David McCoid: Looking back on 25 years as a school board member

MT. PLEASANT - No matter what was presented to him, David McCoid's top priority as a Mt. Pleasant Community School District school board member was always what was best for students.

The 78-year-old lawyer recently saw the sunset of his final term on the board following his decision to retire. McCoid officially handed off his gavel at his last meeting on Nov. 18. The Mt. Pleasant resident has served intermittently on the board since 1983, with a total of seven terms under his belt and 25 years of service, several of which he has served as president, including his final term.

'I grew up in a household that felt it was a person's responsibility to give back to the community … I was interested in serving in some capacity,” he said.

'I have an interest in education. I think it's important and it's important that the board reflects the community,” he continued.

The lawyer explained that he saw an opportunity to do his part to improve education through the board, whose primary role is to set policy and to 'employ the best people [they can]” to deliver good education and opportunities to students. In making decisions as a board member, McCoid's number one concern was always 'what's best for the kids.”

McCoid's decision to serve on a school board continued a legacy that spans three generations in his family. The lawyer's grandfather, uncle and father all served on local boards, with his grandfather starting as a member in 1916 when the Saunders School was first started in Mt. Pleasant. In total, the McCoids have dedicated over 50 years of service as school board members.

'I guess it's in my DNA,” McCoid said.

'I wanted to make the Mt. Pleasant School District the best school district we could make it,” he continued, explaining why he was motivated to be part of the board. McCoid, who also grew up in Mt. Pleasant, went to schools in the district, as did his four children.

'I think education is the key to success … knowing how to do something is very important. It's how you're going to be successful,” he added.

It hasn't always been smooth sailing for McCoid. On several occasions, the lawyer had been voted out of the board. After losing his seat for the first time in 1992, McCoid stated that he did not have plans of returning but was contacted by another member who was planning to retire and encouraged McCoid to run for the open seat.

'He called me up and said, ‘Dave, why don't you consider going back on the board? You were a good board member,' and that got me thinking in my head and so I ran again,” he said.

But even with the challenges, McCoid looks back on his tenure on the board with fondness and pointed to several things that he was proud to have helped accomplish, including leading the charge to establish a position for a director of instruction, which would allow the district to hire a person directly responsible for creating standardized curriculum across the district.

'It occurred to me that the curriculum area was not getting the attention that it should, not through any fault of any one person. You can't just pull a curriculum out of the sky, you need to work on it, you need to study it, you have to involve your teachers … so that was why I thought we should have someone assigned to that area, and the whole idea was to improve the curriculum and teaching in the district,” McCoid said.

McCoid also pointed to building the new high school and recent installment of air conditioning and temperature control systems into the district's schools as highlights of his career as a board member.

'I tried to make school system the best … we struggle, but we're no slouch either. In my 25 years that I've been on the school board, the district has improved,” McCoid remarked.

Looking forward, McCoid has confidence in the current board to carry on and continue to make the district better. Jennifer Crull, the newly elected board president, said McCoid 'set the gold standard” as president in his final term.

'He did a good job of running our meetings and allowing the opportunity for everyone to voice their opinions,” she said.

Crull also pointed to McCoid's implementation of a roll-call vote to hold members accountable to their decisions as an improvement she hopes to carry on into her role as the leader of the board. But more than anything else, Crull says she will take away McCoid's 'care for students.”

'He always had every student who was at our meetings stand up, introduce themselves and tell the board about what they were doing … he was always reminding us that it's about the students,” she added.

Remarking on McCoid's tenure as board president in his final term, Superintendent John Henricksen said at McCoid's final meeting that he was thankful for McCoid's guidance and leadership.

'As a superintendent, the one thing you really hope for and need is a board president whose got a ton of wisdom, is a good thinker and knows how to handle different situations, someone that a superintendent can go talk to when they're feeling unsure about certain things. And I have always felt that way about [McCoid]. I appreciate [his] leadership through all these years, and the community appreciates [his] leadership,” Henriksen concluded.