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From left: School board candidates Dorothy Rouse, Alexander Granas, Steve Parsons, Jackie Schmidt-Posner, Lorrie Wernick
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Local school board races turn into a nonevent here
By Leigh Ann Maze
Los Gatos Union School District's board of trustees will add a new board member and reinstate a returning board member in December. Two seats were open on the board, those of Dorothy Rouse and Steven Parsons, whose four-year terms expired. Rouse was the only person to file for a seat by the deadline on Aug. 11. Incumbents such as Parson's could not file after that date, but the filing deadline for new applicants was extended to Aug. 16.
Just before deadline, Alexander Granas filed for a seat on the board. Because there are just two open seats and two candidates, there will not be an election. Rouse and Granas will be automatically installed by LGUSD superintendent Mary Ann Park at the December board meeting, Rouse said.
LGUSD board members serve four-year terms. Board members attend monthly meetings, sometimes meeting more frequently as needed, and usually serve on several school committees. Applicants must live and be a registered voter within the school district.
For newcomer Granas, 43, it is his first time running for a school board. However he has been very involved in the LGUSD for the past few years. He has a son attending Daves Avenue School and a daughter attending Fisher Middle School. Granas is a director of the Los Gatos Elementary Educational Foundation and is a member of the Fisher Dad's Club. He has volunteered for the past four years for the Principal for a Day program and Engineering Week, a national organization that sends people into classrooms to encourage science and math. Granas has lived in Monte Sereno for the past six years and works as a sales engineer for Intel.
Granas said that as a member of the school board he is primarily interested in encouraging science and technology education and holding teachers and administrators more accountable for student learning. Some of Granas' main concerns include the physical condition of the schools in the LGUSD and helping the district attract and retain quality teachers.
Parsons, who has served on the LGUSD board of trustees for the past 10 consecutive years, decided not to serve again. "It's time to let someone else in," Parsons said, adding that he plans to spend more time with his family. Parsons is currently president of the LGUSD board and serves on the finance committee. He has worked with three superintendents during his time on the board.
"It's been interesting and educational experience for me, and it's been my pleasure to serve the community in this capacity," Parsons said.
Rouse worked as a teacher in the LGUSD for 25 years. She retired in 1996 and continues to live in Los Gatos. She has served one four-year term and will now serve a second term.
"It just seemed like the natural thing to do," Rouse said about why she chose to serve again. "It's an opportunity to give back."
Two seats also opened up on the Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High School District board of trustees. Terms expired for board members Lorrie Wernick and Jackie Schmidt-Posner. Both incumbents were the only people to file before the Aug. 11 deadline, so the faces on the LG-SJUHSD school board will remain the same.
"I still feel like I have more to contribute," Schmidt-Posner said about why she decided to continue on the board. "It's been neat to be a part of building a new team at the district and the whole building process at the school sites as well."
Schmidt-Posner was originally elected to the school board in 1996. She is director of service learning at Stanford University's Haas Center for Public Service and has been an active parent in local public education for over 10 years, serving on school site councils. While on the LG-SJUHSD board, she has served on the strategic long-range planning committee on social responsibility and community service.
Wernick was also elected to the LG-SJUHSD board in 1996. She is principal at C.T. English Middle School and is the director of special education for the Loma Prieta School District. Wernick has also served as past president of the Lakeside Community Foundation and was chairman of the board for the Los Gatos-Saratoga Observation Nursery School. Wernick was vice president of the board of the San Jose Chamber Music Society for eight years.
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Los Gatos, California Since 1881
