The El Paso County Colorado School District 49ís Board of Education will look a little different at the regular meeting on Dec. 12. Marie La Vere-Wright, who served for eight years and is now term-limited, and Josh Fry, who served for almost two years, have completed their time with the BOE in November. La Vere-Wright and Fry represented Districts 3 and 4, respectively.Newly elected BOE member Rick Van Wieren will take over District 2, left vacant by John Graham, BOE vice president, who moved into District 3 and took La Vere-Wrightís place.Van Wieren, who has lived in the Colorado Springs area since 1991, said he and his wife built their house a couple years ago; and, when he learned of the vacancy in his district, he became serious about running for the seat.ìI felt that I have enough board experience with charter school stuff in the past,î Van Wieren said. ìI felt that I could make a difference so I started learning more and more things about the district that I liked and that were synergistic with my background.îVan Wieren said he and his wife were part of the founding team for New Summit Charter School in Academy School District 20; he was president of the board for the first year at Lewis-Palmer Charter School, now known as The Monument Academy in Lewis-Palmer School District 38.That experience, coupled with his 28 years as a real estate agent, gives him a unique perspective that will benefit the BOE, he said. ìI have a degree in business, and a business perspective is important to any school board,î Van Wieren said.Van Wieren will serve a four-year term; during that time, he said he plans to bring his passion for education to the district.ìI really believe in the saying that the children are the seeds of our future,î he said. ìI am very passionate about making sure our kids are prepared to be productive, contributing citizens and informed voters because that is ultimately where our future lies.ìI want to make sure our schools are positioned in a way that can help with that and help prepare these kids for life. I believe that is where the rest of the boardís hearts are, too.î
