Southern Indiana city elects 20-year-old to local school board

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The Salem community elected a 20-year-old to serve on its board of education, one of the youngest elected officials in the state of Indiana.

Ty Sweeney graduated from Salem High School in 2022, and is now elected to serve on the district board of education.

"I don't think you're ever too young to make a difference. Some of our founding fathers were 18-years-old, 20-years-old, and look what they did," Sweeney said. "I ran on truth, transparency and accountability, and so what I want is not just for this community, but for others looking in inside at our local race. I want them to hold me accountable."

Sweeney was running for one of the four of seven seats up for election this year.

Not only was he elected, he received the most votes out of nine candidates.

"I was like, just blown away by the support. I was all day praying that we'd get maybe fourth place, just hoping to have a spot on the board to make a difference and to have the turnout that we did ... I was blown away, I'm humbled by it," Sweeney said.

Ty Sweeney on the campaign trail. (Courtesy: Ty Sweeney)

One of his main reasons for running is to pay back a community he says saved him.

"My personal story was freshman year of high school, I was suicidal and depressed. At the end of that week, I asked God to prove himself. I gave my life to Jesus Christ, and so I want our kids to know that they're not alone and that they have a hope and they have a future ahead of them," he said.

This wasn't the 20-year-old's first time on the campaign trail. He ran for the same position when he was 18 and lost.

"I thought I knew it all about elections, like most 18-year-olds," Sweeney said about running his campaign two years ago. "I said, I'm gonna throw my name in the hat, and I'm gonna try and make a difference. I didn't really run on a platform."

This time, Sweeney said he ran a stronger campaign by making his values clear: truth, transparency, and accountability.

"I'm not going to stand here and say that I know it all today, but I will say that I have a different perspective that I bring to our school system," he said.

Some ideas Sweeney hopes to bring into fruition include creating an annual State of Salem address, similar to the State of the Union, and update the community on its progress and goals annually.

He also hopes to create a student advisory board to engage students with the board.

"A lot of our kids in the school system, I think one of the main issues that they're dealing with is they say, well, we don't feel like we have a voice," he said.

As for learning the ropes of school board, Sweeney said he is doing his research and already engaging with other board members.

"One of the things that I'm doing is attending board meetings. I think that if you're running for something, you should probably attend what it is that they're doing, kind of getting to know not just them, but also the community," Sweeney said. "The state offers training. I've been looking at that. I've been learning a little bit more, doing my own research, but also just knowing that I have the resources of the people who have already served on our board at my disposal, but they've been super supportive. They've reached out."

As for those skeptical of his age, he said no one needs to trust him right away.

"Even though they may not fully understand where my heart's at or what I'm trying to do for our school system, I don't expect them to have trust in me. I want to earn that over the next four years, and I want them to know that they should be skeptical, because at the end of the day, I'm a new politician. I'm a new person in the race, but I want them to hold me accountable," he said.

Sweeney will be sworn in this January.