Olympia School Board gets new member

Nafziger replacement picked from pool of four

By Venice Buhain | The Olympian • Published May 15, 2008

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Olympia School Board members said they looked forward to getting to know the board's newest member, Allen Miller, after an outside agency appointed him to the post Wednesday.

Miller was one of four applicants considered by the Educational Service District 113 board to replace ex-board member Rich Nafziger. Miller was the only one of the four who had not gone through the Olympia School District's multi-month replacement process, which ended in April after the board failed to reach a majority on one of the final three applicants.

"I guess we're all kind of in the same boat as far as getting to know him and working with him," said school board member Frank Wilson.

The board of ESD 113, a regional agency that assists school districts in Thurston and four other counties, appointed Miller after interviews Wednesday with him and three others: former board member John Keeffe, budget advisory group Chairman Paul Parker and middle school math committee member Theresa Tsou.

Deadlock

The four members of the Olympia School Board deadlocked over the latter three candidates, with board members Carolyn Barclift and Frank Wilson backing Keeffe, and board members Russ Lehman and Bob Shirley backing either Parker or Tsou.

The division fell along the lines of the two sides that emerged among the current board members during the past year, and became particularly noticeable during the November election. Barclift, Nafziger and ex-board member Michelle Parvinen sometimes disagreed with Lehman and Shirley, who question the leadership of the district and how the board conducts its business. Barclift and Nafziger endorsed Frank Wilson in the November election, and Lehman and Shirley endorsed his opponent, Jeff Nejedly.

After the board deadlocked, state law sent the decision to ESD 113, which started a search 90 days after Nafziger's resignation. Miller applied when ESD 113 began its search.

Board members contacted Wednesday said that they looked forward to working with Miller.

"There was always the possibility that (selecting one of the three finalists from the OSD process) would have cemented some sort of divide. With Mr. Miller as the choice, that leaves all that behind, I think," Shirley said.