Mount Pleasant – January is School Board Recognition Month and Mount Pleasant Independent School District is joining districts across the state to thank board members for voluntarily tackling the enormous job of governing local school districts.

“Our school board members are extraordinary people who voluntarily tackle the job of governing Mount Pleasant ISD. They work tirelessly, devoting countless hours to help ensure a quality education that will lead our students to success,”” said Judd Marshall, Mount Pleasant ISD’s Superintendent of Schools. “In today’s climate of change and challenge, they are called upon to make tough decisions and develop policies on complex educational and social issues that affect the entire community as well as the lives of individual students.”

“Our board members have the responsibility for an annual budget of more than $43 million, 5200 students, 962 employees, and eight campuses. Their job is not an easy one. But these seven men and women have a commitment to serve their community and to see that all our students are given every opportunity to succeed,” Marshall said.

“Even though we are making a special effort during January to show appreciation to our school board members, we recognize their work reflects a year-round commitment,” he added.  “The time spent in board meetings represents just a small fraction of the hours school board members devote to their jobs. They work hard at seminars and training sessions to keep abreast of the latest changes in state and federal regulations and learn trends in educational leadership. They also are deeply involved in community activities, and spend many hours in the schools and at extracurricular events. Their love of learning and concern and caring for students, staff, and the community drive board members’ desire to ensure every student can succeed”.

“We take time to recognize our board members during our January Board meeting,” said Dr. Judi Saxton, MPISD’s Public Information Officer. “We present them with certificates, with appreciation items from each campus and with posters and cards our students have made for the individual Board members.”

Our students also write thank you notes to our board members that we send to the members during the month of January, we thank them on our school marquees and we honor our Board members in the newspaper, she added.

“Our Board members are actively involved in the life of our district,” Saxton said. “You’ll find them welcoming students at the start of the school day and at most, if not all, of our sporting and fine arts events. What we do for them in January can’t begin to show them how much we appreciate them and all they do for MPISD.”

The MPISD School Board members come from all walks of life, Saxton explained.

“But while they wear many hats in their daily lives, they put on a collective hat when they get down to the business of leading our school district. Board members must pull together as a team toward a common goal—helping our students achieve. While they may individually disagree on certain issues, their role as a board is to consistently strive toward excellence.”

The four men and three women serving Mount Pleasant ISD are:

Board President Yvonne Hampton, retired educator, who was elected to the board in 2009;
Board Vice President Buddy Blue, self-employed, who has served on the board since 2004;
Secretary Lee Miche, Pilgrim’s Pride, elected in 2009;
Luke Anderson, a local businessman elected to the Board in 2014;
Kim Crabb, a local businesswoman elected to the Board in 2011
Sandy McCauley, a local businesswoman, who was elected to the Board in 2012; and,
Ezeal McGill, a retired educator who served on the board between 1997 and 2006 and then was reelected to the Board in 2007.

“This year’s theme for School Board Recognition Month is ‘Super-Heroes for Schools.’ These men and women certainly are Super-Heroes for the staff and students of Mt. Pleasant ISD,” Saxton said.