At its regular meeting on July 9, the Orange County Board of Education voted to elect new officers for the 2015-16 fiscal year. Robert M. Hammond was selected to serve a one-year term as president, and Linda Lindholm was named vice president.
Hammond, who joined the board in 2012 as the trustee for District 1, was born and raised in Orange County and is a resident of Santa Ana. A former Marine and sports official, he began his teaching career in 1993 and taught special education for six years. He and his wife later started a non-profit organization dedicated to teaching children and adults how to read and improve their writing. Currently, they run youth sports leagues for elementary and middle school kids. Hammond holds a bachelor’s degree in broadcast communications from the University of La Verne.
A longtime resident of Laguna Niguel, Lindholm was elected to represent District 5 in 2014. She was previously a member of the Laguna Niguel City Council, serving four terms as that city’s mayor. Along with posts on various city boards and committees, Lindholm has been president of the Saddleback College Foundation Board, chairwoman of the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency and president of the Beta Foster Care Advisory Board. She has a bachelor’s degree from Colorado State University as well as a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Kansas.
The Orange County Board of Education consists of five members who represent the trustee areas of the county. Board members are elected to a four-year term by the voters of the trustee area which they represent. Annually the board elects a president and a vice president from among the members. The County Superintendent of Schools, currently Dr. Al Mijares, acts as the board secretary and executive officer.
Orange County Board of Education has a variety of responsibilities including serving as Orange County’s appeal board for expulsion and inter-district attendance transfer appeals.
More information can be found on the Orange County Board of education website, here.