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HOOD RIVER — The Aug. 15 Hood River County School Board meeting, held at the Nathaniel Coe Administration Center, was the first for Bill Newton in his new role as superintendent.
The first half of the meeting was dedicated to a work session that included defining the roles, responsibilities and goals of both board members and the superintendent. Board Chair Chrissy Reitz said these sessions are usually planned for July, but with all the hiring happening in the district, it was pushed forward to the August meeting. Board committee assignments were also allocated.
“This really is what set the standard for what board members are supposed to do,” Reitz said before the board went through this year’s goals. “We need to make sure there’s a really good understanding amongst board members about what your job is — because if we can do these things and we follow these guidelines that we set for ourselves, it makes it much smoother as our year goes on.”
Newton’s superintendent goals are similar to former HRCSD Superintendent Rich Polkinghorn’s, he said, with some minor changes. “I do believe we have good systems in place, we are trending, I believe, in the right direction, so not wanting to upset the apple cart this year but really continuing to focus on the things related to our core values and our strategic plan,” he said.
There are three open positions on Hood River County School District’s budget committee. Applications are due by 5 p.m. Sept. 30 at www.hoodriver.k12.or.us/Page/8274.
Vacancies are in Zone 2 (central lower valley), Zone 3 (May Street Elementary area) and Zone 4 (Odell). All are three-year terms that run through June 2026. A map of the district’s zone boundaries is available at www.hoodriver.k12.or.us/Page/245.
The budget committee consists of seven citizens and seven school board directors and meets in May to review the proposed budget, take public comment and approve a budget to be reviewed by the board.
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