Six people who applied for the vacant Marietta City Board of Education position last week were selected to attend the working session on Wednesday night. (Photo by Amber Phipps)

Jeffrey Hollister was appointed to fill the vacant position on the Marietta City Board of Education Wednesday.

Hollister will fill the role for the remainder of the term, which will end on Jan. 1, 2028.

“I promise you to give the best that I possibly can for the students of this school district,” Hollister said.

The seat was opened by the resignation of John Lehman on July 28. Ohio Revised Code states the board must take action at least 10 days after but within 30 days of the resignation.

“I want to thank the board and the administration for this process and for opening it up and listening to interested parties,” Hollister said.

Finding Leaders Consultant Neil Roseberry helps guide the Marietta City Board of Education working session on Wednesday night. The goal of the working session was to communicate the role and responsibilities of being a board member and fill a vacant position. (Photo by Amber Phipps)

Hollister has been the president of Vanguard Paints & Finishes Inc. since 1986 after practicing law for over 10 years. He said he’s proud of the successes of his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Board President Cody Parman said it was a tough decision because everyone who applied and attended Wednesday night’s working session was qualified. They decided Hollister was fit for the current role due to his previous experience on the board from 1976 to 1989.

“Mr. Hollister is deeply rooted in the community, and he represents a demographic that is really important to us on the board,” said Parman.

Board member Sam Tuten encouraged everyone who attended the working session to run for board positions in the future and take opportunities to work with the school in any way they could.

Some of the other community members who were considered included Zach Maciag, Sally Latture, Taylor Huffman, Chris Fennell and Tom Perry.

With the guidance of Neil Roseberry, with consulting firm Finding Leaders, the board and six selected community members gathered Wednesday evening to work on getting to know each other through discussion and group exercises.

“The goal is to contribute what we’ve learned about each other and apply it to Marietta,” said Roseberry.

The working session ran from 6-9 p.m. and began with a detailed introduction of each person in attendance. The board and community members had the opportunity to share their personal experiences and interests with each other.

“You can’t do anything unless you know who people are and make those relationships,” said Roseberry.

Each exercise was a collaborative effort and discussion to express what was needed in order for the board, treasurer and superintendent to be on the same page.

Newly appointed Superintendent Mary Schaeffer said communication and trust were important so that they could continue working towards the goals for the district.

One of the key takeaways from the working session was that there wasn’t a pyramid hierarchy but rather the superintendent, treasurer and board should be actively working together and fulfilling their respective roles.

Roseberry presented the group with what the roles of each member entailed, and everyone agreed that overstepping their role could sometimes be counterproductive and may unintentionally harm the group.

“There is no power as a board member, the only power is when we’re acting collectively, not individually,” said board member Russ Garrison.

Amber Phipps can be reached at aphipps@newsandsentinel.com