Josh Wagner

Josh Wagner just began his third year on the Rowan-Salisbury Board of Education and his first year as chairman.

Two new members – Dean Hunter and Travis Allen – joined the board following November’s election, forming the new majority that elected Wagner to chair the board.

Wagner occupies seat three, or the east seat, on the Board of Education.

He initially ran for the school board because he “felt they needed new folks and new ideas” and he felt he could add a different perspective.

He said he also wanted to help “reprioritize some things from a spending standpoint.”

Since his election as a board member, Wagner said, they’ve hired Superintendent Dr. Lynn Moody, developed a new strategic plan and started updating the district’s policies, which is “one of the main purposes of the board anyway.”

When he isn’t serving on the school board, Wagner is a sales representative Kaeser Compressors, which sells industrial air compressors.

Wagner is a Catawba College graduate, and has his bachelor’s degree in business administration. He is a Salisbury native and has lived in Rowan County his entire life, except for the three years he spent in the Army as an infantry paratrooper with 82^nd Airborne Division and reconnaissance scout in Korea.

Wagner is married to Brittney, and they have two young daughters, Caroline and Kate.

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Job title: Rowan-Salisbury Board of Education chairman

Age: 32

Address: Salisbury, near Granite Quarry

If you won $1 million in the lottery, what would you do? “I’d pay off the little bit of debt we have and invest the rest.”

Favorite hobby: Running

Who should play you in a movie? Mark Wahlberg

What would you choose for your last meal? Mexican food

Who will you watch in 2015? “Greg Edds. I think that’s a big one, at least locally.”

Biggest challenge in 2015: “Prioritizing effectively. There’s a lot of needs, but we’re going to have to prioritize them and start chipping away.”

Biggest hope for 2015: “To see more positive improvements from a test score standpoint and to find a way to continue to show appreciation for our teachers and staff and to boost morale.”

Reaction to making the list: “It’s definitely flattering,” he said, adding that he doesn’t want to disappoint the people who are looking to him to have a positive impact on the community.