In Tuesday’s uncontested School Board election, two new candidates were elected, and one incumbent retained his seat. These board members, along with four of their counterparts, will oversee the implementation of Prop O over the next three years of their terms. 

Jason Growe is the current Vice President of Clayton’s School Board and is the CEO of LiveWell Partners, a home healthcare and hospice provider. He has lived in Clayton with his family for the past 10 years. While he does not currently work in education, Growe has previously taught in the St Louis Public School District. 

“Public education has long been a passion of mine. It’s a pillar of any community, especially in Clayton,” Growe said. “The opportunity to leverage my experience and passion to help students – both current and future – access high-quality education is inspiring to me.” 

Growe believes that his teaching experience gives him a special approach to his work, serving as a school board member. 

“My experience teaching in SLPS provides the board with a unique perspective on how education policy choices impact our students, district community and region,” Growe said. 

Looking ahead to the three-year term, Growe said his top priority will be ensuring the success of the Prop O plan to improve district facilities.

“It’s critical that we get a strong, fast start to implementation,” Growe said. “That means getting some quick wins in implementing the Long Run Facilities Master Plan and communicating progress to the community,”

This will be Erin Linnenbringer’s first term serving on the School Board. Linnenbringer works in the division of public health sciences in the department of surgery at Washington University School of Medicine and teaches a graduate class on genetic counseling. She has lived in Clayton for 12 years with her family. 

Linnenbringer decided to run for the school board this year after being exposed to public education leadership as a child.

“I actually was influenced by my own father, who was a school board member in my hometown, a small town in Illinois, and I  gained a lot of respect for public education, but also for the need for dedicated school board members to help guide the district in the right direction,” Linnenbringer said. 

She believes that her experience in scientific and academic fields will help her contribute a fact-based assessment to school board decisions.

“I think one unique perspective that I bring is that I have a strong social science background, and I work in higher education, so I think I bring some analytic skills to assessment,” Linnenbringer said. “Also, a lot of my research is community-engaged, so I value having community input to answer the questions and challenges that may face an organization like a school district.”

As for the focus of her first term, Linnenbringer is also eager to oversee a smooth installation process for new Prop O projects. 

“The most important goal will be to move forward in a timely fashion with the first phase of the long-range facility master plan and really working to ensure a smooth transition for the Glenridge families in particular,” Linnenbringer said. 

Meade Greenberg, another newcomer to the School Board, grew up in Clayton and moved back to her hometown five years ago. In total, she has spent 23 years in Clayton. Greenberg has taught elementary and middle school, worked for a non-profit, and is currently a stay-at-home mom. 

Greenberg believes that her recent experience with the Family Center and Clayton Elementary schools gives her a different perspective from many of her peers on the School Board. 

“School board members often have older children, which brings valuable long-term perspective and deep relationships across the district. At the same time, it means fewer members have recent experience as parents of preschool and elementary students. I believe it’s important to include a voice that reflects the day-to-day experiences of families with younger children,” Greenberg said. 

In addition to focusing on the long-range facilities plan, Greenberg also wants to tackle technology policy within the district. 

“COVID really accelerated the use of technology in education, and the educational system, as a whole, not just Clayton, hasn’t taken a step back to determine whether or not ed tech use is actually in the best interest of kids,” Greenberg said. “Young kids, especially in the early elementary years, do not need to be using devices to learn.”

Although their backgrounds and viewpoints differ, these School Board members agree that, to get the most out of their high school experience, students should try to get involved in their community as much as possible. 

“Try lots of things, jobs, classes, hobbies, especially if they are challenging. The only way to determine if you are interested in something is to give it a try, and you learn so much about yourself through tough situations, Greenberg said. “You’re strong enough to handle whatever setbacks are going to come your way. Doing something hard should give you immense pride.”