Senate to vote on nomination of former Herald staffer to EvCC board

Published 6:36 pm Monday, February 25, 2013

Former Herald editorial page editor Bob Bolerjack on Monday moved a step closer to securing confirmation as an Everett Community College trustee.

Without dissent, the Senate Higher Education Committee recommended confirming Bolerjack, who was nominated to the Board of Trustees in November by former Gov. Chris Gregoire. His confirmation now goes to the full Senate for a final vote.

Bolerjack left The Herald in June and now works for the Snohomish County Public Utility District. He told senators that in his 25-year career with The Herald, he kept his distance from actively engaging with organizations and serving on boards.

“Now that I don’t have that restriction, I want to get involved in my community,” he said.

Also Monday, the panel approved the confirmation of four other Gregoire appointees: Darrell S. Mitsunaga of Lake Washington Technical College, Lisa Chin of Bellevue College, Stephen Vincent of Lower Columbia College and Anna Franz of Big Bend Community College.

Monday’s hearings, like ones held last week, are a departure from recent practices of the committee.

In 2012, gubernatorial appointees did not appear in front of the committee before being confirmed by the Senate. In protest, two committee members, Sen. Michael Baumgartner, R-Spokane, and Sen. Val Stevens, R-Arlington, who is now retired, voted against confirming appointees to posts in higher education.