Unofficial results showed Val Mignogna leading with 6,623 votes; Kelly Irwin Adams received 6,552; and Stephanie McGinnis received 6,273.

Much of the race came down to who would fill the board’s vacancy, left by outgoing board member David Francis, who decided not to seek reelection. Throughout much of the night, it was a close call between Bryant Giselman, a Republican, and Corinna Griffith, a Democrat.

However, according to the unofficial tally, Giselman eventually took the lead and finished with 5,710 votes compared to Griffith’s 4,576.

Giselman thanked his campaign team and the Altoona Area community for believing in him throughout the election process.

Irwin Adams

“It’s very vital and crucial to me that the community believed in me, supported me and really showed up to nominate me to be a potential school board candidate,” Giselman said.

Giselman said his top priority as a school board member will be putting the students’ educational needs first. He said he also wants to provide taxpayers with “total transparency” about where their money is being utilized.

If students or their parents have any problems or concerns with the district, Giselman said he wants them to know that he and his fellow board members care about them and want them to be heard at future board meetings.

“They can come directly to the school board, especially to me and any other members,” Giselman said of concerned parents.

Amid the current state budget impasse, Giselman said he wants the district to be “fiscally conservative.”

McGinnis

“We will watch every dollar to make sure that it goes into necessary programs,” he said, adding he plans to address the district’s concerns with state representatives and senators to ensure the students’ educational needs are put first.

Irwin Adams said she thinks the district’s administration is handling the budget impasse well. But she voiced concerns that the district may have to borrow money if the state budget isn’t passed soon.

If the budget isn’t passed by 2026, it would put the district in a “difficult predicament,” she said.

“I think they’ve done everything they can do and our students will be OK,” Irwin Adams said of the administration’s conservative handling of its revenues.

McGinnis said her focus “will always be our students, our staff and the taxpayers.”

Mignogna

“That combination is obviously what makes our community great,” she said, noting, as a former teacher, she understands what the district’s students and teachers are facing right now.

McGinnis said her goal is to continue to make school a place students want to be.

“I feel very honored that people would trust me with making decisions that would affect their families and businesses, and I don’t take that responsibility very lightly,” she said. “Seeing success in our community is something that’s very important to me.”

Mignogna, the board’s current president, said by being reelected, voters have demonstrated that they appreciate and value the board’s current efforts.

Altoona Area is “in a pretty good position” comparatively when you look at other school districts during the state budget impasse, he said.

Mignogna said the board will welcome Giselman with open arms. He hopes to help guide and educate Giselman in a way that previous board members did for Mignogna when he got on the board.

“We’ll be excited to have someone new on the board and help them along the way. We want to be supportive,” Mignogna said, noting the board will miss Francis.

“You can’t replace that kind of experience,” he said, adding the board collectively has a lot of knowledge. “We return a really strong board. We’re in a very good position for the next several years.”

Mignogna, an advocate for cyber charter reform, said so far, district officials haven’t seen any sign of cyber charter reform in the state budget. Until they do, Mignogna said he will continue “beating the drum” on reform efforts at every school board meeting moving forward.

“It’s in the best interests of all local school districts,” Mignogna said. “Right now it’s unfair to all taxpayers and I will continue to fight to make it fair.”

Griffith also thanked the voters who believed in her.

Although she did not win in her first election attempt, Griffith said she’s not upset with the results and is proud of the progress she’s made. She plans to continue showing up at school board meetings, advocating on behalf of parents and their children.

“Elected or not, I still want to be a voice for the children and their families,” Griffith said.

Griffith said she cares about the students of the district and chose to run for the school board in honor of her husband, Matt Griffith, who died late last year from cancer. He was 32.

Griffith wished Giselman well in his first term as a school board member.

“I wish him all the best, and I hope he does something well for the school,” she said.

Mirror Staff Writer Matt Churella is at 814-946-7520.