Mt. Pleasant School?s CFO named to international board

BY KARYN SPORY

Mt. Pleasant News

Mt. Pleasant has a bit of an international star in its midst, at least when it comes to educational finance.

Ed Chabal, director of finance for the Mt. Pleasant Community School District, was recently elected to the Association of School Business Officials (ASBO) International Board of Directors.

?It?s a great feeling,? Chabal said of being elected to the board. ?It?s pretty exclusive; I?m the third person from Iowa to serve on the board in 50 years.?

Chabal, who has been MPCSD?s chief financial officer for 18 years, had previously served on the Iowa ASBO board. He served from 2000 through 2009, and served as Iowa ASBO president in 2008.

However, the push for the three-year term as an international director didn?t start recently, it?s been several years in the making. ?I started the process two years ago,? said Chabal. The process including meeting as many of the 5,000 international members as possible before the position was voted for in August.

Chabal said he wasn?t too concerned with his chances since he was running uncontested, but it was still important for him to get out, meet and chat with as many of the members as possible.

It was during that two-year process that Chabal had the opportunity to visit nine different states, meeting with various district?s CFOs and discuss the finite details of the job. ?I picked up a lot of ideas along the way and brought them back to Iowa,? he said. Chabal noted all of his travel expenses were paid for by the ASBO.

Chabal was sworn in during the annual meeting in October.

?It?s really something,? he said of the annual meeting and finally taking his seat at the board.

Chabal said a lot of the individuals that serve on the board are usually from larger districts from around the world, ?It?s nice to know that I?ll be there to represent smaller districts and (that) there (will be) a good balance on the board,? he said.

Chabal said it has also been interesting to speak with CFOs from districts in the United Kingdom and Australia because even though schools are ran differently, there are always ideas that can be shared.

?I think it?s quite an honor that Ed is receiving because of his work,? said MPCSD Interim Superintendent Dr. John Roederer. ?It?s just a testament to his accomplishments as a school business official.?

Roederer continued, ?Not only has he done an excellent job serving our school district, but he has been able to share his knowledge with business officials all across the (world), so I think the district is very fortunate to have an individual like Ed Chabal as Chief Financial Officer.?

For Chabal, it?s not about the additional title behind his name, it?s about working to make sure districts are financially sound so they can do what they were designed to do ? educate students.

Chabal said the organization does a lot of advocacy work on legislative issues facing school finance as well as strategic planning.

Following his three-year term, Chabal plans to run again.

?I want to give back to the organization because I?ve gotten a lot out of it in the 18 years I?ve been a member,? he said.