Photo by Michelle Dillon Warren Local Schools Superintendent Kyle Newton (left) hands former board member Debbie West (right) a plaque and other items in appreciation of her time on the board. West resigned effective Feb. 8 due to taking a job as the Southeast Regional Manager for the Ohio School Board Association.

VINCENT — The Warren Local Schools Board of Education addressed the resignation of one of its members Thursday evening.

The board unanimously acknowledged the resignation of board member Debbie West, who resigned effective Feb. 8.

She started serving her sixth term as a school board member in January. She was the board president for six of the 20 years she has been on the board.

West gave her letter of resignation to the board on Jan. 25. In it she stated that she has been hired by the Ohio School Boards Association as their South East Regional Manager and it is their policy that regional managers cannot serve on local or career center boards if those boards are members of the OSBA due to a possible conflict of interest.

West said in her letter that she was “sincerely grateful for the opportunity to serve on the board for the past 20 years. I know there are many more great things ahead for Warren and offer my best wishes for our continued success. It has been a pleasure to serve alongside you through challenges and tremendous success.”

The board issued a press release regarding West’s departure on Thursday.

“Debbie’s strength, commitment and passion for Warrior Nation has made her a wonderful board member and community leader,” Superintendent Kyle Newton said in the release. “Her years of service on the Warren Boards have corresponded with nearly two decades of growth which has culminated in our community building new buildings and being financially sound. I personally look forward to the impact Debbie will make on our region in her new position.”

Warren Local Schools Treasurer Melcie Wells echoed Newton’s sentiments.

“Debbie’s leadership skills are extraordinary and she always used collaborative efforts to solve difficult problems,” Wells said in the release. “Debbie’s love for the students and staff of Warren Local, as well as the entire community, are evident in all that she does. We will definitely miss Debbie at Warren, but look forward to working with her in her new role as OSBA.”

West also resigned from her position as president of the Washington County Joint Vocational School District Board of Education.

During the meeting Thursday Newton presented West with a plaque and other items in appreciation of her time on the board.

West thanked the board for everything they have done and said “It’s been a wonderful 20 years.”

The board then went into executive session at 6:08 p.m. to consider the appointment, employment, dismissal or discipline of a public employee or official.

The board returned from executive session at 6:45 p.m. They then unanimously voted to appoint Stacey Greenup to fill the seat vacated by West. The oath of office for Greenup was administered by Wells.

According to a post on Washington State College of Ohio’s Facebook page, Greenup joined the school as its nursing clinical coordinator in 2022. According to Greenup’s LinkedIn page, she has also worked as a pediatric nurse practitioner for Akron Children’s Hospital primary care practices in Marietta and Belpre since January.

The board of education policy for filling a seat left vacant by the departure of a board member states the person chosen to fill the vacant seat will serve until the completion of the unexpired term or until the first day of January that immediately follows the next regular board election that takes place more than 90 days after the person is chosen, whichever is shorter.

Also during the board meeting, a group of students gave a presentation on a solar tracker project they completed last year through JASON learning, a nonprofit that provides Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) learning experiences for K-12 students, according to the organization’s website.

Michelle Dillon can be reached at mdillon@newsandsentinel.com