By Carol Mowdy Bond
Contributing Writer
Michele Hawthorne has been appointed to fill the Post 4 vacancy on Yukon Public Schools’ Board of Education.
Hawthorne, who was the only person who applied for the position, was interviewed during a 30-minute executive session at Monday night’s YPS board meeting.
When the board members returned to the meeting, they unanimously voted in favor of Hawthorne, and then introduced her. The oath of office was administered to Hawthorne, and she then took her seat on the board.
“I am excited to see how I can help,” Hawthorne said. “Having kids in the system, this is definitely something I’m interested in, to help better things for our kids. I want to continue to support our kids.”
Hawthorne now represents YPS District 4, which is bounded on the north by E. Wagner Rd., on the east by S. Yukon Parkway, on the south by W. Vandament Ave., and on the west by State Hwy 4/Piedmont Rd./S. Cornwell Dr.
Hawthorne was born in Tulsa. Her dad was a farmer, and her mother was in accounting. She has two siblings, and she grew up on a Glenpool farm, attending K through 12 in the Glenpool Public School system. She then attended the University of Oklahoma, earning a music education degree. Hawthorne now works for Joseph P. Norman, CPA.
Hawthorne and her husband, Josh, have been married 20 years. Josh works at Chesapeake Energy Corp., in computer engineering. They have two children and two dogs and live in Yukon’s River Birch Estates. The family moved from Norman to Yukon in 2003.
Their older child is a 2017 YPS graduate and is currently a junior at the University of Central Oklahoma. Their younger child is a 14-year-old eighth grader attending Yukon Middle School.
A friend told Hawthorne the Post 4 seat was vacant so she applied. YPS Superintendent Dr. Jason Simeroth interviewed her two weeks ago.
Hawthorne succeeds Jeff Behymer as Post 4 representative. Behymer – who had served since July 2016 – resigned in December 2019 after moving to a home outside Post 4.
Other YPS Board members are: President Leonard Wells, Clerk Suzanne Cannon, Deputy Clerk Rex Van Meter, and Member Chris Cunningham.
