CEDAR CITY — The Iron County School District Board of Education is looking to fill an upcoming vacancy on the seven-member board.
Board vice president Lauren Lewis, who represents District 6, has announced and formally submitted her intent to resign, effective May 31, due to her planning to move outside district boundaries.
During the board’s regular work meeting on April 16, board members discussed Lewis’s upcoming resignation and the process for selecting her replacement.
Lewis was elected in 2022 when she ran unopposed for the District 6 seat. Districts 6 and 7 were the two new districts created that year when Iron County’s school board expanded from five to seven members, as required by state law once the district had surpassed the threshold of 10,000 enrolled students.
Lewis’s replacement, to be appointed by a vote of the board, would be expected to serve the remaining two years of her four-year term.
To be eligible, a candidate must be a registered voter who lives within the boundaries of District 6 and has done so for at least one year prior to June 1, 2024. To see the district’s boundary map, click here.
Interested candidates are invited to submit their names for consideration to Superintendent Lance Hatch via email [email protected] or via postal mail sent to Iron County School District offices at 2077 W. Royal Hunte Drive, Cedar City, UT 84720. Deadline for submissions is May 3.
The board is expected to make a decision regarding the appointment at its regular meeting on May 14, starting at 5:30 p.m.
Contacted by Cedar City News for comment after the meeting, Lewis expressed her appreciation for having had the opportunity to serve on the board.
“Thank you to Iron County School Board, Iron County School District, and all of the community for allowing me to serve,” she said. “My best wishes to the upcoming board in serving our amazing county.
“This opportunity has given me invaluable experiences and friendships throughout the community and state,” Lewis added. “While this position has not been easy, it has been worth every moment.”
Lewis said that speaking as the school board’s youngest member to date, “I hope to see other young parents throw their hat in the ring. Your ideas and perspective are needed and valued. We need good people of all ages to fight for our kids, support our district and walk through the fires of the board.”
Also at Tuesday’s work meeting, the board made assignments for attending the respective high school graduations, all three of which are scheduled for May 23. Cedar’s is scheduled for 1 p.m. at SUU, Canyon View’s is at 5 p.m. at SUU and Parowan’s is at Parowan High School at 7 p.m.
Because of the graduations next month, the school board will only hold one regular meeting on May 14, instead of a work meeting and an action meeting one week apart.
Additionally, the issue of whether to consider reinstating Cedar High’s former Redmen nickname was discussed, with school district officials confirming that the matter was not eligible to be placed on the November general election ballot.
Board member Dave Staheli floated the idea that the district could either commission a scientific survey or poll, or hold some sort of election on its own, wherein students, staff, alumni and other community members would be asked their opinion on whether the moniker should be changed again.
Regardless of the public input received, however, it was noted that the final decision would remain with the school board. No action was taken during Tuesday’s work session, and Staheli suggested the matter be put on hold until at least until after the end of the current school year.
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