School board apps due today

Today is the deadline for applications to fill the open seat on the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Board of Education.

The opening was created when Valerie Foushee resigned from her seat Nov. 4 after being elected to the Orange County Board of Commissioners.

The applications are due by 5 p.m. in the superintendent's office at the Lincoln Center.

Former school board member Gloria Faley said she turned in her application Thursday.

She said that while serving on the school board was difficult work, the idea of having a lasting impact appeals to her.

Faley also said she shares some views with Foushee, a quality the school board should consider.

"You're not just filling an open seat, you're trying to gather together someone who represents the views of the board member that is leaving," she said.

Pam Hemminger, who ran for a commissioner's seat this year, also said she planned to apply. She has served as co-president of the Ephesus Elementary School Parent Teacher Association and was a chairwoman of the school's governance committee.

"I've been very involved in the schools with the teachers and students," she said.

Hemminger said experience would help her remind the school board to think of those entities in its discussions.

Fred Kameny, an editor for the Duke University Press and another prospective applicant, said he had not yet decided if he would apply.

"I can't say that what motivates me is dissatisfaction with the way the board operates now," he said

Kameny said that while he has minimal experience in the school district, he has skills that qualify him for the job.

Having two daughters in the district made the issues in public schools immediate to him, he said.

But Kameny said Wednesday that the required time commitment has affected his thoughts on whether to apply.

Carolyn Schwarz, president of the Phillips Middle School Parent Teacher Student Association, also cited time commitment as a factor weighing on her decision.

"I have a great deal of respect for the superintendent and the school board and the process by which they make decisions," she said.

The board will review the applications and interview candidates at a special meeting Nov. 29, and it is expected to make a decision by Dec. 2.

The application calls for members with experience in the schools and the community.

City schools spokeswoman Kim Hoke said she did not know how many people plan to apply, but in the past, the board has received a sufficient number of applications.

"When we've had vacancies, which is not often, we've had a good pool."

Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.