Karl Gaardsmoe has been appointed to the Fountain Hills Unified School District Governing Board.

When former board member Bill Mullaney stepped down from his position in March, Gaardsmoe joined four fellow Fountain Hills residents in applying to fill the seat.

The applicants were interviewed by a panel consisting of district stakeholders including a board member, members of administration and staff.

Following the interview committee’s recommendation to county Superintendent Dr. Don Covey, Gaardsmoe was appointed to the board Thursday afternoon, June 20.

The swearing in ceremony took place Friday, just in time for Gaardsmoe to take up his new position during this evening’s governing board meeting.

Five individuals applied for the vacant seat earlier this year. Gasrdsmoe was joined by former Mayor Wally Nichols and community members Edith Stock, Richard Rutkowski and Paul Perreault.

According to Superintendent Tom Lawrence, it was a nice field to pick from.

“We had outstanding candidates,” Lawrence said.

“It was a pleasure to go through this process and come to understand the passion these people have for the local educational system.”

Similarly, Gaardsmoe said he would like to thank the selection committee for their hard work through the interview process, as well as his fellow candidates.

“I enjoyed spending the day with the other finalist candidates during a nominee seminar,” Gaardsmoe said.

“Most of the other districts going through the same process only had one candidate for each open position. That we had [several] contenders willing to step up was impressive to me and to those presenting.”

Gaardsmoe said his selection to the board is an honor and a privilege, the culmination of an effort that began a year ago when he decided to have his name placed on the November 2012 ballot.

“My first participation as a board member will be [this evening], at which time there will be an important vote on the budget,” Gaardsmoe said.

“But what I’m really looking forward to is the board retreat on July 9. This will give me an opportunity to weigh in with my colleagues on setting board goals for the upcoming year.”