School district fills board vacancy

New board members to be sworn in November 9

The Gunnison RE1J school board had a list of questions for board candidate Lisa Starkebaum to address on Wednesday, October 28. But after her interview was over, it was all thanks and congratulations as the sitting members voted unanimously to recommend that Starkebaum, the sole candidate, fill the remaining vacancy on the board.

Now all of the seats are full on the school board that will set the policy and direction of the eight Gunnison RE1J schools for the next two years.
Starkebaum applied for the position just a few days before the interview, with some encouragement from board member Jim Perkins, and not at all too soon. The deadline for appointing someone to the post is November 9.
The election for the position wasn’t only uncontested, it was non-existent after no one entered the race. Then the school district opened the seat up to applicants and there were none.
So after several deadlines had passed without anyone stepping forward as a school board representative from south of Round Mountain, Starkebaum’s resume was a welcomed sight. All the board had to do was conduct an interview and make a recommendation to the district administration.
“I always had [a seat on the school board] in the back of my mind and a few people kept asking me,” Starkebaum told the board during her interview. “I’m here because of Jim [Perkins], who kept nudging me to apply.”
In her letter, Starkebaum told the board she was a mother to two school-aged sons, an active member of the Gunnison Valley PTA and a voting member of the Gunnison High School Site Accountability and Advisory Committee.
She also has professional experience dealing with the public and administering public programs as an employee of the city of Gunnison, according to the letter.
But despite being the only applicant for the position, and her apparent willingness and qualifications, Starkebaum still had to complete the process and face the scrutiny of the school board.
Their questions focused on where Starkebaum would like to see the school district grow, why she thought she would be a good addition to the school board and her ability to set objective school policy.
She told the board, “I think one of the areas I would like to see the school district grow is technology. As a rural school district we don’t have a lot of the opportunities of a city so the Internet becomes really important in providing those opportunities.”
She also expressed some hope that the district’s programs for gifted and talented students would be improved, and she applauded the district’s alternative education program at the Gunnison Valley School.
After fielding questions from the board, Starkebaum got the chance to ask a few questions of her own and hear the advice of some sitting board members. She wondered what some of the most challenging things she would encounter might be.
While board treasurer Bill Powell thought it was the finances of education in Colorado, several board members agreed with Anne Hausler, who said it was the frequent challenge of choosing between two good options for the school.
“None of our decisions are black and white,” Hausler said. “We often have to choose between two options that would work and it’s challenging to weigh the options for the district.”
Current school board president MJ Vosburg told Starkebaum that one of her biggest challenges would be confronting the public, which sometimes has only a vague understanding of the role a school board member plays.
“This is a fairly small community and as a member of the school board, you are privy to things that you can’t discuss. Then a person who hasn’t done more than read a couple of sentences in the newspaper judges you in the produce department at City Market. Sometimes you don’t have the opportunity to explain the details,” Vosburg said. “So a thick skin helps.”
None of the questions or comments from the board members were enough to dissuade Starkebaum from pursuing a position on the school board. After the interview, the board voted unanimously to recommend to the school district that Starkebaum be appointed to the vacant seat.
Starkebaum’s appointment means that she will serve only a two-year term before facing election, if her seat is contested. Current board member Jim Perkins and Lee Olesen, who will be the representative from North of Round Mountain, will be starting four-year terms.
The three new and two returning board members—Anne Hausler and Bill Powell—will be sworn in at the board’s regular meeting on November 9.