I am Aaron Portmann, my wife is Meagan and we have two wonderful kids; Emma, who is in the 4th grade and Evan, who is in 1st grade. I am an air traffic controller at Kansas City Center in Olathe, Kan. I moved to Pleasanton my junior year in high school and we have lived all over this wonderful country but Pleasanton has always been called my home.
1) Why are you running for school board?
I want to continue to serve this great community and continue to make it better.
2) What do you hope to accomplish if elected to this position?
I would like to focus on replacing our roads. I know it cannot happen overnight but if we can get a few here and there it’s a step in the right direction.
3) What skills and/or experience do you have that will aid you in this position?
I have served on the council for the last 4 years. I have always put the interests of the citizens first when it comes to my votes and they will continue to be that way.
My name is Rochelle Schreckhise and my husband, Jackie, and I have two daughters, Madison and Jaclyn.
My field of work has been in the mental health field, formerly working at Lakemary Center for over nine years. I am still employed in the mental health field. Those with special needs and disabilities are very important to me. I was born and raised here and it is my family’s home. It is important to me that our citizens have a good quality of life and that someone cares when they have concerns.
1) Why are you running for school board?
I have been a lifelong resident of Pleasanton and care about our town and our citizens. I want to work as a team with others who are like minded and help improve our infrastructure and needed upgrades in many areas of our city. I will use a common sense approach to spending because it’s important to me that our taxpayers’ dollar are spent wisely.
2) What do you hope to accomplish if elected to this position?
I would like to see several areas of improvement, such as upgrades on our streets and repairing our city pool as it’s very important to our children and our community. I would like to see water and sewer upgrades made as we can afford the improvements and to help seek job opportunities for our community. I am very supportive of the new vocational opportunities that our school will be providing for our community and feel that it will be very educational for our youth. I am willing to listen to ideas because I think these things are very important to others, as well.
3) What skills and/or experience do you have that will aid you in this position?
I have common sense and care about our citizens and will try to do my very best to serve our citizens with each decision that I make. I am not afraid to ask questions and to research any new issues that come before me. I am honest, dependable, and responsible and will try to serve the people fairly and in the best manner that I can.
Kenny Stark is running as a write in candidate for city council.
I grew up in La Cygne and am a graduate of Prairie View High School class of 1982.
After high school I joined the Coast Guard and had various duty stations around the United States. After seven and half years in I was medically discharged in 1990.
Upon being discharged I moved to Texas where he worked in the oilfield industry working his way up to being the driller's helper in a short time frame. After leaving Texas I returned to Kansas and started working for Johnson County Basements, where my construction career started. In 1995, I moved to Utah where he learned the trade of carpentry while working for a family business for several years. I met his wife of 20 years in Provo, Utah, and we have two great boy's, one a Pleasanton High School graduate and the other a senior this year. During our time in Utah we started our own construction company building residential homes and commercial buildings, we even tried our hand at building log homes.
We moved to Anaconda, Mont., in 2008 to support a family member and lived there until 2015 and then moved to Pleasanton.
1) Why are you running for school board?
I'm running for the open council position because I believe the citizens of our town need a voice on the council, which in my opinion many of the members of the council have forgotten that we, the citizens, elected them to be our voice.
2) What do you hope to accomplish if elected to this position?
If elected I hope to bring back the trust the people are deserved as well as their voice on the council.
3) What skills and/or experience do you have that will aid you in this position?
I hope to bring what I have learned in all my years as a business owner, as well as a parent, to the table to help get positive input from the people who elected us into office.
These are the responses received to our questions for this election.
