election to the remaining term of the seat held by Richard Hughes, who announced his resignation for personal reasons. The term expires in 2018.

Collins, 68, taught and worked in South Carolina public schools for 37 years, including in Chester County, where she also worked in the district office as public information director. She taught for 12 years at Winthrop University and has a doctorate in educational leadership from the University of South Carolina.

Stringfellow, 74, is pastor at Boozer Chapel Baptist Church in Newberry. He held the at-large seat for one four-year term, from 2010 to 2014, before losing it in an election to Hughes. He said he also served 26 years in the District 5 seat.

Collins said she is a believer in following procedure and in staying within budget. She said she wants to bring consensus to the board, which was divided after the 2015 forced resignation of former Superintendent Agnes Slayman.

Collins said the board saved money with its recent decision to name the interim superintendent, Angela Bain, who has served since January, as the permanent leader.

“I wish they had gone through the right procedure to do it, but I think Dr. Bain will do a great job,” Collins said, referring to the absence of a formal search and interview process in Bain’s hiring.

Collins said board members need to listen to constituents. She said some voters have complained in the past that the Chester board did not listen to their voices.

“We have to be concerned with what the people who elected us think is important,” Collins said. “And I think one of the things they think is that procedure is important. And taxpayers think the wise use of their money is important.”

She also said the school board needs to work toward “making this a welcome place to encourage industry, to enlarge our tax base.” She said that would allow the district to responsibly update its infrastructure and replace old school buildings.

This story was originally published May 24, 2016 at 9:02 PM with the headline "Retired educator wins election to Chester County school board."