New Kent School Board director Teresa Gregory takes the oath of office from Superintendent Israel Vela during the Feb. 12 meeting. COURTESY PHOTO, Kent School District

New Kent School Board director Teresa Gregory takes the oath of office from Superintendent Israel Vela during the Feb. 12 meeting. COURTESY PHOTO, Kent School District

Kent School Board appoints Teresa Gregory to vacant seat

Gregory selected from among 7 finalists to replace Awale Farah

As the mother of two high school students, a former president of an homeowners association (HOA), a Girl Scouts troop leader and job experiences with Boeing and Microsoft, Teresa Gregory says she’s ready for the challenge of serving on the Kent School Board.

After six rounds of voting on three candidates, the current four board members voted 3-1 at a Feb. 11 special meeting to choose Gregory to replace Awale Farah, who resigned in December 2024 to spend more time with his family.

Gregory was sworn in Feb. 12 near the end of a regular board meeting as the new District 4 director until Dec. 10, 2025. She’s also eligible to run for the position this year. Candidates must file in May with a primary in August and general election in November.

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

“I have a passion for this community,” Gregory said during her interview with the board. “I am a product of the Kent School District and I think we can have strong leaders and build and grow the community. I want to see how we can do that together but with engagement and shared understanding is very important.”

Gregory, a 1990 graduate of Kentridge High School, said she joined an HOA after she bought a house because she’d complain and a neighbor suggested she should join the board and do something about it.

“I joined the board and eventually became president before I retired,” Gregory said. “I learned about negotiation and to balance needs of the public and the budget.”

Gregory said she volunteered at Sunrise Elementary School and Meridian Middle School as her kids grew up. They are now a senior and a sophomore at Kentwood High School.

Time, money and community engagement are the three main challenges facing parents, the board and the district, Gregory said.

She said with time you need to decide what to focus on. With money the key is spending it wisely and the last piece is community engagement, getting parents involved even when they think they are too busy.

“How you balance those three pieces and get down to priorities and what those are with a focus on time and money and engagement will follow,” she said.

The board asked Gregory why it’s important to address equity and inclusion as a board member.

“When you hire people that look like you, feel like you and sound like you, you get a very limited view,” Gregory said. “I’ve been a champion of diversity, equity and inclusion. If you all sound and look like you, you’re not going to get the best result.”

Gregory was asked what approach she would take to difficult topics, such as race, sexual orientation and politics.

“In my job (at Microsoft) I worked with a gentleman, a great guy and I loved working with him,” Gregory said. “Six months later, he was not in the address book. I was mad because I thought we had a connection.”

It turned out the man had transitioned to a woman with a new name.

“He didn’t know how to tell us,” Gregory said.

Later she told Gregory not to worry about what to call her.

“He said it was OK to call me he, because you called me that for years,” Gregory said. “There was a permission of understanding.”

When questioned by the board about her personal interests and qualities, Gregory said she has a passion for STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) and that she loves exploring science.

“The second thing I have is curiosity,” she said. “I love to learn and to explore and will ask inquisitive questions. I want to understand and ask clarifying questions about what we are trying to accomplish. I bring practical knowledge, I’m a commonsense person.”

Superintendent Israel Vela said in a prepared statement that he looks forward to having Gregory on the board.

“We are confident that Teresa Gregory will bring valuable perspectives and leadership to the Kent School Board,” Vela said.

Gregory’s first board meeting will be Feb. 26.

Six voting rounds

It took six rounds of voting for the four members to give at least three votes to one person. The board had narrowed the candidate list to seven earlier in the month and interviewed the seven at the Feb. 11 meeting.

After the interviews, which included 17 questions to each candidate, the board went into executive session to discuss the finalists before returning to an open meeting to vote.

Gregory received just one vote in the first round but eventually beat out David Stanford and Thomas Foege for the appointment. Andy Song, Tim Clark and Donald Cook voted for Gregory to give her the appointment. Meghin Margel voted no on Gregory and yes for Foege.

The other finalists who interviewed were Michael Taskey, Kathryn Parker, Justin James and Clifford Cawthon. Cawthon ran unsuccessfully in 2021 against incumbent Toni Troutner for the Kent City Council.

Twenty-two people applied for the vacant position. King County Elections verifies whether candidates are eligible. Five were ruled ineligible, leaving 17 candidates, according to a Feb. 14 email from a King County Elections spokesperson. Candidates had to be registered voters and live in District 4.

District 4 roughly has a north border of Southeast 223rd Street, a south border of South 272nd Street, an east border of 164th Avenue SE and a west border of 104th/108th Avenue SE. Schools within or near District 4 include Park Orchard Elementary, Daniel Elementary, Martin Sortun Elementary, Meridian Elementary, Crestwood Elementary, Mattson Middle School, Meridian Middle School and Kentwood High School.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated that 17 candidates were eligible for the vacant position.


Talk to us

Please share your story tips by emailing editor@kentreporter.com.

To share your opinion for publication, submit a letter through our website https://www.kentreporter.com/submit-letter/. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. (We’ll only publish your name and hometown.) Please keep letters to 300 words or less.

More in News

Courtesy Photo, King County
Two men face murder charges in 2024 Covington shooting

Incident reportedly started over a stolen bong; 18-year-old man fatally shot

State Sen. Tina Orwall, D-Des Moines. COURTESY PHOTO, Legislative Support Services
33rd District Community Town Hall set for Saturday, March 15

Meet Sen. Tina Orwall and Reps. Mia Gregerson and Edwin Obras to ask questions and discuss issues

FILE PHOTO
Sophia Sappa, left, the sister of Gabriel Coury, and their parents Michael and Shellie Coury at a 2023 vigil for Gabriel in Kent. He was killed along 132nd Avenue SE after being struck by a vehicle while riding his scooter.
Project aims to reduce vehicle crashes along deadly corridor

Traffic safety campaign targets 140th/132nd Avenue SE corridor in Renton, Kent, Auburn

t
Kent Police Blotter: Feb. 24 to March 11

Incidents include stolen vehicles, employee theft, police pursuit, shooting

t
Proposal to raise pay for Kent mayor, City Council members

Each scheduled to receive 3.6% cost-of-living increase; mayor’s pay would jump to $219,720 per year

State Rep. Debra Enteman, D-Kent. COURTESY PHOTO, Debra Enteman
Debate heats up over Ferguson’s request for $100M to hire more police

House bill sponsored by Kent Rep. Debra Entenman says more than just more officers needed

t
Emphasis patrols in Kent over the weekend lead to arrests

Focus on areas with high crime activity on the East Hill, West Hill and in the Valley

t
Kent Mayor Ralph fights for right to raise sales tax

She says Legislature should help reward Kent for its strong economic impact on state

Photo courtesy of Katherine Haman
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife staff clean up Caspian tern carcasses during the bird flu outbreak on Rat Island in Jefferson County, 2023.
How to navigate the bird flu in Washington state

“This looks like it might be the new normal,” said Chris Anderson, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Courtesy Photo, King County
Kent man sentenced for killing man who had affair with his girlfriend

Receives 18 years in prison for 2022 stabbing inside Des Moines apartment

t
Kent picks Scenic Hill’s ‘Sabella’ Curtis as Teacher of the Year

Kindergarten teacher says every student ‘deserves a dynamic, engaging and nurturing environment

t
Kent Mayor Dana Ralph to seek third four-year term

Ralph first elected mayor in 2017 and reelected in 2021