MEDIA RELEASE
For Immediate Release
January 18, 2023
MEDIA CONTACT:
Joseph Prechtl, Communications Coordinator
jprechtl@509j.net | 541-475-6192 Ext. 2225

The Jefferson County School District 509J will join the other 196 school districts throughout Oregon to celebrate January as “School Board Recognition Month,” Superintendent Jay Mathisen announced during the board meeting Monday, January 9, 2023.

“Our school board members spend countless hours of unpaid time working to provide the best possible education for our students,” said Mathisen. “They also serve as the corporate board of directors for one of our community’s largest employers. Celebrating School Board Recognition Month is one way to say thanks for all they do.”

School board members represent their fellow citizens’ views and priorities in the complex enterprise of maintaining and running the community’s public schools. They also reinforce the principle of local control over public education, which is an important, highly valued aspect of education in Oregon.

“Too often the efforts of school board members go unrecognized,” Mathisen said.

The school board’s main goal, is to support student achievement. To achieve that goal, the board focuses on the following needs:

  • Creating a vision for what parents and citizens want their school district to become and how to make student achievement the top priority
  • Assessing whether schools achieve their goals, and whether students are learning
  • Accounting for the outcomes of decisions and by tracking progress and reporting results
  • Aligning the use of the district’s human and financial resources
  • Creating a safe and orderly climate where students can learn and teachers can teach
  • Collaborating to solve common problems and to support common successes
  • Focusing on continuous improvement by questioning, examining, revising, refining and revisiting issues related to student achievement.

“509J is incredibly well-served by our current school board members. I am grateful for their leadership. This team approaches their work with a focus on students and families in ways that model wisdom and service. Even though we are making a special effort during January to show appreciation for our school board members, we recognize their contributions reflect a year-round effort on their part. They are dedicated individuals who are committed to improving student achievement and to fighting for the best for all of our students,” Mathisen said.

Board Members Left to Right: Board Vice-Chair Courtney Snead, Jacob Struck, Board Chair Kevin Richards, , Laurie Danzuka, Jamie Hurd

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