Scope Elects New Directors County Community Policing Group Fills Vacancies On Board

Fri., April 30, 1999

By Angie Gaddy angieg@spokesman.com

Members of Spokane county’s community oriented-policing effort voted Thursday night on a new board of directors to lead the organization.

Presidents from SCOPE offices across the county selected 13 people representing everything from schools to business.

Members were selected from a pool of about 35 people who said they would be willing to serve on SCOPE’s board.

All selections hinge on whether the members agree to serve. The vote comes a little more than a month after former SCOPE director Terry Carver quit after learning his $19,500 position would be cut at the end of March because funding ran out.

Sterk wants to turn Carver’s job into a full-time position with a salary ranging from $31,000 to $40,000.

For now, the new board will oversee the organization’s budget and hire a new coordinator, if county commissioners agree to fund it.

To help solve money problems, Sterk said he wants to combine efforts with Spokane COPS.

Under the plan, the two community-policing groups would split the cost of an administrator. Each would have its own coordinator.

For the past month, sheriff’s Lt. Gerry Fojtik has filled in as SCOPE coordinator until the board and SCOPE substation presidents can decide on a new coordinator.

“My big concern, of course, is for the health of SCOPE,” Sterk said. “That’s why we want to move forward as quickly as possible.”

Newly elected board members will meet with substation presidents May 14. They will elect a chair and create a plan to hire a new coordinator.

The former board was made up of former Sheriff John Goldman, Carver and Undersheriff Burel Schulz. That board has been defunct since Goldman and Carver left.

Sterk said the following people have been selected as the new board:

Vern Ziegler, of Ziegler Lumber; David Brody, WSU professor; Jamie SiJohn, with KXLY; Phil Snowden, superintendent of Cheney School District; Mark Prothero, Spokane Valley attorney; Rick Sharkey, pastor at Spokane Christian Center; Neal Powell, superintendent of Medical Lake School District; Norm Campbell, county resident; Patty Shea, with Avista Corp.; Jeanne Batson, Millwood mayor; Rose Kinney, with Spokane School District 81; Ron Chadwick, assistant principal of Mead High School; Skip Bonuccelli, with Central Valley School District.

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