n Tuesday voters will cast their ballots for more than just the president.

Students and professors registered in Warren County can help choose the people who will impact higher education through local government.

There are two candidates for mayor and eight candidates running for the four seats on the city commission.

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Sandy Jones

Mayor Sandy Jones is running for re-election. Prior to serving as mayor she served as a city commissioner for two years.

“I’ve proven in the past six years that I work hard,” Jones said. “I’m dedicated to forward thinking and visionary planning.”

She has been a resident of Bowling Green since graduating from a Franklin high school in 1969. She was born in Ohio.

Jones said that in her tenure as mayor, the city has developed a good working relationship with Western.

City officials have helped sell bonds for the renovation of Diddle Arena, and they have helped set aside land for the building of a proposed Greek Village.

She also said that President Gary Ransdell serves on the Kentucky Tri-Modal Transpark board, which has brought in a few thousand technical jobs for Bowling Green residents and Western graduates.

Elaine N. Walker

Elaine Walker is running against Jones in the mayoral election.

Walker has spent 11 years in Bowling Green. She has lived in several cities such as Washington D.C., where she met her husband, and Los Angeles.

She said she and her husband wanted to find a better place to raise their children after living in Los Angeles for several years. They chose Bowling Green.

“He was on assignment for ABC,” Walker said. “It was the right price, and it had the university.”

Walker said that if elected she would do her best to bring in “high tech industries” for Western students. She said manufacturing jobs are still important, but it’s also important that graduates have places to work once they finish school.

Joe W. Denning

Denning has lived in Bowling Green his whole life.

He has been a city commissioner for 14 years and has served on the Bowling Green school board for 18 years.

He said because of his experience and the investment the community has made in him as a leader he feels he is qualified to be re-elected.

“I’ve always been supportive of primary, secondary and higher education,” Denning said. “It needs to be a major priority in the state, and it hasn’t been.”

Dan Hall

Originally from Russellville, Dan Hall is one of three current city commissioners seeking to be re-elected. He has lived in Bowling Green for 25 years.

Hall has spent his time in Bowling Green serving as a city commissioner and running a small business. He is also married and has three daughters. His oldest child is enrolled at Murray State.

“I feel like I am a good person for the city and for Western,” Hall said. “I will try to represent all the people and not just any particular group.”

Alan W. Palmer

Palmer is no stranger to the public eye. He has served a total of 14 years on the commission after being the youngest person ever elected in 1979.

On weekdays, Palmer works as a radio talk show host for WKCT. He is also a part time teacher at Western. He will teach PR Management in Spring 2005.

Palmer said during his tenure the city commission has done a lot to help Western such as selling $34 million in bonds to pay for last year’s Diddle renovations.

Mark D. Alcott

Alcott said his time as a Western student and faculty member has strengthened his connection with the university.

He said he hopes to strengthen connections between the university and city as a commissioner.

The Harlin Parker law firm co-owner said his goals for the city commission include rallying community support for the university and taking advantage of Western’s downtown location by integrating local businesses and university students.

“My hope is that Western will expand its department faculty to parallel its current expansion in facilities,” Alcott said. “It’s important that we provide students with the best possible faculty available.”

Brian “Slim” Nash

Nash came to Bowling Green in 1988 when Western’s swim team recruited him out of high school. He said after 15 minutes on Western’s campus he knew he wanted to enroll, and that was before he knew if he would get a scholarship.

The nickname “Slim” was given to him when all the other swimmers on the team were tall and skinny, and he was “short and fat.”

Nash said his number one priority, if elected, is to be available to the citizens of Bowling Green, especially Western students. He also hopes that Western will continue to grow in the coming years but also maintain its small-college feel.

Johnetta F. Pryor

Pryor, a nightclub owner, said if she wins a spot on the city commission she will work to better protect students and speed up on-campus construction.

She said that her interests are more community-centered;however, she is interested in opening up City Hall and spending tax money more wisely.

“I hope to bring the common sense back to city government,” Pryor said. “Instead of talking about expanding city services, I will make sure that the current services are offering taxpayers a good return for the investment they are making.

Delene Simpson

Twenty-five years after moving to Bowling Green because of the fond memories he had of his days at Western, Simpson decided he wanted to help shape the city that shaped him.

The city commission candidate said that among his education efforts, he will work to bring health insurance premiums back down to reasonable levels.

Simpson, a realtor, said he will solve problems by opening the commission’s lines of communication.

“We’ve got to exercise basic communication,” Simpson said. “To solve problems, we need to have everyone informed, and a solution can only be reached on the commission with everyone involved.”

Brian K. Strow

This Western economics professor said that as a city commissioner he would focus on Western’s campus expansion and diversity.

“I believe in 10 to 15 years the campus will have expanded to accommodate the increasing number of students, he said. “And in 10 to 15 years there also needs to be continued growth in the academic quality and the diversity of faculty interests.”

Strow also said he would work to get the 33 percent occupational tax increase repealed and help make the city government more open to the public.

Reach the reporters at news@wkuherald.com.