Submitted
Each of the eight Democratic municipal candidates in Fishers have reaffirmed their support for continued funding for Hamilton Southeastern Schools. They strongly encourage Fishers citizens to vote to renew the referendum in the upcoming general election on Nov. 7.
The eight Democratic municipal candidates in Fishers acknowledge that HSE Schools serves 21,500 students and is a top-performing district in Indiana, but the third-lowest funded public school district in the state. The candidates say they believe that a high-quality school district is necessary for Fishers to continue to attract people to the community and positively impact residents’ property values.
HSE Schools’ referendum renewal will provide necessary revenue for competitive teacher salaries, maintaining class sizes and funding academic programs and other crucial operating expenses. The referendum tax rate will be lowered by 12 percent to 19.95 cents per $100 in taxpayer property assessed value, instead of the current 22.75 cents per $100 in taxpayer property assessed value. If approved by voters, the referendum will generate an estimated $24 million per year for HSE Schools for the next eight years.
On July 12, a majority of the HSE Schools board of trustees finalized the referendum renewal that will appear on the Nov. 7 general election ballot. The Fishers City Council approved a resolution in support of the referendum in bipartisan support.
“Loudly supporting HSE Schools and all of its students is a requirement of every Fishers leader,” said Hamilton County Democratic Party Chair Dayna Colbert. “Neighbors will see Democratic candidates lead our community as we always do, with fiscal responsibility, transparency, balance, genuine compassion for all students and strong support for local educators.”
Current Fishers City Council member at-large Jocelyn Vare and current City Council member for the North Central District Crystal Neumann offered their full support for HSE Schools and pledged to encourage Fishers voters to approve the referendum. Vare and Neumann are joined by the other six Democratic municipal candidates in Fishers who support the HSE Schools’ referendum renewal:
- Janet Pritchett, City Clerk candidate
- Howard Stevenson, City Council, At-Large candidate
- Bill Stuart, City Council, South West District candidate
- Bill McLellan, City Council, North West District candidate
- Lane Skeeters, City Council, South Central District candidate
- Samantha Chapman, City Council, North East District candidate
About the candidates
At-Large: Jocelyn Vare
Vare is an at-large member of Fishers City Council and currently serves as the first Democrat ever elected to Fishers municipal office. In 2022, she ran for Indiana State Senate to represent Fishers at the statehouse and earned over 16,000 votes from Fishers residents. She is a 22-year resident of Fishers, the mom of two HSE Schools graduates, a local small business owner, a volunteer and a champion for the community she loves.
Vare is a member of the Fishers Finance Committee and Fishers Arts + Culture Commission. She served as a committee chair for the successful HSE Schools referendum in 2016. She is a graduate of Fishers City Government Academy, Hamilton County Leadership Academy, Ball State’s Economic Development Course and Community Development Course. In 2021, Vare was recognized as an Impact Award nominee, one of 30 alumni designated in the Hamilton County Leadership Academy’s 30-year history.
North Central: Crystal Neumann
Neumann serves as a member of Fishers City Council for the North Central district. She is a Latina, first-generation American, with a passion to make a difference and become a role model for others. She is also passionate about sustainability efforts.
Neumann has a doctorate in business administration with her work being published in several journals, and she has presented at several national and international conferences. Her commitment and efforts toward making education affordable and accessible were recognized, in which she was selected as an honoree of Reverend Jesse L. Jackson’s Rainbow PUSH Excel 2017. She was also inducted into the Indiana Latino Leadership Circle in 2020 and Hoosier Women Forward in 2022. She is a 10-year resident of Fishers, mom of one HSE Schools graduate with another in eighth grade, and she has a commitment to serve her community.
Clerk: Janet Pritchett
Pritchett is a Mortgage Advisor for Parker Mortgage. She and her husband Mike are 19-year Fishers residents and have four children. Their eldest is currently attending Purdue University and graduated from Fishers High School. Their three other children currently attend Fishers H.S. with the next oldest graduating this year.
