Martin chosen for Niles school board

Published 10:20 pm Monday, August 15, 2011

The Niles Community Schools Board of Education voted unanimously to appoint Niles High School graduate Jon Martin to serve as trustee, filling the seat left open by the resignation of Michael Dreher last month.
“I think we found a very good, capable person in Jon Martin,” said board President Jeff Curry at the end of Monday night’s scheduled meeting.
Martin, who was not present at the meeting, is a father of three — his two daughters will attend Eastside Connections School when it opens this fall.
When he spoke to the Star last month about his desire to serve on the school board, Martin said, “I think there is a lot of exciting things going on in the district. I’m interested primarily because school — public education — has always been important to me.”
Martin will serve the remainder of the seat’s term, which expires in June 2012.
He said previously that he would be interested in running for a full term in the next election.
Also during Monday night’s meeting, the board recognized the new assistant principal at Ballard Elementary School, Joe Racht, and set immunization deadlines for students for Sept. 6, the first day of school.
The district is also manning a booth at the Berrien County Youth Fair this year in an attempt to reach out to the public and provide more information on the variety of programs they’re currently offering for students.