After re-enacting a discussion previously held in an illegal executive session, the Dolores RE-4A School Board again appointed Lenneta Shull to fill a vacant board seat during their regular meeting on Sept. 13.
During a Sept. 4 special meeting, the board interviewed several candidates, including Shull, Keith Moore, Joe “Spark” Reed, Eugene Reininger and Jerry Whited. They went into executive discussion to discuss the candidates behind closed doors, then held a vote in public to appoint Shull.
However, Superintendent Phil Kasper later learned the personnel provision for going into executive session was not valid because according to school policy, board members are not considered personnel.
After an extensive discussion with school district attorneys about the matter, it was recommended that the board re-enact in public what happened in the improper executive session. A new vote was determined not to be necessary, Kasper said, because the original vote for Shull was made during public session.
Board members explained that during the executive session, the board became deadlocked on the best candidate. To break the deadlock, they tried a weighted scoring system, and when they came out of the executive session the public vote was unanimous for Shull. She was sworn in by District Attorney Will Furse.
In an email to The Journal, Shull explained her background and goals as a new board member.
Shull has been volunteering for the local 4-H Club club for 35 years and was an active member of the Dolores Booster Club for many years.
She and her husband have raised four children and many surrogate children. She has early childhood development schooling and is trained in medical fields, including as a medical assistant, X-ray technician, phlebotomist and medical billing and coder.
Shull said her desire to be on the board is to prepare students for a successful future.
“I want our children to walk off the stage during graduation and be able to make a choice on how they think their life should look, either by attending college, or choosing a trade,” Shull stated. “It is their vision for success, not ours, but we must provide them with the skills to make that decision.”
As a board member, she plans to focus on student achievement through a rigorous curriculum and retention of quality teachers. Recognizing that different students have different learning needs is important, Shull said, and data-based decision-making will best serve students.
“Student learning is the core business of the school,” she said. “We accomplish this by researching available data.”
Other priorities for Shull are student safety and community engagement.
“Education is a shared partnership within the community,” Shull stated. “As a board member, I am going to do my best to see that each and every student is successful.”
Shull fills a vacancy on the board after former president Dee Prock resigned. She will serve the remainder of the term, which expires in November 2019.