Tyndall seeks second term on Cape board

Jessica Tyndall has three reasons she is running for a second Cape Henlopen school board term – all under the age of 10.

“They are three reasons I take this position so seriously,” she said on the day she filed for the 5-year area A seat for school board.

Tyndall has served on the board for two years. She was elected after Jackie Brisco, who was appointed to replace member Noble Prettyman after his death in 2015, decided not to run for the seat in the May 2016 school board election.

“I always thought if I could juggle the time commitment, I would run,” she said.

So far, Tyndall, 34, is the only candidate to file for the seat. Candidates must live in area A, which covers the north end of the school district. Although a candidate must live in the specific geographic area, all residents in the Cape Henlopen School District can vote for a candidate.

“I'm just a mom who wears many hats, like many other moms,” she said.

Tyndall works as a comptroller for website development business Inclind Inc. – a company she owns with her husband Shaun. Tyndall grew up in Bethany Beach and graduated from Indian River High School before attending University of Delaware where she earned a nutrition degree.

With two boys in Milton Elementary – Austin is in third grade, Liam is in kindergarten – Tyndall said she spends a lot of time in Milton schools, at least every other week. “I work hard to be present in the schools to make sure there's a familiar face,” she said.

Tyndall estimates she'll have a kid in the Cape Henlopen School District for the next 20 years by the time her daughter, Ella, 3, graduates.

“I've learned so much in the past two years. I understand now why these terms are five years because it's an evolving thing, and to truly effect change you have to be there long term.”

It hasn't been easy – inheriting the contentious school start time issue forced her to catch up on years of discussions, votes and changes to the start and end of the school day for district schools. On the positive side, she said, were hiring three new principals, changes to the high school Wellness Center and bringing the Spanish Immersion program to all five elementaries.

Growing enrollment continues to be a challenge for the district, which, Tyndall said she looks forward to addressing.

“I've loved 95 percent of it. There are days when I wished there was more time, but at the end of the day it's worth it,” she said.

Tyndall said she looks forward to the new H.O. Brittingham Elementary opening, and then transitioning Milton Elementary students to the old HOB building while Milton Elementary is renovated. Her sons will be part of the temporary move to HOB, she said, so she understands the sacrifice that will be made before Milton Elementary reopens. Still, she said it will be worth it.

“My kids are going to be products of all this change,” she said. “Shaun and I are public school kids, and we feel strongly about the public school system.”

The filing date for school board is 4:30 p.m., Friday, March 2, at the Sussex County Department of Elections in Georgetown. Candidates must live in the area A district that runs from the district's north border with Milford School District south to the Broadkill River. The school board election is Tuesday, May 8.