Hemlock Honors School Board Members

Hemlock Public School District is joining 537 local and 56 intermediate school districts across Michigan to celebrate January as School Board Recognition Month.

“In another year full of challenges for public education, our school board members persevered through the adversity of 2022 to provide the best possible education for our students,” said Superintendent Dr. Donald Killingbeck. “Celebrating School Board Recognition Month is one of the very small ways to express appreciation for all they do.”

School board members represent the views and priorities of their community in the complex system of maintaining and running a district’s public schools, Killingbeck said. They also reinforce the principle of local control over public education, which is an important, highly valued aspect of education in Michigan.

“Too often, the efforts of school board members go unrecognized,” Killingbeck said.

The school board’s main goal is to support student achievement, Killingbeck added. To achieve that goal, the board focuses on the following needs:

  • Creating a vision for what parents and citizens want their school district to become and how to make student achievement the top priority.
  • Setting standards for what students must learn and be able to do.
  • Assessing whether schools achieve their goals and whether students are learning.
  • Accounting for the outcomes of decisions and by tracking progress and reporting results.
  • Aligning the use of the district’s human and financial resources.
  • Creating a safe and orderly climate where students can learn and teachers can teach.
  • Collaborating to solve common problems and to support common successes.
  • Focusing on continuous improvement by questioning, examining, revising, refining and revisiting issues related to student achievement.

Hemlock Public School District hosted a reception for the Board of Education at their regular January Board of Education meeting and work to recognize board members for their contributions regularly. We applaud their dedication and service to our community. 

“Even though we are making a special effort during January to show appreciation for our school board members, we recognize their contributions reflect a year-round effort on their part,” Killingbeck said. “No matter what challenges lie ahead for our district in 2023, our school board members will continue to govern to improve student achievement and provide exceptional education for all our community’s children.”

The individuals serving Hemlock Public School District and their years of service are: 

             President Matt Wesener                                    10 years of service

             Vice President Dr. Katherine Ellison          8 years of service
             Treasurer Jamie Rivette                                     10 years of service

             Secretary Kim Hoeppner                                  4 years of service

             Trustee Hilary House                                           6 years of service

             Trustee David Messing                                       4 years of service

             Trustee Bryan Conger                                         2 years of service