The Myrtle Point School Board has appointed a new board member to fill the vacancy created by the departure of Jack Kissell, who resigned in May.

Alden Hamlin, a Myrtle Point accountant, volunteered for the vacant position and was approved Monday.

Kissell, who had served the board for only 10 months, said he decided to resign due to personality conflicts with the other six members of the board.

“I joined because I thought maybe I could help the community and help the school - but it didn't work out as I planned,” he said. “I thought maybe if they could get somebody else they might have a board that works a little closer than what I could do with them.”

The board didn't have to look far for a new member.

Neighbors and friends, Kissell invited Hamlin to join the Budget Committee earlier this year, and he went on to serve on the superintendent search committee. A Myrtle Point resident of three years, Hamlin said he soon found himself intrigued by the district's inner workings, which affect his family.

“I have two children in the system, which is a lot of why I'm interested in serving on the board,” Hamlin said. “But I was actually surprised, getting involved with the two committees was actually interesting. So I volunteered.”

One of the first changes Hamlin said he wants to make are to the budgetary system for the district.

“I'd like to see it become an almost year-round process, instead of only three weeks a year,” he said.

Selecting Hamlin for the vacant position was easy, said School Board Chairwoman Jane Snyder.

“We're very pleased to have a member of the community who is experienced in finance and is a parent of children in our schools,” Snyder said. “Our current board is comprised of people who each have different gifts and enthusiasm. I think we have a nice balance.”

Hamlin said he also is interested in finding additional funding for the district, but not through taxes.

“As a tax accountant I can tell you that the tax burden on the American taxpayer is already too high,” he said. “I formed the Friends of Myrtle Point School District to seek out grants and other funds. Bill Gates hands out an awful lot of money and computers, and my question is, why shouldn't we get some of that?”

Discussion at the meeting centered around types of capital improvements and big projects that could be funded through grants, via the foundation, to help the School District.

One of the projects long sought, according to Snyder, is the refinishing of the gymnasium floor. It has been varnished several times in the last 10 years, but not resurfaced. While the district has maintained the floor, several board members said the floor, which is dingy beneath the layers of varnish, needs to be re-done.

The board received a proposal from the low-bidder on the varnishing project, Brandsen Hardwood Floors Inc., of Portland, to completely resurface the gym floor for $16,300. District maintenance employee Mike Huggins encouraged the board to reconsider resurfacing the floor.

“I'm in favor of redoing the floor,” said board member Denece Johnson. “It's what people see. They see the outside of our buildings and the gym. That's what they see their tax dollars buying.”

Superintendent Kent Klewitz encouraged the board to carefully consider the expense, but seemed in favor of the proposal by Brandsen.

“This is a perfect example of what we should be doing with the carry-over,” Klewitz said.

Board member Corky Clark was concerned a resurfaced floor wouldn't be ready for students to begin practicing volleyball in August, but Klewitz reported that the work crew could resurface the floor in sections. Sections would take longer, but cost the same, he said.

In the end, by a 4-3 vote, the board approved the bid from Brandsen to resurface the gym floor.

In other business, the School Board:

- reviewed goals for the 2006-07 year;

- discussed possible positive incentives for rewarding students' good behavior; and

- reviewed data on statewide salaries for athletic directors.