May is School Board Recognition and Appreciation Month and one Greene County School Board member is sharing her thoughts.

Board President Bonnie Silbaugh is serving her first term on the Board and was elected president for this school year. She tells Raccoon Valley Radio sometimes when people run to be on the school board, they might have a grasp of what it is to be in that position, but the first couple of years is a huge learning curve. Silbaugh believes the biggest job school board members have is directing traffic and adhering to the protocols the school district has in place, even when it’s hearing about different issues from the community.

“And there’s a very specific reason why there’s a process and the School Board doesn’t need to know some of the dance floor stuff, they’re supposed to stay on the balcony. That’s the analogy that gets used a lot is we’re on the balcony and the school and the administrators are on the dance floor. And so when there are problems that need to be addressed at a deeper level, we can come in with a very clean slate, non-biased view to really help see things from a different perspective.”     

Superintendent Brett Abbotts is finishing up his first year at the helm of the Greene County School District and comments about this year’s school board.

“I really couldn’t ask for much better of a school board then the five members that we have. They have been incredibly supportive. The way they have challenged and pushed me has been excellent. They want to be aligned, and unified, and really move forward, not just for our schools but really for our community. (Board member) Steve Fisher has said it many times and I know Bonnie (Silbaugh) has echoed that of they’re servants to the community and I really think they embody that.”    

The five members of the 2022-23 Greene County School Board includes Silbaugh as president, Cindi Daubendiek as vice president, along with Michelle Fields, Steve Fisher and John McConnell.