Twelve people with backgrounds ranging from education and technology to business, the courts and community volunteering have applied for the vacant seat on the Higley Unified School District Governing Board.
The group includes two who have previously been candidates for the board: Brooke Garrett and Kathleen Richards.
The applicants are Jillian Clark, Alyssa Cunningham, Garrett, Kimberly Jackson, Scott Mcfadden, Preston Merchant, Mallory Miller, Mary Ann Paczkowski, Richards, Karen Sailer, Jamie Snitker and Travis White.
All 12 indicated on their applications that they have children currently enrolled in HUSD.
The district is asking community members to review the applications and select up to three preferred candidates in an online survey that closes at 11:59 p.m. Aug. 9.
The governing board is scheduled to meet Aug. 11 to select three nominees to forward to Maricopa County School Superintendent Shelli Boggs.
Boggs has the authority under state law to appoint one of the board's nominees or select someone else to fill the remainder of former board member Scott Glover's term, which expires Dec. 31, 2028. She has frequently made her own selection.
Glover unexpectedly resigned July 20 after a long-planned move to Portugal with his wife happened sooner than anticipated.
The vacancy comes as the district continues to deal with financial pressures following voters' rejection of its maintenance and operations override last fall. Board President Amanda Wade and member Anna Van Hoek also are seeking re-election in November, with newcomer Michelle Morris running for the board as well.
Here is a look at the applicants based on information they provided to HUSD:
Jillian Clark
Clark is an office manager at EDHS with Leona Schools and has a bachelor's degree. She said she has spent more than 12 years working in public education with a charter school group and is involved with HUSD through her children's schools and school activities.
Clark said her professional experience has given her an understanding of school operations and how district decisions affect students, employees and families.
She described herself as a problem-solver who listens to multiple perspectives while emphasizing fiscal responsibility.
Alyssa Cunningham
Cunningham, a mother of four with a bachelor's degree, volunteers as a classroom parent at San Tan Elementary. She also has been involved with Arizona Brainfood, which provides weekend meals to children facing food insecurity, and serves on the Whiteman 4G Foundation board.
She said she wants HUSD public schools to be families' first choice and identified academic standards, teacher support and school safety among her priorities.
Cunningham said having young children in HUSD gives her a long-term perspective on decisions being made by the district.
Brooke Garrett
Garrett, a homemaker with a bachelor's degree in elementary education, has an extensive history of HUSD involvement during her family's 14 years in the district.
Her volunteer work has included serving as San Tan Elementary PTO president, serving on the Sossaman Middle School site council and helping found the organization that became the Higley High Parent Booster. She also has served with athletic booster organizations and district panels and said she has received HUSD's Point of Pride Volunteer award three times.
Garrett is a former elementary school teacher and has five children who have attended HUSD schools, including three Higley High graduates and two current students.
She said her long history in the district would bring institutional knowledge and a perspective from the southern portion of HUSD to the board.
Kimberly Jackson
Jackson described her occupations as mother, hair stylist and calligraphy artist. She has been an HUSD parent and volunteer, including two years with the Williams Field High School Theater Booster.
She also has attended governing board meetings, advocated for the Independent PE program and volunteered at school events and fundraisers.
Jackson brings nearly five years of experience on her homeowners association board, where she said she has dealt with open meeting laws, executive sessions, budgeting, fiduciary responsibilities and long-term planning.
She said she wants to encourage collaboration while helping maintain HUSD's reputation.
Scott Mcfadden
Mcfadden is a retired geologist with postgraduate education who also is a Marine Corps veteran and former small-business owner.
He said his business experience taught him to identify problems and have difficult conversations, while six years in the Marine Corps taught him to work within an organization toward goals involving competing interests.
Mcfadden also taught courses as a graduate student and has five children.
"As a member of the community I see too many people criticize the system but won’t do anything effective to make changes," Mcfadden wrote in explaining his interest. "I have decided to put my time and energy where it can be used to forge a brighter future for our kids."
