MAHONING COUNTY — Three of the four members of the Mahoning County Educational Service Center Board are seeking re-election Nov. 4.

Incumbent members are Richard S. Scarsella, Jeff Good, and Suzanne Barbati.

Also running is new candidate Richard J. Ferenchak.

Barbati and Ferenchak did not return candidate questionnaires.

Scarsella, 71, of Boardman, has served on the board since 2005.

He has an extensive history in education and public service and said he can provide a unique real-world experience to the board when it comes to making educated-related decisions.

“I believe I have a big toolkit of experience and skills which allow me to continue to serve the public well,” he said.

His prior work history includes serving as administrator, intervention specialist, job training coordinator, career advisor, and recruiter for the Youngstown CIty School District from 1993-2024.

He is currently employed as Mahoning County Recorder, a job he began this year.

He is a graduate of Ursuline High School and earned a Bachelor of Arts with a focus on History and Secondary Education from Boston College in 1976; a Master’s in Education and Special Education from Youngstown State University (YSU) in 2000; and a Master’s in Education Administration from YSU in 2021.

He served on the Board of Supervisors for the Mahoning Soil and Water Conservation District from 2011 through this year.

He is currently a member of the Mahoning County Career and Technical Center Governing Board, a position he has held since 2005.

He is also currently serving on the Mahoning Valley Regional Council of Governments, a position he has held since 2018.

“I have been a member of four public governing boards. I have served the public for 20 years in various official positions. My knowledge of finances, institutional governance, human relations, public policy and Mahoning County allow me to service the public well,” he said.

He said his three biggest accomplishments on the ESC board are good fiscal audits, providing low-cost services to member districts, and expansion of services.

He feels he should be re-elected because of his educational training, prior career in education, and 20 years of governing public entities, which allows him to bring both experience and knowledge to the position.

His current community activities include serving as Chairman of the William Holmes McGuffey Historical Society, as boardman of the Boardman Historical Society, Youngstown Steel Heritage Foundation; on the Mahoning County Career and Technical Center Foundation, and as member of the Boardman Boosters Club.

He is also a member the Friends of Fellows Riverside Gardens, OCCHA Ashtabula Elks Lodge, and Youngstown Center for Industry and Labor.

He is married and has one adult child and is also the author of Memories and Melancholy: Reflections on the Mahoning Valley and Youngstown, Ohio, which was published in 2005 through iUniverse.

Incumbent Jeff Good, 62, of Salem, is seeking re-election to continue the growth of services provided to the local school districts from the ESC.

“I would like to continue that support and direction as a governing board member,” he said.

He has served on the ESC board since 2017 and previously served on the South Range School Board of Education from 2012 through 2016.

He is a South Range High School Graduate and earned a Bachelor of Arts from Youngstown State University and a Master’s in Education from the University of Phoenix.

He is currently serving on the Mahoning County Career and Technical Center Governing Board, a position he has held since 2022.

Good was previously employed at boards of education in Michigan, Youngstown State University and the Trumbull County Educational Service Center.

He also retired after 17 years of employment with PBS Western Reserve, where he served as Chief Education Technology Officer from 2005 through 2023 and Interim President and CEO from 2023 to 2024.

He also serves as President of the Salem Area Browns Backers.

He and his wife, Laura, have two adult children.

“I’m proud of the work I have accomplished as a board member of the Mahoning County.

Educational Service Center. My combination of education, servant leadership and my years as a board member clearly speaks to my commitment to the students the Mahoning County Educational Service Center serves. I understand the educational needs of students, teachers and parents and have conveyed that understanding throughout my current service to the Mahoning County Educational Service Center,” he said.

He said his three biggest accomplishments on the ESC Board are the transparency of costs to member school districts, Increased services to member districts, and an increase in total member districts outside of Mahoning County.

He said his qualifications for the board include being involved with the educational

community since 1989 in which he worked closely with teachers and students integrating technology in the classroom.

“I have been a higher education instructor for almost 10 years at Youngstown State and Kent State. I have almost 15 years of serving on governing boards both local, ESC and career and technical centers in the area. I have an educational history being raised in an education family with a mother as a school secretary, my father as an ESC and career and technical center board member for over 30 years and a sister that continues to be involved with education locally,” he said.

He added that he recognizes the role of governing boards for local districts, ESC’s and career center’s and continues to embrace the role of being a servant leader in the area.

“Incumbent board members, Richard Scarsella, Suzanne Barbati and myself have served tirelessly on the governing board and certainly merit re-election to continue our work,” he said.