Edgerton School Board gains new faces

By STACY VOGEL

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

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Larry Oberdeck

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Julie Norland

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Craig Strouse

EDGERTON — The Edgerton School Board will deal with several new faces in the coming months, both on the board and in the district.

-- Two new school board members were elected Tuesday after two incumbents decided not to run.

-- The board has started the process of finding a new superintendent for when Norm Fjelstad retires at the end of 2009-2010.

-- The district recently announced the selection of Mark Coombs as new high school principal next year, and it’s looking for a new elementary school principal since Bill Fry announced his retirement effective the end of the year.

“It’ll be a big changeover,” said Larry Oberdeck, a 14-year board member.

Oberdeck was the only incumbent running in Tuesday’s election, and he received the most votes. Incumbents Jim Raymond and Julie Lyerla did not seek re-election.

Newcomers Julie Norland and Craig Strouse also won spots on the board.

The race was a friendly one, with all of the challengers saying they were happy with the current school board and ran because incumbents weren’t running.

“All the candidates were really good candidates,” Oberdeck said. “I don’t think there was anybody that was running that had any type of agenda.”

The district has long-term budget concerns besides the short-term job of choosing new administrators, Norland said. The district has been experiencing declining enrollment and revenue and has announced several staff cuts for 2009-10.

“There will be a continual emphasis on budget and enrollment in Edgerton,” Norland said.

The board also has to oversee the transition from a four-period to an eight-period day at the high school, Oberdeck said.

Strouse was not available for comment Tuesday night.

Oberdeck said he’s looking forward to getting to work on the new board.

“We’re all working toward the same goal here in Edgerton, for the best education for our kids that we can afford,” he said.