Holly Sweetwood's Delta County Board of Education Thoughts: Serving Paonia/Crawford, Serving the District

About This Blog

Why write this blog? It sure isn’t because I have loads of time on my hands!

When I first joined the Board, we were going over evaluations of ourselves and the District. One of the areas that we said needed continuous improvement was public relations and engagement. Our county has many people with no familial connections to school students, and we even struggle reaching out to and informing those who have such connections. I thought this blog would be an easy way for people to just check in. I will post updates on upcoming events and summaries of recent meetings. I’ll weigh in on some decisions we’ve made and give some opinions. I will often be informal in my speech, but I assure you I take my position on the Board of Education very seriously. But a blog is a good place to cut through the formality and say it like it is. I hope to do that here.

I HAVE to emphasize that this is a personal effort, that I do NOT check what I am posting with anyone else in the District, and that they can NOT be held accountable for what I choose to post here. This is very important. Please understand this.

**This is a PRIVATE blog, written by and representing only myself, Holly Sweetwood. No information or opinions presented here are official or connected with the District in any way.**

Friday, April 1, 2011

Serving Paonia/Crawford, Serving the District

Serving on the School Board from a specific area is a very difficult line to walk. On one hand, I make policies for the district as a whole, and I have to consider what is best for ALL students. On the other hand, I represent Paonia and Crawford, and if I do not represent their needs to the Board, who will? It is one of the hardest aspects of being a board member. Ultimately, I try to understand the will of the people I represent, and I try to see their needs. I represent and express those to the Board when necessary and try to ensure that policies do not treat Paonia or Crawford as the younger step-sibling. Then I step back and try to view the issues objectively and vote without bias.

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About Me

I grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina. I loved school and participated in many extra-curricular activities. My biggest commitments were to marching band in the fall and musicals in the spring. I graduated high school in 2003 and moved to Utah to attend Brigham Young University, where I was a Political Science major. I married my husband in May of 2006 and graduated in 2007. Following undergrad, I stayed at BYU for a Masters in Education Policy. Unfortunately, I left Utah after a year and a half of the program and did not finish. My husband had already graduated and started a job in New Mexico, and I kind of missed living with him!

Fortunately for us, he hated his job and found an opening at West Elk Mine, where he is an Environmental Engineer. We have been living in Paonia for two and a half years now and absolutely love it. My daughter Genevieve (or Vivi for short) is about 18 months old, and my second daughter is due to join us at the end of April.

I have been a member of the Delta County Board of Education for almost a year now. I was appointed by my co-members, after submitting a resume and letter and participating in a Q&A panel, to fill the opening left after Chad Campbell’s resignation. I wanted to be on the Board because I felt I had a different perspective to offer, and I wanted to get involved in local education policy, since that was my area of study. It is a difficult and time-consuming position, but I am grateful for the opportunity.

I am lucky to have a supportive husband, to whom I can hand off the baby as he comes home and jump in the car to go to a meeting. I also have wonderful friends who babysit for me while I go to work sessions and tours. I enter every meeting with a prayer that I can understand all angles and consequences of our decisions and make good ones. Many of you do not know me, but you have probably seen me at the library or a football game and just didn’t know it! You’d probably recognize my dog better than me, as he’s pretty popular around here. And he’s so much prettier than I am.

Important Upcoming Dates

April 4^th, 6 PM at the Delta Center: The Budget Task Force presents the report of their final budget cut recommendations to the Board of Education

April 7^th, 8AM to noon: Board of Education tours Crawford and Hotchkiss schools

April 7^th, 6 PM at the Delta Center: Board of Education discusses and VOTES on the time-sensitive budget cuts for the next school year, specifically a 4-day school week and Crawford consolidation

April 11^th-15^th: Spring Break. No school.

April 21^st, 7 PM at the Delta Center: Regular School Board Meeting. Board VOTES on the rest of the budget

April 29^th: My baby is due! Woohoo!

May 12^th, 7 PM at the Delta Center: Regular School Board Meeting

June 16^th, 7 PM at the Delta Center: Regular School Board Meeting

July 21^st, 7 PM at the Delta Center: Regular School Board Meeting