Four of the five Oxford School Board members whose terms are expiring in 2015 are seeking nominations to return to the board in the upcoming Primary Election.

The district is transitioning to a system where three of the nine seats on the board are at-large seats with voters across the entire district electing those representatives, while the other six seats will remain divided among the three election regions in Oxford.

There are two at-large seats up for grabs in the upcoming election, one of them currently occupied by school board president Donna Arrowood.

Arrowood, a Democrat, is one of three candidates seeking two of the at-large seats, the others being Becky Fetterolf, who is also seeking the Democratic nomination, and Robert Tenga, who has cross-filed. When voters head to the polls on Tuesday, May 19, they will be voting for no more than two candidates for the two at-large seats.

Incumbent Howard Robinson has cross-filed and is the only candidate on the ballot for his seat in Region I, which includes Upper Oxford Township, Lower Oxford Township East, and Oxford Borough East.

In Region II, which includes West Nottingham Township, Lower Oxford Township West, and Oxford Borough West, incumbent Gary Olson has cross-filed and is the only candidate on the ballot.

Oxford’s Region III includes East Nottingham Township and Elk Township. Arrowood is seeking the Democratic nomination for the seat that currently belongs to Joseph Tighe. Tighe is seeking reelection and has cross-filed.

Because Oxford now has a combination of at-large and regional seats, candidates have the option of being on the ballot for more than one seat at a time. The purpose of the Primary Election is to allow each party to nominate the candidates who will be on the ballot in November, so after the Primary a person's name could be on the ballot for two seats. If that candidate would win both seats in the November election, he or she would then select which of the two seats she would hold on the board. The other seat would be considered vacant, and would be treated as any other vacancy. The school board would follow the usual process of filling a vacancy, and the person selected to fill that seat would serve until the next school board election, which is in 2017.

The only current school board member with a term expiring in 2015 not seeking reelection is Dr. Jason Brady.