SEQUIM — The Sequim School Board will accept applications for an appointed position until 4 p.m. Sept. 5, it decided recently.
Application packets are available at the district office at 503 N. Sequim Ave., between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m., Monday through Thursday.
Board member Robin Henrikson submitted her letter of resignation July 18; the board accepted it Aug. 5.
In her resignation letter, Henrikson expressed a desire to have a declared and unopposed candidate for the School Board election in the November general election be appointed to the seat now to ease the transition.
“I think appointing a candidate who is running for my current District One position now makes a lot of sense rather than waiting for a more difficult transition in December,” Henrikson wrote.
Instead the board decided 3-0 on Aug. 5, with Heather Short absent, to take applications for the position.
Lawrence “Larry” Jeffryes filed to fill the District 1 position and will appear on the Nov. 5 ballot. Jerry Mote also filed in May as a write-in candidate but his name won’t appear on the ballot.
The four remaining School Board members will interview candidates on Sept. 9, during the regular board meeting that starts at 6 p.m., and the appointee is expected to be sworn in Oct. 7.
Candidates must live in District 1 within the school district’s boundaries — roughly the western half of the district including Carlsborg and Agnew, extending from the Dungeness Recreation area and shoreline north to the Olympic National Park boundary to the south.
Candidates may be asked during the interview process to give a biographical sketch of themselves (training, interests, experience on policy boards and community/school activities), what they perceive as major strengths and shortcomings of the district, to describe how their “experience, training and interest can contribute to the improvement of the district,” and to identify any commitments that may prevent them from attending regular meetings and workshops.
According to a board director candidate application packet, the board is “to determine a vision for the educational program; design a structure to achieve that vision; assure that the schools are accountable to the community; and advocate for continuous improvement in student learning” and that “while many have had a hand in shaping our school system, the Sequim Board of Directors must ultimately answer to the community and the State Superintendent of Public Instruction on issues related to local programs. The Board selects a superintendent to administer adopted policies; however, the Board is the final authority on all matters concerning the district.”
Regular board meetings are normally held at 6 p.m. the first and third Mondays of each month during the school year, with the exception being official holidays. Board members also meet for special sessions as needed.
In other school board races in November, incumbent Jim Stoffer looks to keep his Director 3 position as he faces off against challenger Beth Smithson, while Eric A. Pickens and Charles W. Smith III vie for the Director 5 (at-large) position to be left vacant by Short, who declined to run for re-election.
For more information, contact Trayce Norman at 360-582-3262 or tnorman@sequimschools.org.
