The race for Mexico Board of Education has rounded out to four candidates with the filing of Todd Yager of Arnold Funeral Home. Another first-time candidate, Lisa Ovaitt, is also running against incumbents Dustin Pascoe and Kelli Teel for three board seats.

Yager has a long family history in education, and he even considered being an educator himself before going into the funeral and mortuary business.

"My mom is a teacher. I have probably 20 family members, aunts and uncles that are all teachers,” he said. “My dad was on the school board in Monroe City.”

Yager is originally from Monroe City but moved to Mexico in 1999. He is a co-owner of Arnold Funeral Home.

Yager wants to take an objective approach to each board issue. At this point, he doesn't have any specific goals for the district, though he would like to explore opportunities to increase teachers’ pay. The board most recently voted to increase teacher pay in April.

"I'm going in with an open mindset," he said. "I could bring a different perspective."

Yager's career field allows him to get to know people from all walks of life, which would serve him well on the board, he said.

Yager has not yet had a chance to attend school board meetings but plans to start attending them next month. He has two children who attend Mexico High School and said he is surprised that many classes are conducted remotely, with a teacher videoconferencing with the class.

"It tells me maybe they're not able to pay people a little more,” Yager said. “You think, do the teachers get paid enough or what is going on to not be able to fill a position. I'm on the outside looking in, so I try not to judge it too much.”

Increasing teacher pay would also require more evaluations since they are receiving more, he said. "Just like any job, the more you get paid, the more you're held responsible," he said.

cdunlap@gatehousemedia.com