RLCC School Board Members Ending Their Service

Before consolidation Oklee and Plummer School Districts each had six board seats. In July 2013 when the two districts consolidated into Red Lake County Central District 2906, there were 12 board members. In 2014, it was reduced to nine board seats. The number of board seats was again reduced from nine to six in 2016. The current school board is now comprised of Tom Bray, Jody Duden, Lowell Hamrum, Matt Kolstoe, Pam Paradis, and Dave Person.

RLCC extends thanks to these four who have been willing to devote their time, energy, and expertise to the school district throughout their years of service. They held board offices and served on various board committees. They also were involved in the process of bringing the two districts into one consolidated district.

Each board member who was going off the board was asked to share about their decision to run as a school board candidate, accomplishments and positive improvements, future challenges, and why they chose not to run again. 

Jason Cater 

Jason Cater was asked by a local school board member if he had any interest in serving on the school board. He considered it and decided to run since “my kids were getting older so my interest in school polices was growing. Also, I am a taxpayer in the district so I felt it was a way to influence where those dollars go.” He served on the board for six years from 2010-2016. During those years he was on the classified and nonclassified staff negotiation committees. 

Cater learned a lot while being a school board member. He learned how the school is financed and where the money comes from and where it goes. Cater thought “working to improve student outcomes was also very challenging. I wouldn’t say board members influence that directly but they do set the policies that the administration and teachers put into place.” Although school board members have a big influence, Cater believes parents can also impact what happens at the school.

Cater’s accomplishment while being a school board member was the consolidation of the two schools. He feels “it has worked well to date although there are always some challenges.” Cater also sees facilities challenges in the future including what is needed and how to pay for it as well as the challenges of having two sites. “I would suggest that in the not too distant future a long term plan for facilities will have to be discussed. Maybe nothing changes but it will have to be discussed. Easy questions but always difficult to answer.” 

Teacher evaluations, interpreting them, then making changes based on the interpretation may also be a challenge. He would like it to be seen as a win-win situation instead of confrontational. 

Even though Cater was on the school board for six years it still is more challenging. “Sometimes the more you know and learn, the more you feel responsible for the outcomes. To be a good school board member you do need to put in time outside of the meetings. Initially I felt the longer I served the more comfortable I would become but that wasn’t the case. The longer you serve the more invested you become in outcomes and it can lead to some sleepless nights. I felt I had a good relationship with the administration and we have good people (teachers and other staff) working there. But it is time for something else and the school is in good hands with the current administration and school board.”

Marcella Melby 

After serving four years on the school board from 2012-2016, Marcella Melby has chosen not to run again.  Melby decided to be a school board member because she wanted to be involved in the education of the youth in the Oklee and Brooks area.  Melby had thought that “the consolidation was going to be an important upcoming topic.”  She had wanted be a part of helping make the transition go as smoothly as possible.  After consolidation with the Plummer School, Melby was able to serve as a board member for all three communities.  Melby was the board treasurer during 2015.  

Melby said she “enjoyed getting updates about what the students were doing and learning in school.”  Some of the biggest accomplishments that Melby felt she did while she was a school board member was how smoothly the consolidation of the Oklee and Plummer school districts went.  Melby said, “I feel that was a big accomplishment for both of the Boards.”  She also said there has been nice improvements to the school facilities over the years. 

Some challenges Melby sees in the future are staying up to date with all of the changes in the legislature.  Melby noted that “We are also facing a teacher shortage in Minnesota that both the state and school districts will need to find new ways to address in order to find highly qualified teachers in all areas of our students’ education.” 

Melby decided to not run again for her position because she thought that four years ago a top priority was the consolidation of the districts. Over the next two elections they needed to reduce their new board from 12 down to six. There were six terms ending this year with only three board seats available.  Melby felt “confident that the people running for the three available spots would be valuable assets to the board,” so she chose not to run for another term. 

Danielle Paradis 

Danielle Paradis decided to get involved with the school board because she had two children in the school and she also “wanted to see the school continue to succeed.” Paradis had graduated from Oklee High School and “is very proud and thankful for our small school.” She was on the school board from 2004-2016 for a total of 12 years and has been involved with the negotiations and served as secretary and treasurer. 

Paradis has been through many changes the school has experienced. “I think the most positive thing that happened while I was on the school board was the consolidation of the two schools.” When she started serving on the school board, the two schools had a pairing and sharing agreement and had two separate school boards. 

She believes “there will always be challenges to keep up with the legislative changes” affecting the school. After being on the school board for three four-year terms, Paradis decided it was time for someone else to serve on the board. 

Darby Trontvedt 

Darby Trontvedt has been a member of the school board for eight years from 2008-2016.  She first became a member because she was “curious how the school system worked and why things are done the way they are.” She was interested in many things including improvements in our buildings, busing, and teacher contracts. Trontvedt has served as the school board clerk for the last three terms.

When asked about accomplishments and positive improvements, she commented, “I feel making the transition of consolidating the two school districts went very smooth, also all of the choices the children have for online courses.” Balancing the budget and the cost of the upkeep on the buildings are two challenges she feels the school will see in the future.  

Trontvedt has chosen not to run again since her children have graduated. She also wanted to “give another parent with children in the school district the opportunity to be a part of the decision-making with the future of our schools.”