Preston Merchant
Merchant is a senior data analyst with a bachelor's degree who previously taught for HUSD for three years. He has three children enrolled in the district.
He said he has four years of education experience and four years in management, along with experience in logistics, collaboration and finding common ground among people with opposing views.
Merchant identified district finances as a particular interest, saying he wants to be involved in funding and resource-allocation decisions and help the district campaign for its next budget override.
Mallory Miller
Miller is a customer success manager with a master's degree and more than 15 years of experience in education, including work as a classroom teacher and school administrator. She most recently worked in schools as an elementary principal before moving into education technology.
Her family has extensive HUSD connections, including children, stepchildren, nieces and nephews who have attended district schools. She also has supported athletics, JROTC and theater programs.
Miller said the district's budget constraints would be among the challenges she hopes to help address.
She said her combination of experience as a parent, teacher, principal and education technology professional would allow her to understand issues from several perspectives.
Mary Ann Paczkowski
Paczkowski has a master's degree in public administration and formerly worked as a sixth-grade teacher. She said she has more than 20 years of education experience in multiple states and different types of schools.
She attends HUSD board meetings and said she has worked to make sure her neighborhood has a voice in education policy.
Paczkowski cited education policy, curriculum and standards, finances, contracts, communication and teamwork among the areas in which she could contribute to the board.
Kathleen Richards
Richards is a substitute teacher and private voice teacher with a bachelor's degree in music.
She said she has been involved with HUSD for 10 years, including PTO work at Cooley preschool, Higley Traditional Academy and Cooley Middle School. Richards also started and has coordinated a drama club at Higley Traditional Academy that she said has served more than 250 students.
Richards said she has extensive nonprofit board experience and more than 15 years of experience in educational settings as a teacher and parent.
She said she wants the board to remain focused on fiscal responsibility while ensuring families, students and teachers across the district have a voice in decisions.
Karen Sailer
Sailer is retired after working for the Superior Court of Arizona in Maricopa County's Juvenile Division.
She supervised 13 employees and court operations involving 13 case types and adoptions. Her responsibilities included coordinating National Adoption Day with attorneys, agencies, state departments, judges, commissioners, volunteers and families.
Sailer cited 30 years of customer service experience and 20 years with the court, along with experience in leadership, personnel supervision, data analysis, policy development and financial oversight.
She said retirement gives her the time needed to handle the governing board's workload.
Jamie Snitker
Snitker is a senior manager with Johnson & Johnson MedTech's OTTAVA Education and holds a master's degree in education. Her son attends Cooley Middle School.
She said she has more than 20 years of experience in education and learning, including work for a public school district, educational publishing and corporate learning strategy.
Snitker said she manages a multimillion-dollar program budget and contracts and also has experience in curriculum and instruction, education technology, organizational leadership and business ownership.
"I don't want a seat to advance a personal cause; I want to help this district make sound, forward-looking decisions that give every child a strong education," Snitker wrote.
Travis White
White is a director and deputy chief information security officer with a bachelor's degree in computer information systems from Arizona State University's W.P. Carey School of Business.
He described himself as an active HUSD parent, volunteer and advocate who frequently attends governing board meetings and works with administrators, PTO members and parents.
White listed three priorities: protecting programs such as library, physical education, band and dual-language immersion; supporting and retaining teachers; and ensuring fiscal accountability.
His technology career includes managing risk, budgets, compliance and contracts, experience he said could translate to governing board oversight.
Community gets a say
The community feedback process gives HUSD residents and parents a role in narrowing the field, although the survey does not determine who receives the appointment.
The district previously said the process was designed to give the board a sense of which applicants have community support before it selects its three nominees.
The survey asks respondents to identify whether they live within HUSD boundaries, are current or former district parents or guardians, or are HUSD employees. Participants can choose up to three applicants.
The survey closes Aug. 9, two days before the board is scheduled to select the three names it will send to Boggs.
Whoever is appointed will join Wade, Van Hoek, Vice President Sara Jarman and member Tiffany Shultz on the five-member board and serve through the end of 2028.
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