Four Canyons School District Board of Education seats go before voters Tuesday, Nov. 3, with only one race drawing a challenger.

Districts 2, 4, 5 and 6 are all on the ballot. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., and all mail-in ballots must be received by the county clerk or deposited in an official drop box by 8 p.m., according to Let Utah Vote.

The candidates

District 2: Amber Shill, the current board president, is seeking a fourth term. She was first elected in November 2014 and won re-election in 2018 and 2022, according to the Canyons School District board page. District 2 covers most of Cottonwood Heights.

District 4: Andrew Edtl, a board vice president, is running again. He is the first African American to serve on the Canyons board. District 4 encompasses parts of Sandy and Midvale.

District 5: This is the only contested race. Incumbent Karen Pedersen faces challenger Dennis Lagodimos. Pedersen, the first retired Canyons teacher to join the board, was named Willow Canyon Elementary's 2021 Teacher of the Year after a 41-year teaching career with the district. She has served on the board since January 2023. Lagodimos spoke during the patron comment period at the board's Oct. 1, 2024, meeting on the topic of violence and weapons in schools, according to board meeting minutes. A primary scheduled for June 23 was canceled because there were fewer than three candidates, according to Ballotpedia.

District 6: Amanda Oaks, a board vice president and estate planning attorney, has served on the board since January 2019.

What's at stake

The board oversees a district with 31,506 students enrolled this year, a number projected to keep declining, according to pending minutes from the board's June 2 meeting. That enrollment drop means the district will employ 53 fewer teachers next year.

The board also approved a proposed property tax increase of approximately $6,871,000, or about 5.8%, at the June 2 meeting. Business Administrator Leon Wilcox said the projected net increase on the average home is approximately $37.

In March, the board unanimously appointed Dr. McKay Robinson as superintendent, according to minutes from the March 19 meeting. The winners of these four seats will work alongside Robinson as the district navigates shrinking enrollment and its budget.

At the board's Oct. 20 meeting, board member Andrew Edtl encouraged residents to vote and urged a civil election season, according to a board meeting summary.

How to vote and track results

Cottonwood Heights City Hall is both a ballot drop box location and an Election Day vote center. Holladay City Hall has a ballot drop box, according to a Salt Lake County bond election notice.

Salt Lake County Clerk Lannie Chapman told the Daily Utah Chronicle that election night results released first will reflect processed mail-in ballots, with in-person and provisional votes added in later updates. Chapman said she will not certify the election until Tuesday, Nov. 17.

Voters can find ballot information and drop box locations at the Salt Lake County Clerk's elections page at saltlakecounty.gov/clerk or at vote.utah.gov.

The next scheduled Canyons School District board meeting after the election is Nov. 10 at 7 p.m. at the district office, 9361 S. 300 E., Sandy.