Meet Cape school board’s at-large candidates ahead of May 13 election

Two candidates are battling for the open at-large seat on the Cape Henlopen School District board: incumbent Bill Collick and Chris Lovenguth. 

Read more about each candidate below to stay informed ahead of the Tuesday, May 13 election. Read about the candidates for the District C seat at tinyurl.com/28r8h7xx.

Bill Collick (incumbent)

William “Bill” Collick has spent most of his life in Lewes and Sussex County, graduating from Cape Henlopen High School in 1970 as a member of its very first graduating class. 

In his free time, he loves gardening with his wife, Nancy, a fellow Cape High graduate, and spending time with his grandchildren and friends. He has two granddaughters currently in the district, one at Lewes Elementary and one at Frederick Thomas Middle.

After earning degrees from Wesley College, the University of Delaware and Wilmington College, Collick got a job teaching physical education and health in the Cape district. After five years, he headed to Delaware State University for a successful 20-year stint as assistant and then head football coach and athletic director. Collick then spent 10 years working as dean of students and head football coach at Sussex Tech before returning to Cape High, where he held those same positions from 2010 until his retirement in 2018.

He is currently a school district student mentor and has been a longtime supporter of Pathways to Success, a nonprofit that mentors youth, and prepares them to be productive and contributing citizens. 

“I think it’s one thing to be on the board,” he said. “But I like to look at, what do you do? Do you do anything with kids? Do you see them weekly? I think it gives you a better aspect as to what’s really going on in schools.”

Collick said he believes adult support is key for students to reach their full potential and for the district to fulfill its promise of equity for every student, every day. It’s at the core of why he wants to stay on the board.

“We really have a wonderful group of teachers,” he said. “Can we all get better? Absolutely, we can. That’s why I want to run, because I think it’s still needed.”

Collick first got involved on the school board in 2019, when he defeated Chuck Mowll for a seat vacated by Roni Posner. It was a one-year term. He ran unopposed the following year, securing his current 2020-25 term.

He’s kept in touch with several of his former students and mentees, and he said it’s wonderful seeing all that they’ve accomplished and what they’ve become. 

He recently went on a ride-along with a former student who’s now a Delaware State Police officer. Another former student is a custodian in the school district whom he’s known for years. And his new primary doctor, he said, is a Cape High graduate who recently finished med school.

“It is important to become a good contributing citizen, and I look at those individuals – and there are many of them – and they are people who make our community better and more effective,” he said.

District students are very diverse and have different needs, but with continued support and equal opportunities, Collick said, they will all be able to work toward achieving their own personal goals and aspirations.

“Diversity and inclusion allow you to reach your rightful place in America,” he said.

If elected, he said, his main priorities will be to ensure continued safety in schools, address district growth and secure school funding.

His overarching goal is fostering effective schools, as he explained: A school cannot be effective if it isn’t safe or if there isn’t adequate space for learning, and schools can’t accommodate a rapid influx of students without getting funding to expand its facilities.

He praised the district for its efforts to keep the entrances to its schools secure and its implementation of school resource officers.

As for funding, while the past two referendums have failed, Collick said he feels confident the board will be able to come up with a solution. Connecting with the community is a key part of that.

“I believe that we’re never as far apart as we think we are,” he said. “It ultimately means sitting down and looking at what’s best for the kids. We’ve done it before, and I have confidence that we’ll do it again.”

He said a swimming pool – a point of contention in the past couple referendums – is no longer in the cards, at least for now. It’s time to focus on what the kids really need, Collick said.

Chris Lovenguth

Chris Lovenguth is a 1978 Cape High graduate who’s lived in Milton his whole life. He’s been a salesman for NAPA Auto Parts for 47 years, and in his free time, he loves to fish, golf and hunt.

He has nine grandchildren, one of whom currently attends school in the Cape district and another who will start soon.

While he was growing up, he said, his mother worked in the cafeteria and his grandfather was a janitor at the former Milton Junior High. Several other family members and friends have also worked in the district over the years. His oldest daughter is a special education teacher at Sussex Tech, and his daughter-in-law is a speech pathologist in the Cape district. 

“Hearing some of the things they’re saying are going on, I’ve always had a concern,” he said. “I thought, you know what? I talk about it all the time. Step up to the plate. You can’t change anything by sitting on the sidelines.”

Lovenguth said he’s running on four key points: to ensure quality education for all students in the district, to ensure teachers are equipped with the tools and materials necessary for successful instruction, to help the district turn the page to a new vision, and to ensure district transparency and fiscal responsibility.

“I just feel like we’ve fallen short of the basics,” he said. “Our reading, writing and arithmetic. If you don’t have those, you don’t have much in life. We’re not working our brains like we used to.”

For students to learn these things, though, the teachers must be provided with the necessary teaching materials, he said. Hearing about teachers bringing their own tissues and copy paper into their classrooms was an eye-opener, he said.

