Coffey, Stiff, Huntington, Fitzpatrick lead contested races for Joliet High School District 204 board

The leading candidates for the four contested seats on the Joliet Township High School District 204 board were incumbents Dan Coffey, Michelle Stiff and newcomers Angela Huntington and Thomas Fitzpatrick, as of about 9:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Seven candidates ran for five seats with four-year terms on the Joliet Township High School District 204 board. Matthew Kennedy, an incumbent, was the only unopposed candidate running for one seat on the board for a two-year term.

The candidates running for the four contested seats were Garrett Beene, Angela Huntington, Thomas Fitzpatrick, Michelle Stiff, Dan Coffey, Frank Edmon Jr. and Damon Zdunich.

The leading candidates were Coffey with 6,517 votes, Stiff with 6,004 votes, Fitzpatrick with 5,834 votes and Huntington with 5,565 votes, based on 100% of precincts reporting at 9:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

Coffey, who was appointed to the board in September 2021 when it had a vacancy, said the district’s success is important to him. He graduated from Joliet West in 1999, has two children at West and two who will attend.

Huntington, assistant superintendent for student services at Lockport Township High School District 205, has one child who attends West and one who graduated in 2021.

Stiff, director of the Workforce Services Division of Will County, District 204 board member and former teacher in Valley View School District 365U, said she wants District 204′s graduation rate to improve.

Zdunich said he is a lifelong Joliet resident and feels good schools are necessary for Joliet to prosper. He is concerned about District 204′s score on the Illinois Report Card and if Joliet students are adequately prepared for life.