Waukesha School Board member Marquell Moorer resigns to take graduate teacher fellowship

A Waukesha School Board member has resigned with just under a year left on his first term.

Marquell Moorer announced his resignation from the board effective July 12 to participate in an out-of-state graduate teacher fellowship, according to a news release from the Waukesha School District.

"He was an active volunteer and frequent visitor within our schools, with a genuine focus on helping kids and teachers," the district said in its release.

Moorer was the second Black school board member to serve on the Waukesha School Board. The first was William Carr, who was elected to the board in 1968 and served as the board's vice president in 1972, according to an email from Sue Ettinger, executive assistant to the superintendent.

Moorer said the fellowship is allowing him to pursue his master's degree. He declined to name the fellowship program for privacy reasons. Moorer, 29, said he hadn't intended to pursue his master's at first, but decided to do so after thinking about it more, especially with having been elected in his mid 20s.

Moorer said as he approaches 30, he needed to think about what else he wanted to accomplish.

"I'm still in my 20s, but many people my age around this time are just now completing master's programs or already have completed master's programs," he said. "They're getting married, they're building their lives, they're getting their master's degrees and advancing in their careers. Marquell didn't do any of that because he was an elected official."

He said it's not a bad thing, but his path was different because of it.

While on the board, Moorer was a member of the board's Human Resources and Compensation, Student Services, Teaching and Learning and Policy and Government Relations Committees, the district's news release said.

He was elected in April 2022, along with Mark Borowski and Karrie Kozlowski. The three candidates were backed by the Republican Party of Waukesha County , which spent about $9,000 in support of them.

The Waukesha School Board is accepting applications to fill Moorer's now vacant seat. Whomever the board selects, their term will begin the date they are appointed and end in April 2025. To apply, applicants should send a letter of interest and resume attention of the Waukesha School Board president, 301 Hyde Park Ave., Waukesha by 3 p.m. July 26. Applications may be dropped off, emailed or mailed, Ettinger said.

Applicants must be Waukesha School District residents for at least 10 days before submitting their letter of interest and resume. An interview schedule will be established after the application period closes and applicants will be notified of the time and date of their interviews. Board members will interview candidates in open session, "and if an appointment is to be made, it will immediately follow," the Waukesha School District said on its website.

After the appointment, the board member would have the chance to run for a three-year term in the April 2025 election.

Contact Alec Johnson at (262) 875-9469 or alec.johnson@jrn.com . Follow him on Twitter at @AlecJohnson12 .

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Waukesha School Board member Marquell Moorer resigns to take graduate teacher fellowship