The terms for two of the five members of the Salem School Board will expire this year, and on Monday night the city council heard from most of the nine candidates who want to fill those positions.

Longtime school board veteran Wayne Adkins asked in August not to be reappointed when his term expires. Adkins, whose last day will be Dec. 31, has been a member of the board since 1998 and was elected vice chairman in 2006.

Cindy Neathawk, who became vice chairwoman in 2008, will also see her term expire this year, but on Monday she asked the council to be appointed for another term.

Other applicants for the positions include Stephen Bowery, owner of Virginia Capital Strategies in Roanoke; Nancy Bradley, a graduate research assistant scheduled to complete Virginia Tech's doctoral program in teacher education and literacy this spring; Michael Chiglinsky, a clinical psychologist who does consulting for area schools; Michelle Darby, a regional manager for Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield; Matthew Fleenor, an assistant professor in the math, computer science and physics department at Roanoke College; Salem lawyer and Radford City Attorney Jim Guynn; Artice Ledbetter, a community volunteer and the mother of three children who attend Salem schools; and David Wells, a former Roanoke County police detective and clerk of Roanoke City Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court.

Except for Fleenor and Guynn, all of the candidates vying for the seats spoke during Monday's city council session. Four of the applicants -- Chiglinsky, Darby, Guynn and Wells -- interviewed as school board candidates in May 2008, hoping to take over Jim Chisom's unexpired school board term. David Preston was selected for that seat and was unanimously reappointed in December.

During the meeting, City Manager Kevin Boggess announced that the council will conduct interviews with the applicants Dec. 7 and 8.

"I'm very thankful we have this depth of qualified candidates," Salem Mayor Randy Foley said.

Vice Mayor John Givens agreed: "It's going to be a very difficult job for us to pick. I wish we had room for everybody."

Salem's five-member school board sets policy and oversees the budget for a school division that has consistently met state and federal standards. Members, selected by the city council, serve overlapping three-year terms. The superintendent is the board's chief executive officer and is appointed for a four-year term.

Board members meet at least once a month, regularly visit the city's schools and attend training sessions.