Updated at 7:17 p.m. to correct an error, John Pritchett graduated from Redmond High School in 1979.
John Pritchett’s work as Del Norte High School’s family engagement liaison stood him in good stead with three members of the local school board who appointed him to Don McArthur’s old seat.
Pritchett, a 1987 Del Norte High School graduate a 1979 graduate of Redmond High School in Oregon, fielded questions from trustees Michael Greer, Charlaine Mazzei and Abbie Crist at an 8 a.m. meeting Tuesday.
Pointing out that for many families, generations have gone through Del Norte public schools, Pritchett said he viewed the Del Norte County Unified School District Board of Trustees as a conduit to the community.
“What we have to do is at a very early age, get those folks who are not involved, who did not go to school here, get them excited about their children’s education,” he said. “That’s been a real problem in recent years. We have parents, they send their kids to school and they don’t care…. It’s the teacher’s responsibility, it’s the school’s responsibility. Parents have to take a bigger role.”
The three DNUSD trustees who attended Tuesday’s meeting appointed Pritchett to serve out the remainder of Don McArthur’s Trustee Area 1 term, which ends in December. Trustee Area 3 representative Frank Magarino was absent.
Pritchett is expected to take the oath of office on Sept. 24. However, because there are no candidates seeking to serve the four-year term from 2026 through 2030, the School Board will likely make another appointment before the Nov. 3 election, DNUSD Communications Director Michael Hawkins told Redwood Voice Community News.
“At the Sept. 24 Board meeting, district staff will be presenting a proposed timeline for that appointment process,” Hawkins said.
According to DNUSD Superintendent Jeff Harris, the Board will have to make an appointment to the vacant seat before Oct. 30.
“The idea is John gets sworn in and takes his seat on the 24th,” Harris told Redwood Voice. “Shortly thereafter, the Board will be reopening applications for the appointment and then probably the second or probably the third week of October, the Board will be doing interviews for any new appointee.”
Harris noted that it’s often difficult to get people to step up to serve on the School Board. Not only did no one file election papers for the Trustee Area 1 seat, he said, there were no challengers for Crist’s Trustee Area 2 position.
“I think people will run for school board sometimes if they have something that they particularly want to change or they particularly have a desire to engage with,” Harris said, adding that a lot of the committees and other organizations trustees are involved with are voluntary. “But, again, it’s a lot of hard work and as much as I love our board, I think they do a wonderful job, it can be a very thankless job.”
Two people have stepped up to run for Greer’s Trustee Area 5 position — Ron Bates and Briannon Fraley. Greer decided not to seek re-election since he is running for California Assembly as a Republican.
New DNUSD trustees take their seats in December. They also appoint a Board chairperson and clerk in December, Harris said.
Pritchett comes to the DNUSD Board after serving as general manager at Del Norte Ambulance for 23 years. He has 20 years’ experience working for Western Communications and was editor for the “old Daily Triplicate” for about eight and a half years. Pritchett was the family engagement liaison at Del Norte High School for about three years. He also compiles the news for KCRE and KPOD and is the “Voice of the Warriors.”
“I look forward to growing intellectually about school matters and being a voice regionally and statewide on behalf of the Del Norte Unified School District and Del Norte County Office of Education,” he said.
During his conversation with the School Board, Pritchett listed six things it needed to address: Aging school facilities, supporting teachers in the classroom, early childhood education, including early reading programs, and extra curricular activities.
Pritchett said he was also worried about artificial intelligence, though he admitted that now that the “ai box is open” it will likely never shut again. It’s up to educators to make sure AI is used as a tool and not a substitute for the human imagination and creativity.
After serving on a variety of boards over the years, including the Sutter Coast Hospital Board of Directors and the 41st District Agricultural Association, also known as the Del Norte Fairgrounds, Pritchett says it’s important to disagree with someone without being disagreeable.
Pritchett called the Del Norte County Unified School District Board a “beacon of light” on how it conducts its meetings and how it interacts with the public. This, Pritchett said, is a credit both to the current trustees and the person whose shoes he’ll be stepping into in about a week.
Walking a mile in someone else’s shoes once in a while is also integral in balancing personal and political beliefs against the “larger need,” Pritchett said. Admitting when you’re wrong is also important to being a school board member, he said.
He also opined on test scores, stating that students, teachers and staff are still recovering from the COVID era, but a long-term solution has to be getting parents more involved. Family engagement is key, Pritchett said.
“Parents that care are going to raise kids that care,” he said, adding that he’s seen examples of parents being involved at Redwood and Smith River schools. “We need to do more than just back to school nights. We have to find ways to invite parents and say, ‘Hey, this is what Bobby and Susie are doing, and we need you to help us help them do more.’”
During their deliberations, Greer said that in addition to being the only candidate who stepped up, Pritchett is extremely qualified
“As a family liaison officer … I’ve seen the attitudes of the students toward him and the teachers,” Greer said. “I don’t think there’s any board member that doesn’t have a learning curve. I mean, I’m still on a learning curve, because of his experience he’ll be able to see those quickly because he talked about how important it is to be prepared.”
Mazzei said she appreciated Pritchett’s statement that he would listen to all perspectives and engage in dialogue. She said it was important that someone have an open mind.
