7 apply for school board seat

PALMER — The Mat-Su Borough School Board will meet in a special meeting at 5 p.m., Nov. 20 at the MSBSD Central Office, 501 N. Gulkana, in Palmer to interview candidates for Seat E on the board.

Candidates to be interviewed are Tiffany Scott, Michael Rovito, Keith Poorbaugh, Pete LaFrance, Stephen Jacobson, Rachel Gernat and Helene Antel.

Scott, according to her résumé, is a research analyst with Nana Development Corp. in Anchorage. She writes in a letter to the board that the quality of the schools is a big reason she chose to raise children here.

“I see this vacancy as an opportunity to work with like-minded individuals who are deeply committed to serving the students of the MSBSD,” she wrote.

Rovito is a legislative liaison with the Knik Arm Bridge and Toll Authority. Before that he was chief of staff to Sen. Linda Menard and before that a Frontiersman reporter.

“I will approach the job determined to use the best available facts, statistics and counsel to make informed decisions that will benefit the greater mission of the school district,” he wrote in his letter.

Poorbaugh is a physical therapist and owner of Northern Edge Physical Therapy LLC in Wasilla.

“An appointment to the Mat-Su School Board would allow me the opportunity to make a positive change in the lives of our young people and foster a stronger community,” he wrote in his letter.

LaFrance is a “technology collaborator” at Mirror Lake Middle School who helps teachers use technology in the classroom. He is also a sometime contributor to the Frontiersman.

“It is my hope to be part of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District School Board where I can share my understanding of education, learn from my colleagues and serve my community,” he writes.

Jacobson is a sales manager at Paragon Distributing and a former manager of a Holiday gas station. He’s run for the school board and state House of Representatives in the past.

“My years of management have given me extensive training in the budgeting process, which is a skill that I feel will benefit the school board greatly,” he writes.

Gernat is an attorney, formerly with the Palmer District Attorney’s Office and Ken Goldman’s firm. She now owns a business called CAP (Crimes Against Persons) Solutions LLC.

“I strongly believe that the primary way to ensure successful futures is to provide high quality and safe public school education. I would be honored to work for our children in the capacity of a school board member and feel privileged to be considered for such a position,” she writes in her letter.

Antel is an attorney in private practice who briefly served on the board once before and was once executive counsel to the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers in Alaska.

“Although I have a Black Belt in Taekwondo, I eschew unnecessary conflict. Yes, I am a passionate advocate. However, advocacy need not be the equivalent of contentiousness. I am older and wiser than when I last served on the school board,” she writes in her letter to the board.

The only item on the agenda is interviewing of the candidates and an executive session to pick the person who will fill Seat E. The seat came open after board member Erick Cordero stepped down. The successful candidate would face an election in October 2014 if he or she wished to continue serving.

Contact Andrew Wellner at 352-2270 or andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com.