Atwater Elementary school board president resigns

The Atwater Elementary School District governing board hopes to appoint a new trustee after the school board’s president announced his resignation earlier this month.

Joe Hoffar, the Area 2 trustee elected in 2012, resigned because he is moving to McSwain. Because the school board is split into districts, Hoffar can only serve on the board while he lives in Area 2.

Hoffar is a retired Atwater police officer and also serves as the president of the Atwater Chamber of Commerce.

Hoffar said he is disappointed he had to resign.

“The only puzzle piece that didn’t fall into place was the school board,” he said about his move. “I tell you, I loved being on the board. I even contacted an attorney to see if there was any way to legally stay on the board. Unfortunately, I couldn’t.”

Area 2 includes Shaffer and Thomas Oleata elementary schools. Hoffar’s term lasts until November 2016. Dale Wilson, Area 5 trustee, will take over as president.

Sandra Schiber, the district’s superintendent, said Hoffar’s resignation is a “huge loss” to the school district.

“Mr Hoffar was a very visible and supportive board member,” she said. “Our staff truly appreciates the dedication and commitment he demonstrated during his board tenure by attending so many school events.”

Scott Lee, Area 3 trustee, was elected at the same time as Hoffar.

“I enjoyed working with Joe,” he said. He’s a great guy. He did a good job as president of the board. We came on at same time, and we worked together to make the board better. We are going to miss him.”

The board chose to appoint a new trustee from an application pool rather than to hold a special election, which would cost about $20,000, Hoffar said.

The board will review applications during the upcoming meeting Tuesday.

This story was originally published August 5, 2015 at 1:59 PM with the headline "Atwater Elementary school board president resigns."