10/29/2026
In 1946, voters overwhelmingly supported the creation of a centralized school system for the children of Rush and Henrietta. The Board of Education was promptly formed in order to get to work building the foundation for the new school district. In honor of the district's 80th anniversary, let's take a look at these early leaders.
Today, the Rush-Henrietta Board of Education consists of seven volunteer members. When the district was first established, there were only five members. The original Board of Education was elected in November 1946 – 80 years next month. The first board members were:
- Raymond Bock, of Rush, who lived on East Henrietta Road and operated a store there
- William Gillette, of Henrietta, was the namesake of the former Gillette Elementary School
- Jasper Howlett, of Henrietta, was a farmer at the corner of East River and Lehigh Station
- Eldred Koehler, of Henrietta, was former president of the Henrietta High School Board
- Charles Roth, of Rush, was a factory manager who pushed for centralization for years
Each served during the formative years of our district. To ensure all five board members were not running for re-election at the same time, each member was assigned terms of different lengths – ranging from one to five years.
These men are just a handful of the people who shared their time and talent with our community during the past 80 years. We thank each and every person who has served in this unique way for their commitment to developing and fostering the Rush-Henrietta Central School District.
