The Clare-Gladwin Regional Education Service District joined 537 local and 56 intermediate school districts across Michigan to celebrate January as School Board Recognition Month.
“In another year full of challenges for public education, our school board members persevered through the adversity of 2024 to provide the best possible education for our students,” said Superintendent Tara Mager. “Celebrating School Board Recognition Month is one of the very small ways to express appreciation for all they do.”
“School board members represent the views and priorities of their community in the complex system of maintaining and running a district’s public schools,” Mager said. “They also reinforce the principle of local control over public education, which is an important, highly valued aspect of education in Michigan.”
“Too often, the efforts of school board members go unrecognized,” Mager said.
“The school board’s main goal is to support student achievement,” Mager added. To achieve that goal, the board focuses on the following needs:
Creating a vision for what parents and citizens want their school district to become and how to make student achievement the top priority.
Setting standards for what students must learn and be able to do.
Assessing whether schools achieve their goals and whether students are learning.
Accounting for the outcomes of decisions and by tracking progress and reporting results.
Aligning the use of the district’s human and financial resources.
Creating a safe and orderly climate where students can learn and teachers can teach.
Collaborating to solve common problems and to support common successes.
Focusing on continuous improvement by questioning, examining, revising, refining and revisiting issues related to student achievement.
“Even though we make a special effort during January to show appreciation for our school board members, we recognize their contributions reflect a year-round effort on their part,” Mager said. “No matter what challenges lie ahead for our district in 2025, our school board members will continue to govern to improve student achievement and provide exceptional education for all our community’s children.”
The individuals serving the CGRESD and the five local districts are:
Clare-Gladwin RESD - President Sue Murawski; Vice President Jason Pahl, Secretary Lou Adams; Treasurer Sarah Kile; and Trustee Rick Foote.
Board members serving in Harrison are Kendra Durga, Mick Haley, Therese Haley, James Neff, Chelsea Roland, Betsy Ulicki and Carrie Whitaker.
Farwell’s members include Jade Campbell, John Gross, Joe Maxey, John Pakledinaz, Kellee Robinson, Danielle Sholes and Nathan Yarhouse.
In Beaverton, board members are Daniel Bennett, Michael Dodman, Tammy Grove, Mark Hayes, Amber Hubble, Jason Pahl and Adam Zdrojewski.
Clare’s board features Susan Atwood, Loren Cole, Jennifer Dancer, Kelly Luplow, Jason MacDonald, John Miller, and Samantha Sharp.
Finally, Gladwin’s board is comprised of Greg Alward, Dan Barren, Lacey Dennings, Anne Edick, Sherrie Graham, Sheila Tenwalde, and Brad Withrow.