McGlothlin named president of SMCISD Board of Trustees

The San Marcos CISD Board of Trustees elected John McGlothlin as its new president during Monday’s regular meeting. 

McGlothlin — an at-large trustee — takes over for Clem Cantu, who served as president for three years and was elected as the new vice president. Cantu received a nomination for president but declined it saying: “I’d hate to draw a vote because I have a lot of respect for Mr. McGlothlin. I enjoyed serving as president and I know it’s a difficult decision to stand back and let someone take it over. I’m going to decline the nomination.” 

McGlothlin was elected unanimously by the board of trustees. 

“On a personal note, I’d like to thank former President Cantu for her services for the board,” McGlothlin said. “I thought when she came on we were less of a team than we are today and that we’ve had. While we’re not perfect, we’ve had a period of greater calm and togetherness than I had experienced previously. And I think a lot of that is due, or all of that, most of that was due to her leadership, and so I really appreciate the time she served as well as the ambassador she was for the district.

“I’m honored to take the seat on a board, where five of the current members have served in this role and six of us have served as president or vice president,” McGlothlin continued. “Literally any of the seven us could lead and I appreciate the opportunity.”

Cantu was also elected unanimously for vice president. Kathy Hansen, District 4 trustee, and Miguel Arredondo, District 1 trustee, received nominations for secretary with Hansen being elected with four votes.

The board took action on four items during Monday’s meeting. The trustees unanimously approved budget amendments regarding increased food revenue and general revenue. 

The board nominated and approved Margie Villalpando — District 4 Trustee — as the district’s delegate for the Texas Associate School Board convention in Dallas on Sept. 20-22. Cantu was nominated and approved as an alternate delegate.  

The trustees approved the 2019-2020 school board meeting calendar, which would continue holding regular meetings on every third Monday of the month at 6 p.m. except for Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2020. 

The board approved a decrease in board travel budget for 2019-2020. The trustees tabled a discussion for the creation of a trustee finance committee for later discussion.

The SMCISD board will hold its next regular meeting on Monday, July 15 at 6 p.m. SMCISD will hold a public hearing on the school budget next Monday.