Tanzania RPCV Karen Schwarzwalder, the longest-serving member currently on the Columbus Board of Education, will resign in December after 11 years on the seven-member panel



Schwarzwalder, a Democrat, was elected to the board in November 1995 and was sworn in the following January. During her tenure, she was elected by her fellow board members to serve as board president in 1998, and served five one-year terms as vice president, including from 2001 to 2003. A 1961 graduate of North High School, Schwarzwalder taught English and drama at Roosevelt Junior High in Columbus from 1968 to 1971. The only time she hasn't lived in Columbus was a two-year stint in the Peace Corps in Africa when she was just out of college, she said.

Tanzania RPCV Karen Schwarzwalder, the longest-serving member currently on the Columbus Board of Education, will resign in December after 11 years on the seven-member panel

School board veteran to leave soon

Oct 3, 2006

The Columbus Dispatch, Ohio

Oct. 3--Karen Schwarzwalder, the longest-serving member currently on the Columbus Board of Education, will resign in December after 11 years on the seven-member panel.

A lifelong Columbus resident, Schwarzwalder will move to Findlay to be with her husband, David Ferguson, who last year became vice president of development at the University of Findlay.

"We're getting older, and I just felt like now is a good time to leave the board," Schwarzwalder, 63, said yesterday.

By law, the board must appoint someone to replace Schwarzwalder. That person will serve until January 2008, when the winner of the November 2007 election will be sworn in to a four-year term for that seat.

In the past, the board has opened up the process of filling vacancies to anyone who wanted to apply and be interviewed. Board President Terry Boyd couldn't be reached last night for comment.

Schwarzwalder, a Democrat, was elected to the board in November 1995 and was sworn in the following January. During her tenure, she was elected by her fellow board members to serve as board president in 1998, and served five one-year terms as vice president, including from 2001 to 2003.

A 1961 graduate of North High School, Schwarzwalder taught English and drama at Roosevelt Junior High in Columbus from 1968 to 1971. The only time she hasn't lived in Columbus was a two-year stint in the Peace Corps in Africa when she was just out of college, she said.

Schwarzwalder is regional coordinator for the YWCA Great Lakes Alliance Region, a job that she'll continue in Findlay.

"The work of a board is about policy governance," Schwarzwalder said. "I'm very pleased with the role that I played."

Schwarzwalder listed her accomplishments on a written statement released by the district yesterday. They included helping to develop:

-- A curriculum-reform policy to ensure a challenging curriculum aligned to state and federal standards for all students.

-- An equity policy, which requires an equal distribution of resources to schools.

-- A budget-reform policy, which directs necessary resources to the classroom and other areas of operation to support student learning.

-- A professional-development policy to ensure that all district staff members receive training to improve instruction.

"It's been good to have Karen on there, because she does have a history with the district for a very long time," said Rhonda Johnson, president of the Columbus Education Association, the union representing teachers. "I think it will be a big loss to have Karen gone."

bbush@dispatch.com

Links to Related Topics (Tags):

Headlines: October, 2006; Peace Corps Tanzania; Directory of Tanzania RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Tanzania RPCVs; Education; Ohio

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