Vallecitos school board fills vacant seats

Joe Naiman

Village News Reporter

The Vallecitos School District board filled both vacant board seats Oct. 4.

Melissa Cox was selected to fill the Trustee Area 5 seat. Heather Reinhardt was chosen to fill what is currently an at-large seat. Both appointments were by 3-0 votes.

"We're just excited to have our two new board members, and we look forward to having them serve the community of Rainbow," said Maritza Koeppen, who is both the Vallecitos School District superintendent and the Vallecitos Elementary School principal.

Cox has lived in Rainbow for 15 years, although she is originally from Northern California. During her college years Cox worked as a swim instructor, a lifeguard, and a waitress. Although she opted to raise her two children, who are now 15 and 7, instead of holding a paying job, she has volunteered in the classroom and has also helped Temecula Luiseno Elementary School develop that school's garden.

During her childhood Cox's family volunteered in soup kitchens and thrift stores which benefited people in need and also volunteered with community cleanups, and she has also worked for Easter Seals to improve the communication of autistic children. In her opinion, the most important issues facing the Vallecitos School District are attendance and enrollment, grants and other funding, parental involvement and the language barrier, and creating an efficient curriculum which prepares students for success.

The Reinhardt family lived in the Murrieta Valley Unified School District before moving to Rainbow two years ago. Reinhardt worked in the Murrieta school district, and she also has professional customer service experience. During her seven years working at a private preschool and child care center, Reinhardt was a liaison between the center and the public schools in the community.

In June 2019, the Vallecitos board transitioned trustee elections from at large to by trustee area. The board members were allowed to keep their at-large seats until the expiration of their terms. No candidate filed for the Area 5 seat prior to the deadline for the November 2020 election. The school district sought applicants for the Area 5 seat, and Maria Ortiz applied for the vacancy. She was chosen to fill the seat during the October 2020 school board meeting but moved out of Rainbow and submitted her resignation in December 2020.

The Seat 5 trustee area is the western part of the district, and an applicant must be a registered voter in that trustee area. Because the term of the seat is from December 2020 to December 2024, the seat will be subject to election for a two-year term in November 2022 although Cox may file for that two-year term if she desires. The January 2021 board meeting approved the process for the appointment for that seat, although no applications were received until Cox submitted hers in September.

Sally Forester announced her resignation at the end of the Aug. 10 board meeting. She moved out of the district, which makes her ineligible to serve on the board, and her resignation became effective Aug. 11. Forester's seat is for a term ending in December 2022, so applicants for the provisional appointment must live in the Vallecitos School District but are not required to live in a specific trustee area. Any candidates seeking a full term in the November 2022 election must live in the trustee area for that seat.

Cox and Reinhardt will be sworn in at the Nov. 9 board meeting, which will be in Room 7 at Vallecitos Elementary School. The Oct. 4 thunderstorm caused a loss of power to the school. "We were able to continue the meeting. We continued in the dark," said Vallecitos School District business manager Linda Miller.

"We were able to handle all the business," Koeppen said.

The lightning also caused a wildfire in Rainbow, and Cox and Reinhardt left for their homes after they were appointed but before they could be sworn in.

The Oct. 4 meeting was the first in-person meeting since March 2020. "They're going to continue in person," Koeppen said.

State legislation allows a school board to pass a resolution to hold virtual meetings in an emergency situation, and another 3-0 vote Oct. 4 approved such a resolution. "It does not require the board to meet virtually. It gives them the option," Koeppen said. "If they're going to meet virtually they need to establish that at a prior in-person meeting."

The state legislation requires that the resolution to hold virtual meetings if necessary be renewed every 30 days, so that will be a regular item at future Vallecitos board meetings.