School board chair resigns from board
By DANA DUGAN
Express Staff Writer
The chairperson of the Blaine County
School District Board of Trustees, Claudia Fiaschetti, tendered her resignation,
effective Monday, July 7.
She said she did not plan to attend the
board’s monthly meeting Tuesday, July 8, where her resignation was expected to
be accepted by the remaining four members of the board.
Fiaschetti has been on the board of
trustees for four years, and served as chairperson for the past year and a half.
"I made the decision during the past five
weeks," Fiaschetti said Tuesday. She declined to elaborate on why she decided to
resign with two years remaining on her term.
"It was a difficult decision to resign as
trustee for the Blaine County School District. I’ve enjoyed the past four
years."
Fiaschetti represented Zone Five, which
covers the east side of Blaine County from Indian Creek north to the County
line.
"She’s a great lady, and I’m really sorry
to see her go," Blaine County School District Superintendent Jim Lewis said. "We
thank her for service to Blaine County. Now our job is to get a replacement, and
work with a full board and do what we can for our kids."
The board has 90 days in which to accept
submissions of interest from residents in Zone 5 to fill the vacancy. After
being appointed the new board member would serve until May 2004, when
Fiaschetti’s term expires. Then that board member would ideally run for a
one-year term of office. In turn, in May 2005, that person most likely would
then be on the ballot for a three-year term.
Fiaschetti noted that the board was
scheduled to nominate new officers, including a new chairperson, at the meeting
Tuesday night. Howard Royal of Carey has the longest tenure, eight years, of the
present board member.
Fiaschetti said the board was able to
accomplish numerous goals during her tenure. She also noted it’s a demanding
job.
During the school year a board member can
spend anywhere from "20 to 30 hours a week, depending on what’s going on," she
said. "On top of meetings, there is work at home, reading and preparing, that
sort of thing.
"The most recent thing I worked on was the
open-closed campus (proposals), drug policy, contract negotiations and the sale
of certificates of participation," for which she went to New York City for a
bond rating trip with Lewis, Treasurer Mike Chatterton, bond counsel Mike Moore
and fellow board member Kathy Pruett.
Also, she worked on property negotiations,
the building projects for the Carey School, the Wood River High School the
addition to Middle School, the childcare facility at Hemingway Elementary and
plans for Woodside Elementary.
"We did educational board retreats, and I
attended the National School Board Conferences in New Orleans, Orlando and San
Diego."
Fiaschetti expressed gratitude to the
public for giving her the opportunity to perform this important role.
"Blaine County has had tremendous growth
with many successes and challenges. It’s been stimulating and rewarding to be a
part of it."