NEWS
Leonard makes appearance in Bates County circuit court
Damon Leonard, of rural Pleasanton, made an appearance in Bates County Circuit Court in Butler, Mo., on Jan. 15, 2026. Leonard appeared via video from the Bates County Jail, where he is currently incarcerated, for the status hearing on the morning docket for Judge... [More]
Take our survey
Have you seen our new puzzle? Take our anonymous survey and tell us what you would like to see in our puzzle section! https://forms.gle/V4btD8GSmoH7SBjJ8
USD 344 approves capital improvement projects
After a very big project of replacing half of the air conditioning units at Pleasanton schools, the USD 344 Board approved approximately $326,000 more in improvements to fix some lingering problems. Superintendent Don Epps began what was a tour of the facility by talking about... [More]
More News
- La Cygne Council recognizes outgoing members
- Commissioners approve year-end budget transfers
- Testimony to lower Kansas property taxes needed
- Dog laws in Linn County
- Parade held for family of Holiday Lakes victim
- Pleasanton Council holds planning session, seeks drug dog
- SPECIAL: KCKPD Releases Cause of Death for Pleasanton, Kansas Teen
- Missouri case filed following death of Holiday Lakes’ teen
SPORTS
Pleasanton boys’ basketball team picks up wins against Miami and Central Heights
The Pleasanton boys’ basketball team continues winning basketball games as the team went 2-0 this past week to go 5-0 in district play and 7-1 overall. The Jays hosted Miami on Jan. 6 and defeated them in a r0ut 65-27 before traveling to Central Heights on Jan. 9 to win... [More]
Jayhawk basketball picks up wins against Oswego
The Jayhawk boys’ and girls’ basketball teams hosted Oswego on Jan. 9 in Three Rivers League action. Both the boys’ and girls’ teams won their games against the Indians as the girls won in a rout 49-15 and the boys won in a thriller 45-41. The... [More]
Prairie View boys’ wrestling competes at Louisburg
The Prairie View boys’ wrestling team traveled to Louisburg on Jan. 10 to compete in the Louisburg Invitational. The Buffalos placed 13th out of 16 teams with 60 team points. Breckyn Malin, 106, went 1-3 in the tournament. Malin won his second match by fall. Bentlee... [More]
More Sports
- Blu-Jay boys sweep and girls split against Altoona Midway and Uniontown
- Prairie View girls’ basketball falls to Santa Fe Trail and Iola
- Jayhawk girls’ basketball dominates Southeast Cherokee and Erie
- Prairie View girls’ basketball places second at Linn County Tournament
- Pleasanton boys’ basketball place second at Linn County Tournament with a solid performance
- Jayhawk girls’ basketball wins the Linn County Tournament
- Prairie View boys’ wrestling competes in the Fort Scott dual tournament
- Jayhawk Linn girls’ wrestling kicks off season with a solid performance at Caney Valley
COMMUNITY
Carbon Monoxide and what you need to know
In 2025, the Linn County Rural Fire Department responded to 17 callouts dealing with carbon monoxide and, already in 2026, there has been at least one call to the Linn County Rural Fire Department for a carbon monoxide issue. Early in the year, Linn County Rural Fire... [More]
The Power of Hobbies: Why staying engaged matters as we age
As we grow older, maintaining health and independence becomes a top priority. While exercise and healthy eating often take center stage, one powerful tool for aging well is often overlooked - hobbies. Whether it’s gardening, painting, playing music or... [More]
Heartland REC expands Future Foundations Scholarship Program to 12 awards
GIRARD, Kan. — Applications are now open for the 2026 Future Foundations Scholarship Program, which provides scholarships of $1,000 each to high school seniors who live in homes served by Heartland Rural Electric Cooperative and are preparing for careers in high-demand... [More]
More Community
- Call for Entries: Bourbon County Arts Council Fine Art Exhibit 2026
- Tips for a safe New Year’s Eve
- KIDS CORNER: The stories behind Christmas traditions and symbols
- 2026 Operation Round Up awardees selected; more than $50,000 to be distributed
- Christmas food drive planned Dec. 20
- A piece of Prescott’s history
- Dream Aesthetics, Mound City, fulfilling a dream
- Holiday food drive distributions this weekend


