Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, April 6, 1994 TAG: 9404060101
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: By BRIAN KELLEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Lacy said Tuesday he will not seek re-appointment to the School Board this spring. He first emerged as a possible Board of Supervisors contender during discussions last year.
"I don't know that I'm committed to doing that or not doing that at this point," Lacy said Tuesday. Still, "If you want to have an impact on schools, the best thing to do is run for the Board of Supervisors."
Lacy, whose term ends June 30, holds one of two School Board posts the Board of Supervisors will fill this spring. The appointments will run until December 1995, when the first elected School Board members take office.
Lacy, a Virginia Tech professor and expert on local government, has represented the county's District G since June 1986. The most compact of seven election districts in Montgomery, District G covers northeastern Blacksburg.
Lacy said he would not run for an elected seat on the School Board. He is a critic of elected school boards that lack taxing authority, which will still be held by the supervisors.
"You need advocates on the Board of Supervisors who support those kinds of things that will move the school system from what I think is a good system to what could be a leading, cutting-edge system," Lacy said.
School Board Chairman Roy Vickers said Lacy will be "sorely missed" when he leaves the board.
"He provides the School Board with a high level of expertise in ... his field," Vickers said. "He's also one of the ranking members of the board as far as tenure and experience and well thought-out" contributions to board discussions.
The other seat up for appointment this spring is District B, held by Bob Goncz, the board's vice chairman and an executive with Eastern Repair and Fabrication Inc. of Christiansburg. District B covers most of central Montgomery County, including a portion of Christiansburg and the Ellett Valley.
Goncz, also a two-term member, said Tuesday he hadn't decided whether to apply again. He said he needed to talk it over with his family.
Goncz also said he was undecided when it came to running for the School Board post in the November 1995 election. "I don't see myself running for a position, [but] I cannot totally rule it out," he said.
Montgomery County will accept applications for the two School Board appointments until April 25. Applicants must live in the district they would represent and must be qualified voters in good tax standing. Applicants should send a letter of intent and a statement of qualifications to County Administrator Betty Thomas at P.O. Box 806, Christiansburg 24073.
by CNB