Cordero resigns from school board

PALMER — Citing health concerns and a need to support his extended family, Erick Cordero announced Tuesday he’s resigning from the Mat-Su Borough School Board in two months.

“I have been truly honored to serve you on the school board. It comes a time when health and family comes first. I am therefore resigning this upcoming November,” Cordero wrote in a statement on his Facebook page.

In an interview, he said that he simply reached a point where he couldn’t take on any more responsibilities.

“My family in Mexico, they’re having some struggles — big time struggles — and I have been helping them both financially and emotionally as much as I can,” he said.

He has two children, one of whom just started high school. He’s also working full-time as chief of staff to Rep. Lynn Gattis, and is taking classes working toward a master’s degree.

“They say when you have a project and you need volunteers, always ask the busy people because they’ll never say no,” Cordero said.

He said he’s always been one of those people, but a health scare — which he didn’t detail but said has been taken care of — caused him to re-evaluate.

“I’m just trying to learn to say no to things instead of loading myself with more work,” Cordero said.

As for the appointment process, it’s actually one familiar to Cordero, who initially came to the board as an appointment to fill the unexpired term of Bryan Sullivan after Sullivan had to resign.

“The board has to fill that by appointment within 30 days,” said school district spokeswoman Catherine Esary. “If his resignation is effective Nov. 1, it will be filled by Dec. 1.”

She said that usually the board’s practice is to solicit applications from the public and then whittle the list down to a slate of candidates to interview publicly. The candidates are then each asked the same set of questions.

The last time the board had to go through that process was in January when board member David Cheezem was selected to fill the unexpired term of Lynn Gattis, who resigned after winning election to the state House of Representatives and being picked to chair the House Education Committee.

Cordero said that whoever is picked, he hopes it is someone his age or younger.

“Really I think that our generation is not represented in that school board and I think they need to have a voice,” Cordero said.

For a time, he noted, he was the only person on the board working two jobs and commuting to Anchorage. He said he tried to keep them in mind when doing things like scheduling meetings and making efforts to include the public.

“I did my best to represent those folks because I was in their shoes,” Cordero said.

As for his tenure, he singled out a few accomplishments he felt proud of. He said he was proud to have successfully pushed to include civics and financial literacy in the district’s graduation requirements. He was proud to have won the option for kids to test out of subjects they were already proficient in. He was also proud to have a board policy put in place regarding sex offenders volunteering or working at schools. Prior to that it had been handled through a less-formal memorandum from the administration.

“Another thing … I felt proud of was I initiated the community meeting of the administration and parents of gifted students,” Cordero said. “All school resources usually go for students that are struggling but the gifted students are left on their own.”

After his Facebook announcement, local politicians, including a number of his board colleagues, chimed in with kind words.

“We will miss you Erick!” was board member David Cheezem’s response.

“I’ll miss you and your steady support and insight. We mostly agree, but not always. You found a way to disagree without being disagreeable. I admire you,” said board president Susan Pougher.

“Sorry to hear that, Erick, but I wish you the best and I hope all is well. I’m sure we’ll have more opportunities to work together,” board member Debby Retherford said.

Palmer City Councilwoman Edna DeVries thanked Cordero for his “dedication and faithful and hard work.”

Her colleague on that body, Linda Combs, currently a candidate for Palmer mayor, also thanked Cordero.

Wasilla City Councilwoman Colleen Sullivan-Leonard said, “I am sorry to see you leave, but wish you the best. Thank you for your service to our children and community.”

Cordero said that even now, when he’s not serving and free to say what he wants, he thinks the district is something the Valley should be proud of. In his time working with Gattis, he’s met superintendents and school board members from all over the state.

“The Mat-Su is really at the top. We have so much to offer it’s crazy,” he said, before mentioning the district’s superintendent. “People call Deena Paramo for advice. Even people who have been in those positions for years look to her as a leader.”

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