By By Ben Alexander/The Meridian Star
April 5, 2001
For the second time in about seven months, Elaine Maust may go before the city council seeking confirmation as a member of the Meridian school board.
Contacted by The Meridian Star Wednesday, Maust confirmed that Mayor John Robert Smith has talked to her about the position again.
At his biweekly press conference, Smith said he talked to "an individual" about taking a position on the city school board after board president James Vance's term expired earlier this month. Smith declined to identify the individual to whom he had talked.
But, in an editorial board interview with The Meridian Star earlier this year, Smith said he would nominate Maust again for the position. Maust's nomination in September 2000 was rejected by a 3-2 vote of the council.
At the time some council members said they were concerned about having a school board member from outside the city limits. Last month state lawmakers passed a bill encouraging Smith and the council to give the separate school district a representative on the board. If a resident from outside the city isn't approved, the bill allows parents to choose whether to send their children to either city or county schools.
Ben Alexander is a staff writer for The Meridian Star. E-mail him at balexander@themeridianstar.com.