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Two appointees face challengers in Springfield School Board race.

Article Excerpt
Byline: Anne Williams The Register-Guard

SPRINGFIELD - How powerful is the incumbent's advantage when you've been in office for only 10 months?

Laurie Adams and Al King, both appointed to the board last July, hope they've demonstrated enough commitment, cooperation and leadership ability in that time to persuade voters to let them stay on the job.

Newcomers Bill Lioio and Dave Johnson, on the other hand, want voters to recognize in them the skills and fresh perspectives that could make the school board stronger.

POSITION ONE

Bill Lioio, who is challenging Laurie Adams for a four-year term, said he began contemplating a run for the school board after former superintendent Jamon Kent's forced resignation last August. The school board came under fire for the way it handled the situation, with some critics questioning whether newcomers Adams and King sought appointment with the intent of firing Kent.

"I was disappointed when we lost him, and I was concerned about what was going on in the district that caused him to leave the district," said Lioio, a former police officer who has his own private investigating business, Tribunes Inc.

Lioio, 56, said he would have defended Kent had he been on the board. However, he added, "It's a done deal. It's not something I would be dwelling on."

Others encouraged him to run for the school board, he said, but his decision ultimately came down to his interest in education.

"I believe that a good education improves the quality of a person's life," said Lioio, who ran unsuccessfully on the Republican ticket for Senate District 21 in 1998. "It has been my experience that that's the case."

With the district facing a yawning budget gap in the next biennium, Lioio said he would push for an...

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