The Williamsburg City Council will choose its next representative on the Williamsburg-James City County School Board from a pool of two applicants.
City residents Kyra Cook and Dr. Letizia Gambrell-Boone submitted applications for the seat, which is being vacated by Dr. Oscar Prater. Prater was appointed to the board in 2010, and currently serves as its parliamentarian.
A previous application from Douglas S. Wood, a graduate of the College of William & Mary’s School of Law and an attorney in Williamsburg, was withdrawn earlier this week.
The deadline for applications was Nov. 13.
Gambrell-Boone is the founder and CEO of PassionWorkz, a nonprofit organization that encourages creativity and innovation in youth, and works as an assistant professor at Hampton University. She also holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Hampton, and a doctorate from The George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Cook is a 1991 graduate of the College of William & Mary, and currently works as a program officer with the Williamsburg Health Foundation.
Cook is also involved with several nonprofit organizations in the area, including the Williamsburg Regional Library Board, the WJCC PTA Council, the WJCC Strategic Planning Committee and the Historic Triangle Collaborative.
She is also a WJCC parent, with children at the middle and elementary school level.
Cook applied for the school board position in 2010, but the seat ultimately went to Prater.
Prater, who served one term, chose not to seek reappointment. His term ends Dec. 31.
The city’s other representative on the school board is Elise Emanuel, whose term will expire Dec. 31, 2015.
At a public hearing held during the Nov. 13 meeting of the Williamsburg City Council, Planning Commission member Sarah Stafford spoke in favor of Cook’s application.
“The only reason I’m on Planning Commission is because of Kyra. She was the one that encouraged me to take an active role in the community, not to just be a critic of what was happening but to really put myself out there and contribute to the community,” Stafford said. “And I think that, what I know of her dedication to the city, I think she’d be a wonderful school board member.”
The City Council will announce the appointment at its Dec. 11 meeting.
The WJCC School Board consists of seven members, five representing James City County and two representing Williamsburg. The county’s representatives are elected to represent geographic districts, while the City Council appoints two members to represent the city at-large.
The duties of the school board include developing policies that promote student achievement, while its powers include requesting funds from the city and county, managing the school division’s budget, approving personnel decisions and adopting academic standards.
Regulations require residents appointed to city boards to attend at least 75 percent of its meetings, or have the seat vacated by implied resignation.
Related Coverage: