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Ketchikan school board elects officers after two resignations; applications open to fill seat
Summary
The Ketchikan Gateway Borough School District board reorganized its leadership Wednesday after receiving written resignations from Board President Michelle O’Brien and board member Keenan Sanderson, elected new officers and opened the process to appoint a replacement.
The Ketchikan Gateway Borough School District Board of Education reorganized its leadership at the March 26 meeting after the district received written resignations from Board President Michelle O’Brien and board member Keenan O. Sanderson.
Board member Catherine Tatsuta was elected president by the sitting board, Jordan Tabb was elected vice president and Tom Hewitt was selected as clerk treasurer. Judy Lee Scathrey was nominated and accepted the role of secretary treasurer. The board’s clerk administered secret ballots, and the board confirmed the officer slate in short votes during the reorganizational portion of the meeting.
Clerk announcements at the start of the meeting noted the board had received the two written resignations; Sanderson’s letter had arrived too late to be acted on at the March 26 session and will be placed on the April 9 agenda for formal acceptance. The board accepted Michelle O’Brien’s resignation at the meeting by vote, declaring her seat vacant.
Superintendent Robbins and board members outlined the next steps for filling the vacancy. The board will accept applications for appointment to the seat; applicants should obtain forms from the district clerk and submit them before the board’s appointment deadline. Interviews and appointment are scheduled for the April 23 meeting. Any appointee will serve until the next regular election; an appointee who wishes to remain on the board must file for the seat in the regular election process.
Board members emphasized that the appointment process will follow district policy, including a public interview process. The clerk said a public forum for candidate interviews will be held at the April 23 meeting so the community can hear from finalists before the board votes.
The reorganization came amid a week of heavy public comment and an ongoing budget and program review. Board members said the newly elected officers would focus on stabilizing operations and on communications with families and staff as the district moves into budget deliberations for the fiscal year.
