The last time DeKalb County school board members went through a general election, voters backed three challengers but re-elected three incumbents.

Two years later, voters will again face choices.

Four of the board's nine seats will be up for grabs this November, with at least two members —- one of them Lynn Cherry Grant, the board's second-longest serving member —- already bowing out of the election.

Qualifying starts today and runs all week for candidates seeking one of the board seats. It is a nonpartisan contest, so candidates do not have to declare a party affiliation. They just have to pay a $540 fee to the county elections office, which is where they go to sign up for the ballot.

Here's a preview:

WHICH SEATS ARE UP FOR GRABS?

Districts 2, 4, 6 and 8.

WHO ARE THE INCUMBENTS?

> District 2: Grant, daughter of the late, longtime DeKalb schools Superintendent Jim Cherry, is walking away from a seat in central-west DeKalb that she has held for the past 16 years.

> District 4: Clarkston's Bebe Joyner has held this seat in northeast DeKalb since 2000 but said Friday she won't run for re-election.

> District 6: Tom Bowen of Stone Mountain won a special election two years ago in central-east DeKalb when the previous member stepped down.

> District 8: In a super-district representing schools in the northern half of DeKalb, Cassandra Anderson-Littlejohn is finishing her first four years in the seat.

WHAT'S AT STAKE

Bowen, who said Friday he will run for re-election, has quickly risen to a position as the board's vice chairman and is expected to have an incumbent's advantage. Anderson-Littlejohn has not given any public indication about her plans, but with the exit of both Grant and Joyner, more than half of the board next year will have two or fewer years of experience.

Superintendent Crawford Lewis will be pressing ahead with ambitious plans that involve relocating schools and programs as well as starting new ones. Unlike neighboring suburbs, where enrollment has been growing, DeKalb's enrollment has fallen to about 99,000 students. Lewis is now also preparing a downsizing plan that next year may result in layoffs.