Drae Charles’ first official school board meeting kicked off with a July 10 barbecue outside district offices. With snacks near to hand and the smell of grilled meat in the air, Charles was sworn in for a four-year term on the Bethel School Board.
Charles foresees challenging discussions ahead, but he said this first meeting made him feel more like he was joining a family.
Bethel, like most Oregon school districts, welcomed recently elected members to their first board meetings in July. The infusion of fresh blood brings new ideas, new perspectives and new passions but it can also change a board’s dynamic, creating challenges and conflict points.
New board members such as Charles, Russell Hatch of Ashland and Lu Ann Anderson of McMinnville see their districts’ potential and shortcomings and are eager to make a difference.
OSBA offers board member training and support, including the OSBA Summer Board Conference. The Aug. 11-13 Salem event brings school board members from around the state together to learn from each other and education experts.
Bethel, on Eugene’s outskirts, has two new members, Charles and Curt Nordling. After many years of long-serving members, the board is experiencing some turnover. Superintendent Kraig Sproles said he wanted the barbecue to help start the relationship-building process and set an upbeat tone for the year ahead. Sproles manned the grill while board members, district staff, community members and their families mingled.
“Too often school board service is seen as really heavy and really difficult,” Sproles said. “It can be, but it can also be joyful and community centered.”
Charles, Eugene’s human rights and equity analyst, is the board’s third member to identify as a person of color and the first African American. Addressing hate, bias and discrimination in the school system was one of his campaign pillars, although he said Bethel has far fewer problems than other districts he has experienced.
“We are not going to solve racism,” he said. “That’s not in the cards for a school board.”
But he said he can still facilitate awareness and community discussions so all students have a better experience than he did growing up in Sacramento.
Charles’ main focus, though, is to create a better system for his two young children who will begin school in a few years. He’s starting now because he knows government is a slow process that depends on building strong relationships with colleagues and the community.
Charles wants to see Bethel expand the reach of its successful career and technical education programs and for the district to connect more with its community.
Bethel School Board member Ashley Espinoza (left) said Drae Charles’ (right) professional and personal knowledge with race and equity issues will benefit the board’s ongoing efforts to respond to students’ changing needs. (Photo by Lane County Commissioner Pat Farr)
Equity is also on the mind of Russell Hatch, a new Ashland School Board member. Hatch, who is white, is replacing Victor Chang, a person of color, who chose not to run again.
“As much as I can try to educate myself, I cannot speak as someone from another community,” Hatch said. He is committed, though, to furthering the district’s work on diversity, equity and inclusion.
Hatch has been attending school board meetings for months to prepare, getting to know not only the issues the district is facing but also where members stand on them.
“I’m looking forward to the part where I get to do the work,” he said.
Closing the pandemic learning gap is at the top of his list. He also wants to tackle the district’s declining enrollment, which can be tied to the community’s lack of affordable housing and child care.
New McMinnville School Board member Lu Ann Anderson said enrollment and the underlying community factors are a major issue for her district as well. Her objectives also include helping parents understand how decisions such as curriculum choices are made.
Anderson has a better idea of school board work than most members taking office this year. She was on the Yamhill-Carlton School Board more than 20 years ago and even handed her son his diploma in 1997. She joined the Yamhill-Carlton board because she was working full time and couldn’t volunteer in the schools during the day. She left because she moved to McMinnville to work for that district in various consulting and administrative roles.
Anderson found school board work rewarding though, so she decided to run for the McMinnville board now that she no longer works for the district.
Anderson said knowing many of the district’s teachers and administrators will help with board work but she needs to learn how things are done from the school board perspective. She is excited that this time around on a school board she will have more time to volunteer in classrooms and visit buildings.
School board members often come to the job eager to make important changes. But many also come to the job with a love of their community, an appreciation for their schools and a desire to give back.
“I’m thrilled and humbled the people in the community saw fit to elect me,” Anderson said. “I’m excited to bring what I know to that table.”
– Jake Arnold, OSBA
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