Pritchett has spent more than a decade serving the Fishers community and championing resident involvement. She has a passion for education and supporting children, family, and residents. She previously was elected as a school board member for the Hamilton Southeastern School district and served as President during her tenure. She was pivotal in starting the Fishers Democrat Club and is also a proud member of the Fishers Rotary.
At-Large: Howard Stevenson
Stevenson is Managing Partner of Stevenson Legal Group, LLC and currently serves as President of the Fishers Plan Commission and Vice President of the Fishers Board of Zoning Appeals. He is a 23-year resident of Fishers, where he and his wife Christa of 33 years raised their 3 sons. He previously served as a school board member for Hamilton Southeastern Schools.
A lifelong Hoosier, Stevenson earned his bachelor’s degree from Indiana University and his J.D. Degree in 1993 from Indiana University McKinney School of Law. After law school, he served as a judicial law clerk for the late Justice Richard M. Givan on the Indiana Supreme Court, becoming the first African American to serve in that capacity. He is also an adjunct law professor at the Indiana University McKinney School of Law.
Stevenson is a 30-year member of Eastern Star Church where he serves as a Superintendent of Sunday School.
South West: Bill Stuart
Stuart currently serves on the Fishers Planning Commission and the Fishers Fire Merit Board, as he has done since 2016. He and his wife, Peggi, moved to Fishers 29 years ago so their four children could attend Hamilton Southeastern schools. They are also blessed with four grandchildren and are expecting a new grandchild in July.
Stuart has been active in his community as President of his Homeowners’ Association and as a youth sports coach and board member. He graduated from Indiana University with a MPA and BA degrees from the School of Public and Environmental Affairs. The Stuarts reside with their dog Cali in the Delaware Pointe neighborhood.
North West: Bill McLellan
McLellan and his family moved to Fishers five years ago from the west St. Louis suburbs so he could start a business data analytics practice for a local software services company. This year marks 20 years that he has worked in data services, mostly in health care, and he now serves as a solutions architect for phData, a nationwide data consulting firm. His colleagues consider him a great listener who asks good questions and then thinks deeply and creatively about complex problems before suggesting pragmatic solutions.
McLellan regularly collaborates with clients who share different opinions about how to improve their technologies and businesses. He helps business groups as different as finance and marketing reach common understandings of their semantics. His friends and family consider him to be fiercely loyal, while at the same time warm, kind, and fun.
McLellan attends St. Peter’s United Church of Christ, an open and affirming congregation in Carmel, where he serves as the technology team lead.
South Central: Lane Skeeters
Skeeters is Indiana-raised, having grown up in Fort Wayne. After moving around the country, in 2015 Skeeters chose to make Fishers the place he would raise his two children. He attended the University of Saint Francis in Fort Wayne for Computer Animation, with additional coursework through Purdue for business and computer science.
In his career, Skeeters has focused on working with small businesses, startups, and others with the creative energy to build things. Currently his professional role is the Design Manager for Image360. He has also brought his talents to volunteer opportunities: offering workshops to local startups, design services to nonprofits and charitable organizations, and organizing community events to bring neighbors together.
North East: Samantha Chapman
Chapman is the Indiana State Director of The Humane Society of the United States. She is a lifelong Hoosier and animal lover who has dedicated her life to changing policy and laws that better protect animals at the state and local level. In 2022, she was honored with Manchester University’s Young Alumni Outstanding Achievement Award for her role in helping facilitate the historic transport of 4,000 beagles from a breeding research facility in Virginia.
Chapman graduated from Manchester College in 2012 magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science and Psychology and then earned her J.D. in 2015 from Indiana University McKinney School of Law. After law school, she served as a judicial clerk for the Honorable Paul Mathias on the Indiana Court of Appeals and in private practice defended businesses in complex employment matters before joining the Secretary of State’s office as the Business Services Division Attorney and Special Counsel. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for Friends of Indy Animals and Waldo’s Muttley Crew Animal Rescue.