My Husband...Dedication at its Finest

The second story I ever posted on this blog was about Josh running for the school board, back in May of 2008 (It was titled "My Husband...the Politician?" and can be read HERE). That election was the last contested one for a school board member in the past 5 years, and Josh won it. His term was originally for 3 years, but during his 3rd year of service, the Idaho Legislature changed the term of school board members to 4 years. There are 5 members on our school board, and the cycle of each position starts in differing years so that the entire school board's terms don't all end at the same time. When the legislature changed the term to 4 years, his actually got lengthened to 5 years to complete his particular cycle.

For 5 years, Josh has devoted his time and service to the Salmon School District Board of Trustees. It has been challenging--during the past 5 years, they've hired a new superintendent and new principals, ran multiple bond elections for a K-8 school, dealt with the cuts in spending and budgeting dilemmas, and have had several employee disciplinary actions. It has been a rough few years in our school district, with some positive times intermingled in.

For the past two years, he has served as the Vice-President on the board. He was an excellent board member.  He's a good listener, he is not quick to pass judgment, he understands the worth of hearing both sides to any report, he is calm and patient, he is supportive of the employees and positive changes necessary for our schools, and he learned the laws regarding how meetings should be conducted. One of the few benefits that school board members receive is free passes to all sporting and scholastic and school activities, for which he has taken advantage of and frequently attended school events. People have appreciated his attendance to those, because it shows that he's visible in his support. He has really earned the trust of a lot of members in the community, as well as employees in our district, and others have voiced repeatedly to me regarding how much he will be missed.

(Pictured above: Superintendent Joey Foote, Vice President Josh Tolman, President Gail Baer, Board Member Dorrie Prange, Board Member Shannon Johnson)

Josh has given up a lot of Monday nights (over 100) to attend their regular board meetings, and sometimes the meetings were several hours long. He's missed a lot of Monday Night Football games (we got DVR 3 years ago which helped), and too many Family Home Evenings (I've just done them in his absence), and we've adjusted family vacations and events for our children based around his meeting schedule. His term ends at the end of this month, and we are looking forward to it and so glad to have him home more!

 (Pictured above: Josh got to hand out diplomas at the high school graduation this year--his assignment was to give them to Principal Dan Hull, and then the Principal gave them to each student.)

One of the greatest disappointments while he was on the school board was the fact that the bond for the new school failed without even 50% community support. It's difficult for him to understand the mentality of the community who doesn't vote in favor of the bond. After attending so many extra meetings, and learning about the extent of the need for it, and going on numerous tours of the current buildings, and speaking with contractors, it's discouraging to know that after all the extra time and energy that has been spent focusing on a positive thing for our students and community, that the community continues to reject it.

He's also had frustrations with the Idaho State Legislature--they've continued to drop funding in schools during his 5 year term, and it's become increasingly difficult to provide quality education for our students with budget cuts. It's sad to know that our state leaders don't understand the effects that these cuts are having on the students.

But on the flip side, Josh feels pride in knowing that he's put his time and effort into his assignment on the board without regret, and that he is able to act upon his words. So many people in our community continually voice their negative opinions about the school system without ever doing anything about it. It is frustrating to continually hear negative remarks from bystanders who never step up to help or volunteer. Serving on the school board has really given him a broader perspective of what it takes to run a school, and that it's harder than it looks! He feels good in knowing that he's always acted upon what he says he'll do, and that he doesn't just say words without following through. Josh has high hopes and beliefs in the future for our schools, and he's been encouraged by the amount of excellent educators we have in our district. He knows that the youth are being guided and directed by amazing people, and he's enjoyed the opportunity to get to know several teachers better and seen presentations by them about things they do in their classrooms to give the students more and greater opportunities to learn. He knows that our students are in good hands.

 (Pictured above: My handsome, well-dressed husband at the 2013 SHS graduation--the same school he attended and graduated from 18 years ago.)

Despite the difficult times he's endured in the past 5 years, he's glad that he's served on the board and that he's been instrumental in making a positive difference in our school system and community. I have been so grateful to know that he's always had the best interest for the students and teachers and school district as a whole in his mind as he's made decisions on the board. My boys are so lucky to have a father who serves as a role model for them, and who is willing to donate his time to make their school experience better.