Daily Sitka Sentinel

Brady-Howard Selected For School Board Seat

By BRIELLE SCHAEFFER

Sentinel Staff Writer

After six rounds of gridlocked roll-call voting Tuesday night, the Sitka School Board finally picked Dionne Brady-Howard to serve out the remaining year on a vacated seat.

The four board members went back and forth between her and Jennifer Carter before choosing Brady-Howard, a Mt. Edgecumbe High School social studies teacher.

Cass Pook, Jenn McNichol and Tom Conley voted for Brady-Howard in the final round, with Eric VanCise picking Carter, who works at the Sitka Fine Arts Camp. The other contender was stay-at-home father Brent Edwards.

“I’m blown away with the quality and caliber with all three of these people, not to be hyperbolic,” McNichol said. “All three of them would be great. I wish we had three openings.”

After the fourth round of votes, Superintendent Mary Wegner and her administrative assistant Laurie Seehafer called the district attorney for advice. By law the board had to appoint someone in 30 days, and since former school board president Tim Fulton resigned Sept. 1, time was running out, Wegner said. Fulton’s resignation came too late for the opening to be placed on the Oct. 4 election ballot.

Before the final votes, Pook urged the board to think about who would help the district reach its goals.

“We need to think about the gap and who would best meet that need,” she said.

During her interview, Brady-Howard said she was interested in helping the district reach its goal of closing the achievement gap for low-income students as well as creating a new definition of student success. She is particularly interested in helping Native Alaskan children, she said.

“We need to turn out students, regardless of what path they choose, who are work ready,” she said.

Each of the three candidates was asked the same questions during the interviews that covered why they wanted to be on the board, their strengths and their thoughts on public education’s purpose.

Brady-Howard, who grew up in Sitka, spoke of her 19 years as an educator and her experience as a parent of two kids in Sitka schools. She’ll bring those perspectives to the table, she said.

Education is at a turning point nationally between different federal policies, she said.

“It leaves us some room to try and figure out again what education looks like in our own locality,” Brady-Howard said. 

Her past experience includes serving on the Sitka Native Education Program’s parent committee for 13 years.

That time on the committee and as a high school teacher has given her good communication and leadership skills, Brady-Howard said.

“I’m no shrinking violet,” she said. “I’m able to express myself clearly and communicate myself and my feelings with tact.”

She feels strongly about the importance of education – and its funding – for the good of society, she said.

“Public education serves as a tool for people to make the most of their potential, whatever that may be,” she said.

But, on the board she also won’t shy away from hard budgetary items. 

“It’s kind of like I tell my students: I’m not there to be their friend,” she said. “That’s the toughest one because you all have to live in the community still where you’re making these tough decisions.”

Brady-Howard will be sworn-in for the one-year term at the board’s Oct. 4 meeting. That same day, a city election will decide if incumbent McNichol or hopeful Ed Gray will garner a regular three-year School Board term.