Representative chosen for Clovis school board

CLOVIS — Shawn Hamilton was appointed Monday evening to represent District Four on the Clovis Municipal Schools Board of Education, following public interviews and a nail-biting tie-breaker vote among four candidates during a special meeting of the board.

Hamilton will serve the rest of the unexpired term of Justin Howalt, who recently vacated the position in advance of assuming the role of Clovis city manager next month.

The term lasts through February 2019, at which time the position is open again for election. Hamilton as well as the three other candidates — Barney Jaramillo, Ray Mondragon and Mitch Simms — said during their interviews that they planned to run for the position then, even if they were not appointed for the remainder of the current term.

Board members Cindy Osburn and Kyle Snider first voted for Hamilton, while Board President Paul Cordova and Board Vice President Terry Martin each initially cast votes for Mondragon. After neither candidate received a majority, Osburn nominated Jaramillo and Snider seconded the motion, but Cordova and Martin voted no.

After that, Osburn and Snider made a second attempt to vote in Hamilton but Cordova and Martin still did not budge.

The board was in challenging position: if the four members could not reach a majority on one candidate, they could table the appointment process but risk missing the early October deadline to make their decision. In that case the selection to fill the vacancy would be in the hands of the state's secretary of education.

"Just to move forward, would anybody reconsider their vote?" asked Cordova. "I don't want this to go out to somebody else to vote."

Following silence from the board, Hamilton was nominated a third time and received votes from Osburn, Snider and Cordova.

"I fully support your decision," Mondragon told the board after the final vote. "You are in a tough spot."

Each candidate was interviewed in sequence by the board while the rest waited outside the chambers. They were asked their reasons for applying, their experience and their philosophy regarding education and how they would maintain two-way communication between the board and the superintendent.

"I feel like I've got this fire burning in me," Hamilton said during his interview. "Being a board member is really all about the well-being of the kids in our community. ... I know that there's a lot that I don't know. I've never taught school, but I would like to try and help you guys. I'm a big team player."