Oxford Community Schools experienced both the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat in Tuesday’s election.
The victory came from Proposal 1, which voters approved by an extremely narrow margin of 2,189 to 2,155. This $32.735 million bond is for district-wide facility improvements, technology upgrades and the purchase of the First Baptist Church of Oxford building and land at 150 Pontiac St.
‘I’m elated that we were able to win on Proposal 1,? said Superintendent Dr. William Skilling. ‘We’re very excited about the opportunity that this will give the district and how much this will help the district take care of some real basic needs as well as provide some additional capacity . . . Proposal 1 we just had to get through.?
Skilling indicated purchasing the church and its 7.35 acres is ‘probably the best investment we could make as far as getting additional space.?
The agony came from Proposal 2, which voters overwhelmingly defeated by a margin of 2,664 to 1,678. This failed $635,000 bond was to install synthetic turf at the Oxford High School football stadium and construct a storage facility for sports equipment.
‘I knew that was going to be a hard one to pass because a lot of people felt (synthetic turf’s) a luxury,? Skilling said. ‘I think we got the information out we needed to share about why it wouldn’t be a luxury, but actually a real benefit and an act of stewardship. But we weren’t able to convince enough people of that.?
‘I’m really thankful that we separated (the two proposals) so that people that felt really strong about not supporting the synthetic turf could have the opportunity to vote ‘no? without voting down everything. I’m grateful we didn’t have it all tied into one proposal,? the superintendent noted.
Skilling promised the district’s ‘going to do all we can? to be ‘transparent? when it comes to spending the bond money.
‘Once this process gets underway, we’re going to hold a meeting once a month for the public to give a report and give an account of what we’re doing with the resources that they have entrusted us with,? he said. ‘We want to do that for the ‘yes? voters. We want to do that for the ‘no? voters as well, so they can hold us accountable.?
Ultimately, it was voters in Oxford Township and Village that saved Proposal 1 from certain defeat by approving it 1,750 to 1,398.
‘I voted for Oxford (Schools) to get everything that they wanted,? said village resident Melinda Webb, who took her daughter, Jenua Graham, a second-grader at Daniel Axford Elementary, to the polls. ‘It’s a great area with great schools. In order to be great, you have to make improvements.?
Everywhere else in the district, Proposal 1 failed, often by 2-1 margins.
Addison voters slammed it 519-273. Brandon rejected it 165-130. Metamora failed it 50-25 as did Dryden voters by a margin of 23-11. No ballots were cast in Hadley, which only has a handful of voters.
It was a different story with Proposal 2, which crashed and burned everywhere it was on the ballot.
Oxford voters rejected it 1,808 to 1,339. Addison failed it 577-213. Brandon voters turned it down 203-93. Metamora said ‘no? 52-23 as did Dryden voters by a margin of 24-10. Again, no votes were cast in Hadley Township.
In addition to bond proposals, district voters also elected three candidates to the Oxford Board of Education.
Robert Martin and Kimberly Shumaker were both elected to four-year terms with 2,538 and 2,291 votes, respectively.
They handily defeated Franz Langegger who received 1,013 votes.
Bill Keenist, who ran unopposed for a school board seat that expires Dec. 31, 2010, garnered 2,765 votes.

village resident Melinda Webb, who took her daughter, Jenua Graham, a second-grader at Daniel Axford Elementary, to the polls. ‘It’s a great area and great schools. In order to be great, you have to make improvements.?
Everywhere else in the district, Proposal 1 failed. Addison voters slammed it 519-273. Brandon voters rejected it 165-130. Metamora voters failed it 50-25 as did Dryden voters by a margin of 23-11. No votes were cast in Hadley.
It was a different story with Proposal 2, which met with resounding defeat everywhere.
Oxford voters rejected it 1,808 to 1,339. Addison voters failed it 577-213. Brandon voters turned it down 203-93. Metamora voters said no 52-23 along with Dryden voters by a margin of 24-10. Again, no votes were cast in Hadley.
Robert Martin and Kimberly Schumaker were both elected to four-year terms on the Oxford Board of Education with 2,538 and 2,291 votes, respectively. They defeated Franz Langegger who received 1,013 votes.
Bill Keenist, who ran unopposed for a school board seat that expires Dec. 31, 2010, garnered 2,765 votes.