The Montezuma-Cortez School District RE-1 joins 178 school districts throughout Colorado in celebrating January as School Board Recognition Month.

Our school board members spend countless hours of unpaid time working to provide the best possible education for our students. They also serve as the corporate board of directors for one of our community’s largest employers.

Celebrating School Board Recognition Month is one way to say thanks for all they do.

School board members represent their fellow citizens’ views and priorities in the complex enterprise of maintaining and running the community’s public schools.

They also reinforce the principle of local control over public education, which is an important, highly valued aspect of education in Colorado.

Too often the efforts of school board members go unrecognized.

School board members are citizens whose decisions affect our children – what they learn, who will teach them and what kinds of facilities house their classrooms.

These are men and women elected to establish the policies that provide the framework for our public schools. They represent you, and they take this responsibility seriously by attending lengthy – sometimes challenging – meetings, conferences and forums where they broaden their knowledge about education.

Our school board is one of 178 such boards across the state. These boards enable us to have local control of public schools, meaning that decisions on school programming are made by local, elected representatives who understand the community’s unique problems, values, culture and circumstances.

It’s a tradition that began nearly 300 years ago.

With the advice and counsel of the educational professionals they hire, our school board members have an impact on virtually every aspect of our schools. It’s a huge responsibility and one that should not be taken lightly.

Too often, we neglect to recognize the dedication and hard work of these men and women who represent us.

The staff and students of our district are asking all local citizens to take a moment to tell a school board member, “Thanks for caring about our children’s education.”

So, hats off to the dedicated men and women who make it possible for local citizens to have a say about education in our communities.

We salute the public servants of Montezuma-Cortez School District whose dedication and civic responsibility make local control of public schools in our community possible. We applaud them for their vision and voice to help shape a better tomorrow.

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. They are dedicated individuals who are committed to improving student achievement and to fighting for the best for all of our students and our staff.

The Montezuma-Cortez school board member bios can be found on the district’s web site, www.cortez.k12.co.us.

Lori Haukeness is superintendent of Montezuma-Cortez School District RE-1. Reach her at lhaukeness@cortez.k12.co.us.