Lawmakers on the education committee unanimously endorsed outgoing State Board of Education representative and former Charter School Committee member Ande Smith for the board of Maine Maritime Academy.
Smith was one of several nominations supported unanimously Friday by the Legislature’s Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs. The nominations now go to the Senate for confirmation.
“I’m passionate about education,” Smith told the committee, adding that he hoped to “bring diverse experience and perspective” to Maine Maritime Academy’s board. His term as a State Board of Education member ends this month.
Smith is a Navy veteran and reservist, attorney and owner of Deer Brook Associates, a privately held firm providing legal and consulting services principally in information security, technology and privacy.
Last year, Smith narrowly lost the Republican primary race for Maine’s 1st District seat, held by U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree.
The committee also unanimously supported the reappointment of Doug Wellington to the Maine Maritime Academy board of trustees. The board has 16 members, appointed by the governor for five-year terms, and they may be reappointed.
Also Friday, the committee unanimously approved the following nominations:
• Elizabeth “Betsey” Timm to the University of Maine System board of trustees. Timm is the former president of Bank of America and Citicorp in Maine, and she currently serves as president of the board of directors of Girl Scouts of Maine.
• Wendy Ault, a former state representative, to the State Board of Education. Ault is the executive director of the MELMAC Education Foundation.
• Patricia Duran and Emily Smith to the board of trustees of the Maine Community College System. Duran, a former schools superintendent, is being reappointed to the board. Smith, president of Smith’s Farm in Aroostook County, is chairwoman of the Presque Isle City Council.
• Jay Hibbard as a trustee for the Maine Public Broadcasting Corp. board of trustees. Hibbard, a one-time member of the Portland City Council and executive director of the Maine Republican Party, is vice president of the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States.
• Terry Morrell, John Shattuck and Michelle Ames, as members of the school board of the Maine Education Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, formerly known as the Governor Baxter School for the Deaf. Shattuck is currently chairman of the board, and Ames is vice chairwoman of the board. Morrell is director of the Maine Department of Labor’s Division for the Deaf, Hard of Hearing & Late Deafened.
Noel K. Gallagher can be contacted at 791-6387 or at:
Twitter: noelinmaine
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