School Board Begins Work to Fill District 2 Vacancy

The Des Moines School Board has begun work to fill the current vacancy of its District 2 seat. Community members interested in filling this seat on the Board have until February 16 to indicate their interest. Complete details about the process are available at www.dmschools.org/boardvacancy.

The vacancy was created on Tuesday when Touissant Cheatom informed his colleagues he was resigning for personal health reasons. Cheatom was elected to the Des Moines School Board in September 2013. He was the first person elected to represent the city’s north side District 2 seat on the School Board. After 2011, four of the seven seats on the School Board began to be elected by district rather than at-large.

“It is important that our community is well represented on the School Board, and so it is important that we conduct a thorough and public process to find the best person to fill this vacancy,” said School Board President Cindy Elsbernd. “We encourage anyone who is a resident of District 2 and is committed to the success of our schools, students and community to consider this opportunity to serve.”

Under Iowa law, the School Board has 30 days from the time of the resignation to select a person to serve until the next election in September 2015, when voters in District 2 will elect someone to serve the remaining two years of the term.

Community members interested in being appointed to serve on the Board until September must submit a Letter of Interest and a resume no later than Noon on Monday, February 16. To be considered, individuals must be a resident of District 2, which includes much of the north central part of Des Moines.

In addition, the School Board will host a workshop on Saturday, February 14 at North High School on how the board works. The event is for anyone applying for the vacant seat, who might want to run for the School Board in the future, or who are simply interested in how the Board governs the school district.

The Board will complete the selection process by February 26 and the new Board member sworn into office on March 3.

For complete information about the process to fill the School Board vacancy – including how to apply, details on the selection process, a map of the district, information about the workshop and more – please visit www.dmschools.org/boardvacancy.