The Valparaiso City Council is returning Karl Cender to the Valparaiso School Board for another appointment, citing benefits of his experience and institutional history as a counter to criticism and recommendation for a new candidate to fill the vacancy.
The five candidates considered during the May 15 final round of interviews all fulfilled the guiding resolution dictating applicants could not be Republican since currently, three of the four City Council appointees already represent the Republican Party.
“We did our appointment process, and Karl Cender was appointed to the school board,” announced council member Diana Reed, D-1st, who acts as council liaison to the Valparaiso School Board.
Cender, 63, was appointed by a vote of 5-2, receiving no votes from either of the voting members who represent the Democrat Party. Cender served on the school board previously from 2010-2022, completing his third four-year term in May 2022 while he was serving as school board president. His previous term began with appointment in May 2018.
After the appointment, on May 18, the Valparaiso Democratic Committee posted the following statement to social media: “We stand up for the right thing. Four candidates had better interviews and would have been better choices to lead our school district as a School Board member. No Democratic votes for the Democratic appointee. Republicans ignored the evidence in front of them and installed ‘their’ guy rather than a better candidate, putting themselves first. We need a City Council who puts Valpo first.”
The other final applicants vying were Ashley Kruse, who had emphasized the advantage of her age status as a millennial, attorney Clay Patton, consultant Alison Quackenbush and strategist Curtiss Strietelmeier.
During the public comment portion of the Valparaiso City Council meeting on May 22, parent Brian Williams spoke on behalf of others assembled at the meeting to express disappointment about Cender returning as an appointed school board representative.
“Everything said about Karl Cender is true, that he is kind and caring, knows accounting and has already served a dozen years on the school board,” Williams said.
“Also true, is everything he said over the course of two interviews was vague, uninspired and unimaginative.”
Williams told the council they had better opportunities “for excellence” from the other candidates being considered for the appointment.
“In two decades of my attending and listening to school board interviews, I have never seen such a strong, intelligent and articulate group of candidates,” Williams said.
“Any one of the other four candidates would have reflected so well on Valparaiso as a representative, informed, involved, intelligent, detailed, specific, energized and energizing, and yet you went with the one lacking ideas. You made a very poor appointment to the school board. You failed the city in one of your most important jobs. You did ask some litmus test questions of the other candidates, and then still went with ‘our guy,’ the status quo, the old boys’ club. You five of the majority retreated into you man cave, rather than advancing education.”
Valparaiso School Board members are paid an annual stipend of up to $4,336.
Valparaiso Community Schools District consists of 12 public schools, K-12, serving 6,235 students in Porter County.
Philip Potempa is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