“We have a multimillion-dollar budget, and we can’t even afford copy paper or a box of Kleenexes?” Some families are able to help with such supplies, he said, but “There are a lot of families that can’t, that are living paycheck to paycheck.”

This ties back to his point of fiscal responsibility and transparency in the district. 

He said the district needs to prioritize funding basic necessities, the things students and teachers really need to learn and teach, before spending money on unnecessary wants.  

“The Cape district is a well-groomed district,” he said. “We have all the fancies, the great football fields, basketball courts and all that. And we need that, because kids need [to be] driven. I mean, I played three sports. But guess what? If I didn’t keep my grades up, I didn’t get to play.”

Moving forward, he believes the board needs to be more strategic when it comes to referendums.

“I really think referendums would pass if we were smart in putting in what we absolutely need,” he said. “Sometimes, we throw in a lot of extra things and say, ‘Well, it’s all or nothing,’ and then people get bent out of shape. But right now, if you’re needing money for great schoolteachers and things like that, then let’s put the money toward who’s teaching our children.”

The teachers, he said, are on the front lines every day, working from early morning to evening and putting up with kids disrupting class. He believes they aren’t given enough authority when it comes to students acting out.

“I’ve heard of teachers being shoved,” he said. “There should be no three-strike rule. If a kid touches a teacher, they’re out, at least until someone sits down and talks to them and their parents.”

When kids come to school, he said, they should feel welcome, knowing they’re going to learn, but they should also know that actions have consequences.

In terms of creating welcoming learning environments, he said he grew up attending diverse schools and living in diverse communities and was always taught not to judge a book by its cover. 

“They’re talking about DEI, and transgenderism, and things like that,” he said. “And my thing is, no kid should be bullied for anything. It doesn’t matter if you’re gay, you’re straight, you’re transgender, you’re fat, you’re skinny [...]. Well, there’s a lot of things that we need to focus on. And the key focus is education. And our kids aren’t getting the education that they need.”

Lovenguth said he’ll always have respect for his opponent, Collick, who was his wrestling coach in high school, but sometimes, “You just need a new vision, a fresh perspective and new ideas. Instead of the old status quo, let’s get out into the neighborhoods and talk to people, and see what’s on their minds. I’ve done a lot of door-knocking, and I think everyday common sense goes a long way.”

Lovenguth encourages anyone with questions for him to reach out: “To talk to me is to know me. My cell number is 302-381-2294.”

District B: Jason Bradley, uncontested

Incumbent Jason Bradley will keep his District B seat, as no other candidates filed to run against him.

Bradley has a long history of volunteer work since moving to Lewes in 2001 with his wife and two sons. He’s actively involved in his synagogue, and has served as president and vice president for several local nonprofits, including Lewes Little League, Rehoboth Cooperative Preschool and Seaside Jewish Community. He also is a member of the school district’s volunteer Citizens Budget Oversight Committee.

He’s a full-time manager for Wawa and has had an extensive career in restaurant and business management. He also likes music, going to local restaurants and spending time with friends.

He first decided to run for a board seat when his son, a student at the time, got involved with the Sussex Consortium. He was elected in 2015 and served as vice president for the 2019-20 school year before being elected for his current 2020-25 term.

“Over the years, I found it really, really rewarding,” he said. “My volunteerism initially was all about showing my kids, like, ‘The world’s bigger than just you. It’s not just about what happens in our household; you have to be involved in your community.’ I feel like I’m not just giving back to my kids, but to the whole community.”

Through volunteering, he said he’s met a lot of people from all around Sussex County, making the area feel like home. Attending events like the school district’s recent CHEF Winter Jam fundraiser, he said, is like a family reunion.

Ahead of his next term, he said he wants to focus on making sure every student in the district is safe and feels welcomed. The other big issue he sees facing the district is financing.

“Obviously it’d be great if we had the ability to expand our school and do the things we want to do construction-wise, but operating expenses is a big thing for me right now,” he said. “I’m a business person, so to me, that’s the bigger picture of being on the board, the financial part.”

He wants to ensure the district remains fully staffed and retains its teachers, school counselors, psychologists, and other specialists and support people.

“Right now, we’re good, but the money is getting tighter and tighter, and the reserves that we have, there’s not as much in there as there used to be.”

Although Bradley is uncontested, he stressed the importance of people going out to vote.

“We get more votes when we do a referendum than when we do a school board election, so that’s a little frightening,” he said. “I want people to go out and select the best person they can get behind, and actually be knowledgeable, come to some of the forums, ask questions.”

Although the board members don’t always agree with each other, he said they still represent a unified group that works together for the good of the children.

“I’m just honored for the last 10 years and the upcoming four to do what I do for the district and the community,” he said. “When I make decisions ... there are three groups involved: the students, the staff and the community. And I try to balance those three.”