Richard Young, Susan Ward, Kenneth Stanford and Paul Beisler are competing for the three-year terms.

Young, 67, studied mechanical engineering for two years at Morrisville State College and took courses in computer science at Syracuse University while working.

He graduated from Milford Central School and moved back to the area shortly after retiring from a 35-year career with Xerox Corporation in 1998.

He is married and has two children, both of whom attended MCS for a time, and currently works part time at Lowe’s, Young said.

Young cites his experience with Xerox as his major qualification for being elected to the board. In his 35 years, he said he traveled around the country and to Puerto Rico, serving as manager in many locations for organizations up to 1,200 people.

"I’ve had many opportunities to develop the skills I have, analyzing problems and developing problem-solving skills," he said.

He cited his experience as a manager in putting together budgets, at times during troubled periods for the company where they had to do more with less. That’s something the school district can relate to in terms of declining enrollment and increasing costs, he said.

Like other school districts, ever rising costs are a major problem in Milford and the board must get creative in reducing costs, Young said.

"Over the last 10 years, the cost of living index has gone up 2.7 percent a year nationally, while our school taxes have gone up between 6 and 8 percent a year. You’re going to have a situation where no local people can afford to live in the Milford area," he said.

Young ran for the school board last year and was defeated by approximately 30 votes. He said he hoped people looked past the fact that he is not quite as well known in the village as other candidates and would judge them based on their qualifications.

Ward is a fashion designer educated at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. She has lived in the area for eight years, is married and has seven children, three of which are still in school at MCS.

She is currently employed as a business consultant and works as a freelance shoe designer. She also ran a shoe design and accessory business for 25 years, she said.

Ward has served on the board for six years and is seeking re-election to a third term. She cited her previous experience on the board, passion for optimizing the education of every child in the district, and the fact that she has a vested interest in her own children’s education as qualifications for being elected.

"My passion is for optimizing the education of every child and to prepare them as great citizens of the world," she said.

Ward said the major issues at the school include continuing to optimize the educational programming and dealing with increasing state and federal initiatives that come with big mandates, but little funding.

"We’re fortunate in Milford because we have so many passionate teachers and administrators," she said. "Great teachers and great parent involvement."

Education is increasingly important in the world today and Ward said it was necessary for the board to have a vision of where the school is going. She said developing that vision is a collaborative process and one in which the board and community must continually evolve if they are to adequately prepare students for the wider world.

"You keep raising the bar, those kids jump way over it. Keep the bar low, that’s where they’ll go," she said.

Stanford, 37, is a certified respiratory therapist educated at Mohawk Valley Community College. He has lived in the area since 1994 and moved from Cooperstown to Milford in 1998. He is married and has four children, two of which are school age and enrolled at MCS.

He is employed by Bassett Hospital as a respiratory therapist.

Stanford said that while he doesn’t have a degree in education or school administration, he feels that with his own children’s best interests at heart, he’ll be able to support the interests of every child in the district.

"I feel that our kids should get the best teachers, best aid and best support that we can give them, while being mindful of our budgeting as well," Stanford said.

One of the major issues facing the school is its declining enrollment and reductions in state funding, Stanford said. He said the district and school board need to look in depth to what’s causing the enrollment drop, because it isn’t as simple as a side effect of the Cooperstown Dreams Park’s expansion.

Stanford said he won’t go in with an agenda if elected and hopes to make the best decisions regarding whatever comes before the board.

"I just encourage people to get out and vote May 15th," he said.

Beisler, 53, has lived in Milford since the early 1990s and has been vice president of Seward Sand and Gravel since 1988. He has three kids who graduated from MCS and has served on the school board for 12 years, the last three as president.

He also serves on the board of the Tri-County Builders Exchange, a builders group that advocates, provides training and serves as an information hub for area builders.

Beisler said his interest in providing quality educations has grown during his time on the board, as have the responsibilities and time demands of the voluntary positions. Although it’s a lot of work and the importance of the decisions weigh on you, Beisler said the benefit to the community and intangible rewards were enough to make him seek re-election for a fifth term.

"The school is certainly a very important asset to every community and we have tried to treat it as our biggest asset. We try to provide for the students so they can make their way out into the world. That’s what I am always after," he said.

Finances are one of the major issues the district is dealing with, Beisler said, and trying to make the school more efficient is always the board’s goal.

But the board must also provide a good education for all of the kids, whether they are high achievers or need extra assistance.

"It’s expensive to educate kids," Beisler said. "We’re very concerned with not wasting money, but we have to meet the things that are state-mandated or contractually-obligated to do."

The Milford Teacher’s Association is hosting a Meet the Candidates’ Night tonight from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Garman Performing Arts Center.