New school board member

Lauren Gilmore, a research analyst for the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, is the new member of the Shelton School Board.

At a special meeting Tuesday night at CHOICE High School, the school board voted 3-1 to choose Gilmore from five applicants to replace Marty Best on the five-member board.

Best was vice chairman of the board when he died Nov. 20. He was 67. Best joined the board in 2021 and represented District 2.

Best was appointed to the five-member board in September 2021 to replace Lynn Eaton, who resigned that June after moving out of the director district. Best won a new term in the Nov. 2 general election. Gilmore will complete that term.

The other applicants for the position were Andrew Wilford, Shannon Williams, Jonathon Isham and Ross Gallagher. The four school board members - with Matt Welander participating via Zoom from Maryland - interviewed the five candidates individually for 15 minutes. The board then met behind closed doors for an executive session that lasted more than an hour before resuming the public meeting for the vote. Welander, Keri Davidson and Karla Knudsen-Johnston voted for Gilmore, and Sandy Tarzwell voted against.

Gilmore has two daughters who attend schools in the district. In the fall of 2021, she worked as a substitute teacher at Olympic Middle School and Shelton High School.

Gilmore is a research analyst for OSPI's Center for Improving Student Learning in Olympia. She develops and conducts education research, including collecting and analyzing information, solving problems, and communicating those results to stakeholders and policymakers.