Ken Stanger is retiring from the school board after 14 years and received official thanks for his service at Monday night's meeting.

Rich Black, president of the Grand Coulee Dam School District Board of Directors, presented Stanger with a framed letter of commendation Monday night at their regular meeting.

"Your service has had a lasting, positive impact on the local community, the Grand Coulee Dam School District staff, the parents of district students, and most importantly, the students that have attended Lake Roosevelt schools," the letter states.

Stanger's "personal integrity, candidness, and uncommon wisdom have marked your years of service and have gained the highest respect of your fellow school board members and the community that you have represented," the letter continued.

Stanger, who also served for three years on the state school board, had stated his decision early this year that he would step down in December, leaving the board an opportunity to appoint a replacement to fill his unexpired term.

They did so Monday after interviewing three candidates for the position. Diedre Ellsworth was voted in unanimously to take the seat Stanger is vacating.

With grandchildren currently in Lake Roosevelt Schools, Ellsworth told the board she is a "12-year vet" of LR herself, as are her children.

Ellsworth said she has worked at Nespelem School as a substitute teacher, coached basketball there and at LR, has volunteered at LR in her son's classroom, and has served on the board of the Colville Indian Housing Authority for over five years.

Ellsworth said she has watched over the years as the schools and students have changed.

"The kids are changing, the types of backgrounds, the types of everything is changing," she said. "I think that helps qualify me because I have all this history here."

A tribal member with a background in accounting and budgeting, Ellsworth said she is active in the community, "so I'm hoping that that gives me a lot of connections to different people that need a voice."

Ellsworth, whom Stanger, himself, moved to appoint, will fill her new role at least until the next election for the seat in a year.

Black said they had five good candidates apply for the position, two of whom lived outside the district, leaving the three the board considered. They also interviewed Buffy Nicholson and Justin Boyd.