Lane ESD seats draw lots of interest.

Byline: Anne Williams The Register-Guard

No one is more surprised by the groundswell of interest in serving on the Lane Education Service District Board than the candidates themselves.

Five candidates - the most for any local race in the May 17 election - filed for the open at-large Position 6 seat on the typically low-profile board, and another two - one of them the incumbent - for the Position 3/Zone 3 seat. One of the at-large candidates, wood products manager Chris Edwards, since has withdrawn, although his name still will appear on the ballot.

"Generally there's either no one running against an incumbent, or maybe two people running (for an open seat)," said Mark Boren, a former ESD employee who's vying for the at-large position, being vacated by longtime member Jerry Miller. "I was very surprised."

Lane ESD Superintendent Ron Hitchcock was surprised, too - pleasantly so, given the caliber of the candidates. He believes that several of them may have been lobbied to run.

"I know that because of this being a legislative year, and because ESDs have been more high profile, I think some of our current board members and employees were a little more interested in soliciting good replacements," he said.

Lane ESD works in partnership with schools, families and communities to provide specific student services - special education, technology assistance, staff training, psychological assessments and consultation, truancy coordination and more - to all 16 Lane County school districts. Small, rural districts are especially dependent on ESDs.

Lane is one of 20 such districts in the state, each of which has its own governance, structure and menu of services. ESDs have come under more scrutiny in recent months, partly because of revelations of serious financial mismanagement by the Union-Baker ESD.

A proposal in the Legislature - one that Hitchcock described as having "disturbing elements" - would change the governance structure of ESDs, requiring that board members be elected not by the general public but by school board members from their component districts. The plan, crafted by a work group appointed by Sen. Vicki Walker, D-Eugene, also would make the state Board of Education responsible for a "reorganization plan" for ESDs that could alter their role and mission.

While a couple of candidates said the recent proposals contributed to their decision to run, most had other reasons. The candidates for the Position 6/at-large seat are:

Mark Boren, 36, of Veneta, a training coordinator for Lane County Fire District No. 1 who previously worked as a special education behavioral assistant with Lane ESD. He read about the opening in the West Lane News, "and having worked at Lane ESD for 15 years in the special ed programs, I just felt this was a great way to volunteer and give back to the organization," he said.

Boren, who has four children in the Fern Ridge schools, believes that the ESD plays a critical role in the community, especially with regard to growing special education needs. While some ESDs might benefit from structural change, Boren said, he doesn't favor any for Lane ESD. That's not to say there isn't room for improvement, he noted, but generally he believes that the district does an excellent job.

As a board member, he said, he would work to ensure that all ESD employees were unified and clear about the district's mission of service.

Mike Clark, 41, of Eugene, owner of Marketing Consultants Inc., a public relations and advertising firm. "I've done a lot of volunteer work for a lot of years, and it's time to make sure our schools in the area are the absolute best they can be," said Clark, the father of two small children.

Clark, who also said he favors keeping Lane ESD's present structure and governance intact, said technology services are especially crucial given the realities of the modern workplace. He said that, while he may not be as well-versed in ESD issues as some of his opponents, "I think I have a unique set of experiences that allow me to make a contribution to the board." Professionally, he's done public relations work for several technology firms as well as Republican officeholders, and he's been a volunteer on the city of Eugene's Budget Committee, the Lane County Child Advocacy Center Board, the Eugene Active 20-30 Club and other groups.

Tom Lininger, 38, of Eugene, law professor and Public Service Program director at the University of Oregon Law School. Lininger, who served as a Lane County commissioner before resigning eight months into his term, said his prior service on the McKenzie School Board and as chairman of the Lane School Boards Association gave him a keen insight into the difficulties faced by small, rural districts and schools. An ESD, he said, helps level the playing field. "Right now, with declining enrollment in most of the 16 school districts, it's more urgent than ever to have strong resources at the Lane ESD in order to make sure all those kids get a first-rate education," said Lininger, a father of two young children who has a long record of volunteer service with several organizations and schools.

Lininger, who said current board members urged him to run, also opposes any proposals that would shake up Lane ESD's structure or governance, believing it stands out as "unusually successful" among the state's ESDs.

Linda Phelps, 56, of Veneta, a planner and management analyst with the Eugene Police Department who previously managed city recreation services for people with disabilities. She said her strong interest in education and rural communities, coupled with her familiarity with Lane ESD through her work with people with disabilities, prompted her to run. "It's my idea that schools are the heart of local communities," she said.

Because of the role ESDs play in keeping rural schools afloat - which includes securing grants as well as providing direct services - she is opposed to any proposal that would weaken or downsize them, and said a "one-size-fits-all" approach to ESDs is wrongheaded.

As a board member, she said, she would urge the ESD to raise its profile. "The ESD hasn't really done enough to share with the public that pays for it what they do, and I think they do really important work," she said.

The candidates for Position 2 are:

Tom Atkinson, 51, a corporate account manager with Computer Systems West. A former Springfield School Board member, Atkinson said he believes that his governing experience would be helpful on the board.

"I just thought I'd offer that experience to voters," said Atkinson, a father of four who also has served on the Willamalane Park & Recreation District Board.

Atkinson said his interest is more in serving the public and ensuring education dollars are spent wisely than in particular issues relating to ESDs.

"I'm running to give voters a choice," said Atkinson, who said he isn't familiar with his opponent's record on the board.

Don Kimball, 76, a retired public school administrator in his 12th year on the ESD board. He's running for re-election, he said, "because I started in education in 1949 and have stayed in it all my life."

A former teacher and principal, Kimball was assistant superintendent in the Springfield district from 1965 until 1986, and believes that his experience and insight have served the Lane ESD board well. He said he's pleased with the direction Hitchcock is taking the district, including giving constituent districts more flexibility in deciding what services to buy. He is alarmed by proposals to restructure or limit ESDs, believing they are rooted in misunderstandings stemming largely from mismanagement on the part of a single ESD. He chafes at the notion taking away the right of voters to elect ESD boards.

"It just rubs me the wrong way," he said. "It's not the democratic process at all."