An election for the Lower Kuskokwim School District’s Advisory School Board (ASB) is coming up and Chris Carmichael, the principal at Gladys Jung Elementary, wants people to run. Four of the board’s seven seats are currently open.
"We are looking for folks who are interested in running," Carmichael said in an interview this week with KYUK. "We really need good help."
According to Carmichael, the Advisory School Board serves as the “eyes and ears of the community” for the school district. The group meets nine or 10 times every school year, and shares community feedback with school principals. They help school officials prioritize money and set their budgets every year, and they also have a hand in the school district’s attendance rules, issues related to tardiness, discipline, and other policies.
Board members have to be over 18 and must have been residents of the Bethel area for 30 days or more. They also can’t have been convicted of a crime against a child or any felonies involving “moral turpitude.” Carmichael said that most adults in Bethel are eligible to run and that your education level doesn’t matter.
"We’ve had people from doctors or lawyers sitting on our school board to folks who’ve never graduated high school," he said. "It’s really nice to have a variability of opinion on the board to understand what’s valuable to people."
If you’re interested in running for a seat on the Advisory School Board you need to get in touch with Carmichael or Bethel Regional High School principal Ed Pekar right away. Applicants need to express their intention to run by hand, not by email or fax.
"You have to handwrite a note," Carmichael explained. "It doesn’t have to be official, it can be a sticky note. Provide your full name and state that you want to be placed on the ballot. Please bring that either to myself or the principal at the Bethel Regional High School.
"It can be written on anything," he added, "so long as it’s a piece of paper and I can hold it in my hand."
The election is on October 3. If you’re interested in running, please contact Carmichael or Pekar by September 21. Write-ins are not allowed on the ASB ballot.