State board contest close

Willia Chaney, whose Smart Start Child Care Center owes more than $500,000 dollars to the state Department of Education, narrowly won Tuesday night in the race for the Nevada Board of Education.

Chaney defeated social worker Doris Wallace Fletcher, earning 51 percent of the vote over her opponent's 49 percent in the race for the District 3 seat. The winner succeeds state Board Member Marcia Washington.

Chaney's child care center is appealing a summary judgment for $528,373 in expenses related to a summer lunch program for poor children.

State investigators said the money was misspent on salaries and cars.

In another state Board of Education race, Sharon Frederick, a student assistance coordinator of the Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts and the incumbent for District 1, was in a tight race for re-election against Gloria Bonaventura, a homemaker.

Frederick lost to Bonaventura by less than 1 percentage point of the vote.

Chris Wallace, an event planner, defeated Val Olsen, an account executive for the Boulder City News, in District 7. Wallace received 60 percent of the vote to Olsen's 39 percent.

Wallace will succeed state Board Member Merv Iverson.

"I'm happy with the way it's going," Wallace said late Tuesday. "I'm very much looking forward to making a contribution on the board."