Former superintendent joins Merced County Board of Education

Tom Bates is looking forward to joining the Merced County Board of Education.

Bates ran unopposed for the Westside seat on the five-member board in the Nov. 4 general election. He will be seated Dec. 16 and will replace David March on the board.

A retired superintendent-principal, Bates, 69, led the Island Union Elementary School District in Lemoore for 29 years. He also taught third and sixth grades in Fremont for seven years before moving to the San Joaquin Valley.

“I’m looking forward to this,” Bates said. “It’s something new for me.”

In nearly three decades’ service to the Kings County school district, Bates estimates he sat in on hundreds of school board meetings. He hopes to be a voice for the Merced County Office of Education in the Los Banos and Dos Palos areas.

The Lemoore area school district had 280 kindergarten through eighth-grade students at its peak, Bates estimated. He retired seven years ago.

Steve Gomes, Merced County superintendent of schools, said he looks forward to having Bates on the board.

“He brings a wealth of experience as a former superintendent,” Gomes said. He added Bates has experience with the charter school process and an understanding of providing special-needs students with additional help.

Bates received a bachelor’s degree in history from Santa Clara University and his master’s degree in administration and reading from California State University, East Bay in Hayward.

This story was originally published November 25, 2014 at 5:47 PM with the headline "Former superintendent joins Merced County Board of Education."