Manatee County School Board welcomes new leaders

The Manatee County School Board is continuing on its path toward change.

At its meeting Nov. 18, the board voted in Robert Gause as its chairman. Dave Miner is now the board's vice chairman.

Gause replaces former School Board Chairwoman Julie Aranibar, who served as board's leader for two years and was ousted by new board member Mary Cantrell in the Nov. 4 election.

During the board's reorganization meeting that preceded the regularly scheduled meeting, the board welcomed Cantrell and Charlie Kennedy to the board. Longtime board member Diana Carpenter was also sworn in.

Kennedy's first action as a School Board member was to nominate Gause for the chairman position.

The new members are looking forward to a cohesive five-member team they believe will help move the district forward in a positive direction, Cantrell said.

Contact Amanda Sebastiano at [email protected].