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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

East Valley School District Director 3

Election Results

Candidate Votes Pct
Justin Voelker 2,001 60.75%
Heidi Gillingham 1,911 48.85%

* Race percentages are calculated with data from the Secretary of State's Office, which omits write-in votes from its calculations when there are too few to affect the outcome. The Spokane County Auditor's Office may have slightly different percentages than are reflected here because its figures include any write-in votes.

About The Race

This school district which covers an area in Spokane Valley north of I-90 and east to the state line has three contested seats this year. Since 2010, the district has seen a change to a K-8 teaching model which eliminated the district’s two middle schools. Supporters believe the plan will give students more opportunities academically, athletically and socially, while opponents of the plan believe the district doesn’t have the infrastructure to support more students in each building. The position pays a stipend of $50 per meeting, with a maximum of $4,800 per year.

The Candidates

Justin Voelker

Age:
48
City:
Spokane Valley, Washington

Education: Graduated from La Grande High School in La Grande, Oregon, in 1993. Earned a bachelor's degree in accounting from Eastern Oregon University in 1997. Earned a master's degree in health care management from the University of Phoenix in 2005.

Political experience: Elected to East Valley School District School Board in 2013 and 2017. 

Work experience: Serves as the chief financial officer at MultiCare Valley Hospital.

Family: Married; has two children.

Heidi Gillingham

Age:
55
City:
Spokane Valley, WA
Occupation:
Community Volunteer

Currently a board member in district 3.

Complete Coverage

Bond set for substitute teacher Deryan, charged in alleged assaults at Trent Elementary

A cash bond of $20,000 was set Friday for a substitute teacher accused of assaulting several sixth-grade students at Trent Elementary School on Thursday. Matthew C. Deryan, 46, has also been barred from returning to the East Valley school and from consuming alcohol. Spokane County Superior Court Judge Greg Sypolt said he was concerned that Deryan was in a position of trust when the alleged assaults occurred and noted that he was arrested for driving under the influence in Kootenai County last month.

Trent Elementary teacher under investigation for inappropriate behavior

Trent Elementary School in the East Valley School District announced today that a substitute teacher is under investigation for putting his hands on students and “other inappropriate things.” A sixth-grade student went to the school office at 1:45 p.m. to report that the teacher had “lost control” and was putting his hands on students, said Assistant Superintendent Tom Gresch. “Our principal immediately went down there and removed the teacher,” Gresch said.

Spokane Valley 2nd grader brought knife to school

SPOKANE VALLEY — A Spokane Valley student was removed from school Tuesday after allegedly threatening other students with a knife. She’s a second-grader.

Substitute teachers shortage hits area schools

Spokane schools are in a bind over a short-term shortage of substitute teachers. A hiring binge in the wake of recent court ruling that required more state spending on basic education, such as full-day kindergarten and smaller class sizes, raided the pool of temporary help.

Spokane voters approve library tax

Spokane voters easily approved a City Charter amendment giving the police ombudsman more authority and a tax to ensure that branch libraries won’t close.

EV teacher receives Spokane’s 100th transplant

Whether it was the balloons or the lively rendition of “Happy Birthday,” it was impossible to miss the party room on the seventh floor of Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center on Wednesday morning. It was East Valley High School math teacher Roger Jamison’s birthday. Or rather, his stem cell birthday.

Data helps teachers learn about kindergartners’ abilities

Washington kindergartners are physically coordinated enough for their first year of school, but their ability to count to 20 and clearly express themselves are lagging, according to a new assessment released by the state. Early-learning advocates suspected the state’s kindergartners were entering school less than fully prepared, especially low-income and minority students. Now there’s data to back up the theory.