Over the last few months, community members have slowly been finding out that there was an unexpected change in the Central Kitsap School Board. Without making an official public statement at any meeting, now ex-school board director Breezy Mitchell resigned her position.
“I resigned because I really believe in the importance of good governance in the school district, and I just felt like it’d be best if I removed myself from the situation,” Mitchell said. “I’m not meaning to create waves. I want what’s best for students.”
Mitchell was a relatively new school board member, and resigned partially through her first term. Her time on the school board had an impact on students and teachers alike, including CKHS language arts teacher Kate Zinke.
“Mrs. Mitchell came to our school last year for the women’s panel, and she spoke, gave her story of interracial adoption and how that impacted her identity and trying to instill hope in resilience in students,” Zinke said. “After that, I asked her if she would like to come into classes and talk about the same thing, and last year she presented to all of my classes. […] Students really respected that someone from the district would come in and not only talk with them, but share, be vulnerable, and meet them where they were. As opposed to oftentimes we have district leadership come in and just observe silently and students have no connection or relationship with them.”
School board directors spend a lot of time visiting the schools in the district. They attend events, watch classes, speak with students and teachers, and attend meetings with community members.
“I felt like she was an integral member of the community already, she really made herself known as someone students could go to and staff could go to,” Zinke said. “And then this year, I was sort of shocked that she had resigned that position before her term was over.”
According to School Board Director Eric Greene, once Mitchell had decided to resign, she called up Greene and told him her plans. Then, she sent an official letter to all the members of the board.
“Once we received the letter of resignation, we had to take a vote,” Greene said. “So we took a vote, and we accepted the resignation, and from then on, we started working on the process of replacing her.”
Some community members had concerns that Mitchell being the only person of color on the school board might have contributed to her resignation. Karen Bolton, the Vice President of the Bremerton School Board and the vice chair for the School Board Members of Color caucus held these concerns. According to Bolton, she served as a mentor-like figure for Mitchell during her time on the school board.
“In my opinion, I felt like she was bullied and intimidated and questioned a lot,” Bolton said. “Part of my role with her and working with her was just a supporter, an up-lifter, and any school board that has a brand new school board director, you really need to take the time to uplift that person and support that person.”
However, Mitchell had a differing view on the situation.
“My blind spots can be microaggressions, because they were so normalized for me as a child,” Mitchell said. “So I don’t feel discriminated against, particularly, but also I do have blind spots. I’ve seen some of the things online, and I do think that people always need to speak their truth to power, and I think we can all learn from different perspectives.”
Many community members have reached out to the board to express their feelings on Mitchell’s resignation. Bolton sent an email to the board shortly after Mitchell left.
“This director’s contributions have been nothing short of remarkable,” Bolton wrote in her email. “Her brilliance, dedication, and unwavering commitment to advocating for students and families in our community should have been celebrated and supported.”
Other community members felt strongly about the impact that this sudden change would have on the students in the school district.
“I just really thought she was a strong resource, and kids felt comfortable going,” Zinke said. “I was sad that her leadership would be absent, and I was questioning, ‘how are we going to move forward? Is there going to be someone who also represents her voice?’ Especially because she is an elected official, how is the district going to choose someone who has similar priorities?”
The board initially received two applications for the open position, and moved forward with interviews of these candidates. They ended up deciding to not move forward with either candidate, and continue working to fill the position. Since then, the board has officially sworn in their new director, Mark Gaines.
“I hope the person stepping up into that role will have true care for all students,” Mitchell said. “And it just doesn’t mean the students in Central Kitsap School District, it’s pretty much all kids within our community, because public school is available to all children within our community. I really think that, I hope that they think about things with an equity lens, because we have different student populations that are going through unimaginable things, and they need more care and support.”
Though each board member works to represent all the students in the district, each member has a few schools they are especially responsible for representing. Mitchell’s board position of District two included Hawk Elementary at Jackson Park, Silverdale Elementary, Central Kitsap Middle School, and Central Kitsap High School.
“We don’t just represent one school or one area, because there’s some overlap,” Greene said. “So we’re all responsible for CK high, we’re all responsible for Klahowya and Olympic High School and Barker Creek and all the elementary schools. So we’re responsible for the district.”
Despite her resignation, Mitchell intends to stay connected within the district.
“I’m willing to step up in different capacities,” Mitchell said. “I still have time and bandwidth and care. I’m still going to be involved with my son. I still plan on volunteering at the high school and at my daughter’s elementary school. Nothing (like) that has changed, I’m just not doing anything as a school board member, but I still plan on doing and being available. Because what I’ve learned is that students of color, they need support, and they need people who care about them and who will help them when they don’t feel comfortable enough to speak up on their own.”
