ABOVE: After 24 years of service, Julie Laue had her last Fairmont School Board meeting Dec. 10.

FAIRMONT–Julie Laue, a Longtime Fairmont School Board member, had her last meeting on December 10, marking 24 years of service.

Laue said she has always been involved in the betterment of schools, even as a kid.

“I can remember coming home from school and telling my mom that I wasn’t happy with a long-term sub we had at our school,” she said. “She went to bat for all of our students and the frustrations kids were having.”

This early experience inspired Laue to continue looking for ways to make school better for all area youth. Some of her earliest work was with Ceylon’s school district before they merged with Fairmont. Laue worked on a committee that weighed various merger options, including Martin County West or even with a school in Iowa.

“At that time, we researched the best benefit for all the students,” she said. “Because of Fairmont’s size and the number of students from Ceylon that were added, Fairmont got the maximum Cooperation and Combination money for the school district, and it gave us benefits.”

Laue said not much has changed since joining the Fairmont School Board in 2001. While the members have changed, she said the board has always benefitted from having a central focus.

“What was best for all students, not just my student or my child, but all students,” Laue said.

Laue worked with four superintendents throughout her tenure. She said working with each one provided a different experience.

She first discussed joining the board with Dr. Ralph Miller, who was already looking to retire. One of Laue’s first major tasks was working with other members to decide on Miller’s replacement, Harlow “Butch” Hansen. She remembers him as being especially proficient in the numbers side of education.

“Hansen is the one that started [emphasizing] the committees and that we would work on different committees each year,” Laue said.

When Joe Brown took over, Laue said his enthusiasm for politics enriched several student’s lives.

“He took groups of students from Fairmont down to different rallies and stuff where different politicians were campaigning,” she said. “It was one of his things. He was very innovative; a really good out-of-the-box thinker.”

Fairmont’s current superintendent Andy Traetow first joined the district as a teacher, and Laue said she remembers interacting with him throughout his journey to becoming a superintendent.

“It’s a learning curve with each person I have worked with,” she said. “How they do things, because everybody has their way. They always have the importance of the student’s education and their needs, but it’s how we can benefit them [uniquely] with each one.”

Every election year, Laue said she has looked at her situation closely to ensure the school board was still the right path. This year, with Shayna Wolfe having run for one of the three seats, Laue said she felt ready to step aside.

But by no means is she done serving her community, which Laue said she is dedicated to moving forward. She’s currently weighing her options but said a future run for County Commissioner is not out of the question.

“I don’t know that I’m really for going any higher offices in the state at this time,” Laue said. “That’s up to the future. We’ll see what happens, what opens up, and what doors God leads me to.”