CASSOPOLIS — Lewis Cass Intermediate School District is joining 538 local and 56 intermediate school districts across Michigan to celebrate 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,” said Superintendent Brent Holcomb. “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 enterprise of maintaining and running the community’s public schools, Holcomb said. They also reinforce the principle of local control over public education, which is an important aspect of education in Michigan, he added.

“Too often the efforts of school board members go unrecognized,” Holcomb said.

The school board’s main goal is to support student achievement, Holcomb added.

To achieve that goal, the board focuses on the following needs, according to Holcomb:

• Creating a vision for what parents and citizens want their school district to become and how to make student achievement the top priority.

• Setting standards for what students must learn and be able to do.

• Assessing whether schools achieve their goals and whether students are learning.

• Accounting for the outcomes of decisions and by tracking progress and reporting results.

• Aligning the use of the district’s human and financial resources.

• Creating a safe and orderly climate where students can learn and teachers can teach.

• Collaborating to solve common problems and to support common successes.

• Focusing on continuous improvement by questioning, examining, revising, refining and revisiting issues related to student achievement.

“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,” Holcomb said. “They are dedicated individuals who are committed to improving student achievement and to fighting for the best for all of our students.”

The men and women serving Lewis Cass Intermediate School District and their years of service are:

• Donald Curtis, president — 19 years

• Thomas Atkinson, vice president — seven years

• Kevin Anderson, treasurer — six years

• Dwight Dyes, secretary — three years

• Heather Zile, trustee —two years