The Hammond School Board has a new member. Current board members selected Tevonne Ellis to fill the roughly three months remaining in Lisa Miller's term.
Ellis works as the chief program officer of a South Chicago nonprofit. She told board members Tuesday that she wants to serve the community where she now lives.
"When we are on the other side of the pink table, people don't understand the hard decision board members have to make, understanding the financial cuts," Ellis said. "Everyone thinks it's personal, but it's not personal."
A total of 15 people applied for the open school board seat. Eight of them were ultimately interviewed. None of those finalists are seeking a full term in November's election. Most of those interviewed have children or grandchildren in the School City of Hammond.
Ellis said her family was affected by the recent round of school closures. Her child attended the former Kenwood Elementary School.
"I didn't want the school to close," Ellis admitted. "However, I understood why the board made the decision they needed to make, and we had to adjust."
Ellis sees her time on the school board as a long-term investment. She stressed the importance of supporting teachers, as well as students.
"We've seen our teachers struggle to come to school every day, and if the teachers are not prepared, they cannot prepare our children," Ellis said.
Before applicants were interviewed, Michaela Spangenberg with the Gary Education Coalition called on board members to look at their dedication, rather than their political connections. "I'd like to see, hopefully, more diversity on the board," Spangenberg said during the public comment portion of Tuesday's special meeting. "I'd like to see more diversity in terms of people's backgrounds and in terms of parents feeling represented."
It took board members three rounds of voting to select Ellis. Each of the four current members initially voted for a different person, but they ultimately switched their votes to match vice president Cindy Murphy's pick.
Board member Carlotta Blake-King said she wanted to avoid a situation where the Lake County Circuit Court judge would have to break a deadlock. "And we do not want to do that, so we're going to have to make a decision," Blake-King said.
School City of Hammond has faced a number of challenges recently, including the resignations of both the superintendent and school board president, the creation of a corrective action plan to improve the district's finances and sharp cuts to bus transportation.
