Carson City School District administration building.
The Carson City School District Board of Trustees on Tuesday selected Fritsch Elementary School mother and juvenile probation officer Linda Lawlor to fill its parent vacancy on the Family Life Advisory Committee after interviewing six applicants interested in the seat.
The seat became open after parent Valerie Meléndez announced her resignation to move to Washoe County. The position consequentially had been advertised by the district in the local media and publicized through ParentSquare, and district administrators received interest from the six potential candidates.
The FLC provides input on the Carson City School District’s sexual education program, including factual instruction concerning acquired immune deficiency syndrome and the human reproductive system, related communicable diseases and sexual responsibility. Members are asked to provide guidance on how lessons are presented in the classroom.
On Nov. 23, the school board approved the renewal of committee chairperson Sheila Story, medical representative Ann Dankworth and parent representative Candice McDaniel to new terms.
For this most recent appointment, candidates included Ashley Creel, a human resources business partner and mother of two children at Seeliger Elementary School; David Klass, a student pastor and father of one attending Bordewich Bray Elementary School and a preschooler who will be going there next year; Danielle Pritchett, an insurance account manager and mother of a sophomore at Carson High School; Katie Hackler, a labor and delivery nurse and mother of two elementary children; Paul Ingram, executive pastor of Common Ground Church, and father of four, two of whom graduated from Carson High School, another at Eagle Valley Middle School and the youngest attending Seeliger; and Lawlor, who has worked as a juvenile probation officer and now serves as deputy chief of Carson City Juvenile Services with two adult sons who graduated from the school district and a fifth grader attending Fritsch.
All six candidates were asked to attend Tuesday’s meeting to be interviewed by the board members after submitting their resumes and letters of interest. Trustees asked if they would be willing to fulfill the board’s three-year time commitment and ability to meet monthly as needed, all of whom responded they would.
Trustee Mike Walker also asked about the FLC’s controversial aspects and its most important components in the eyes of the candidates.
Lawlor, deputy chief of Carson City Juvenile Services with more than 21 years of assisting high-risk teens locally, said she especially was surprised by the lack of boundaries having worked in detention services and said more age-appropriate lesson plans were needed. She also responded to Trustee Lupe Ramirez’s question about working with minorities, and said she was bilingual and half-Hispanic, explaining she previously worked in San Diego, where there is a large minority population.
“It’s absolutely important to know the population you’re working with and tailor to their needs,” she said.
Story said two more parent positions will be available again at the end of the school year.
Lawlor was approved with a vote of 6-0 and one abstention.
